13 Advantages And Disadvantages Of Online Shopping
Today, with the aid of modern technology, we can conduct our shopping online from home. It offers many advantages which we cannot find in the traditional method of shopping.
Everything has both advantages and disadvantages attached to it and is called a trade-off. The same applies to the shopping done through the internet.
Here in this article, you will find the advantages and disadvantages of online shopping in detail.
You can also read; 5 Best Online Shopping Websites In Kenya
Advantages Of Online Shopping
Online shopping is a convenient and affordable way to shop. It offers more variety than you can get in a physical store and the ability to check out prices without leaving your home.
Here are the advantages of online shopping:
1. Selection
There are so many different websites out there with all sorts of different products that you’re guaranteed to find what you’re looking for somewhere on one of them.
2. Convenience
You can shop anytime, anywhere with no need to drive anywhere or leave your house. You can get up in the middle of the night and purchase whatever you desire without ever having to leave your bed.
3. Variety
Online stores offer a wide variety of products, unlike conventional stores. This gives shoppers more options to choose from when buying products or services. For example, if you want to buy a pair of shoes but don’t know which one to choose from, you can browse through hundreds of shoes online and see what fits your needs best before making a purchase decision.
4. Save Money
Online shopping saves money because it cuts out the middleman and allows you to buy directly from the manufacturer or supplier which in turn helps you save money on markups and commissions. You can also find amazing discounts and deals on websites like Amazon, eBay, Groupon, etc. if you are lucky enough to get them.
5. Compare prices
You can compare prices among different vendors before making a final decision about which one to buy from. If one vendor is charging much more than others for an item, you’ll be able to see that right away when you compare prices online instead of having to drive all over town looking at every store that carries what you want until you find one that’s selling it cheaply enough for your budget.
6. Save Time
It saves your time and energy by not having to go out and buy things. You need not wait in long queues, drive anywhere or even stand in front of a salesperson. All you have to do is just click on a button on your computer or mobile phone and voila! It’s done.
7. Safe Shopping
When you buy from an online store that has secure payment options like PayPal, it’s safer than giving your credit card number over the phone or the internet because your information is encrypted so no one else can access it. This means that if someone gets hold of your credit card information while making a purchase online, they won’t be able to use it elsewhere.
8. Reviews and ratings
Most websites have reviews and ratings for products that allow customers to share their experiences and help them decide whether or not they want to buy a certain product based on what others have said about it before them.
Disadvantages Of Online Shopping
While the appeal of online shopping is ever-growing, there are still some disadvantages. The following are some of the advantages and disadvantages of online shopping:
1. No personal touch
Online stores don’t have any displays for customers to browse and touch products, so if you’re shopping for something like clothing or bedding, you don’t know if it will fit or feel right until after you’ve ordered it and gotten it home. Even clothes that look good on models might not look so great on real people who aren’t professional models.
2. High shipping cost
Sometimes shipping costs can be high and unpredictable, especially when buying fragile items like electronics or fragile kitchenware that need special packaging. The shipping cost can easily double the price of what you paid for the item itself.
3. No face-to-face contact with the seller
With most retailers, you have no idea who you will be dealing with when a problem arises. If you’re buying from a reputable company, then this shouldn’t be a problem, but if you’re buying from a smaller business or an individual, it may be difficult to get your problem resolved if something goes wrong.
4. It can take a while for items to ship and arrive
Shipping times vary by store and size of the order, but generally, it takes at least a few days for an item to get from the warehouse where it’s stored to your front door. Even if you pay extra for expedited shipping, items may still take longer than expected due to weather delays or other issues beyond the seller’s control.
5. No ability to inspect the product before purchasing
Another big disadvantage of online shopping is that there isn’t much opportunity to inspect the product before buying it.
When shopping at physical stores, you can try on clothes and shoes, look at electronics, and test out appliances and all kinds of other things before making a purchase decision. When you shop online, though, all you have is what other people say about their experiences with products which might not be accurate or up-to-date information at all times.
6. It could be a fake or not as described
The biggest risk with online shopping is that you might end up buying something fake or not as described by the seller. This can happen if a product has been damaged in transit or if it was used by someone else before it was sold to you.
7. It’s hard to return items bought online
If you buy something online, there’s no way to try it out first or return it if it doesn’t fit or work as expected. If you find an item cheaper elsewhere, too bad, you’re stuck with what you’ve bought.
In Conclusion
Online shopping has been revolutionized by the internet, and there are now millions of online stores i.e. Amazon available to fulfill your online shopping needs. In this article, we have spent our time looking at the reasons that make online shopping the most preferred option over conventional shopping, as well as the precautions to be considered before going for any online purchase.
You can also read; 10 Best Online Computer Shops In Kenya
