Shopping online

[oceanus]

I've had very good luck shopping online.  I always look for free shipping deals or promotional codes which at least give me a shipping discount.

Several times I've looked at something on the website, gone to the store and either it's not there/out of stock, or the selection is not very good.

I've been most pleased with WalMart and Nordstrom online and delivery services.  Nordstrom is free delivery and returns all the time.

But I've never returned anything that I bought online.

[lowspark]

I've bought clothes, shoes, computer components, home decor items and other items on line. I have returned some things but it's pretty easy to do so no problem there.

[Hmmmmm]

About the only items I don't buy online regularly is groceries, household cleaning items, shoes, and cosmetics. 

[PurpleFrog]

I buy almost everthing online bar groceries. I despise shopping, plus never seem to have the time. It gives me more chance to research the item and find the best deals. (last year Froglet got a remote controlled monster for Christmas it was  on offer from £120 to £25 and for his birthday this year Tadpole got a walker that turns in to a ride on £15 rather than £45 because it had a damaged box. I love online shopping

[kelly_jeanie]

I shop online a lot.  I live in a small town with minimal shopping options.  I do returns if necessary.

[Lynn2000]

I buy a lot from Amazon. I really like their service and they have a lot of different things now. I don't shop online as much from other places--I'm not as used to their interfaces and I just don't buy that much stuff from any one company, except Amazon, to make it worthwhile for me (especially if I won't get free shipping).

I don't like trying clothes on in stores so I've tried ordering clothes online--I would say most of the time I've had to send them back because they don't fit. Of course in a real store I would've had to take them back as well, but at least there I would have been able to hold them up to me first even if I didn't want to try them on. I find ordering clothes online works best if I know exactly what I want--brand, size, etc.--and I'm just getting another one, or the same thing in a different color.

I actually still shop a lot in regular stores, now that I think about it. I love the idea of shopping online and wish I could do it for more stuff, but for me it just doesn't make sense for a lot of items, like groceries. For many things I really like being able to see the item I'm going to buy in person before I purchase it. And, a lot of my shopping is a social activity that I do with other people.

[siamesecat2965]

A lot. But generally speaking, I won't order anything online that a. i have to pay shipping for, b. can't return to a store or doesn't have free return shipping.  The only exceptions being some stores that pretty much never offer free shipping, unless you spend x dollars. Or if its for a gift or something you simply can't get anywhere else.

IN those cases, I generally wont' buy anything unless there are several items I want, because in my mind, its not worth paying $8 to ship for one item, but for four it is, since then its just $2 per item. I know that's weird, but that's how my mind works.

I will ALWAYS look for a free or reduced shipping code and usually can find something. Even if its a 20% off code, then paying for shipping isn't so bad.

I order from all over, Makeup, beauty products, clothes, and I’ve recently started order a lot more from Amazon since I now have Prime (for a set annual fee you get free 2 day shipping). I signed up for that when I got my Kindle Fire so I could stream videos, and between that, and the shipping, well worth it to me.

The one thing I will not do, howver, is use my debit card online. I just don’t trust anything happening since its tied to my bank account. Credit cards I’m fine with, since if there’s an issue, you just dispute the charge, and you aren’t out any money. But with my debit, if someone gets my info, they can clean out my account, and while I will most likely get it back, I’m still out the funds until its resolved.

[ilrag]

I order from Amazon and Zappos all the time. Zappos has free returns so some times I'll order 2 sizes of shoes if I'm not sure and they are super chill about taking things back.

[Slartibartfast]

I order online all the time!  It's always worth it to check www.retailmenot.com and www.freeshipping.org - I find a coupon code on there about half the time (for larger chains).

[magicdomino]

Like others, I buy almost everything except cat litter and groceries.  I'd probably buy the cat litter online, but the shipping can get expensive.  Heck, I was shopping from catalogs when the Internet was an idea in the heads of Department of Defense employees. 

I don't enjoy shopping just for the sake of shopping, especially if I don't know exactly where to find the item that I want.  For instance, this morning I decided a pair of gray pants needed to be retired.  Therefore, I need a new pair of gray pants.  Rather than run all over the place,  finding pants in every color except gray and in my size, I went to Land's End, picked out a pair, and ordered them.  It's a style that I haven't tried before, but if they are truly unacceptable, Sears is right down the road fro returns.

[CakeBeret]

I have a little bit of an online shopping problem.

I have an Amazon Prime membership and a Zappos VIP membership, so I can have pretty much anything delivered to my house in 1-2 business days. Often Amazon's prices will be about what the item would cost at Target/WM, and I don't have the hassle of driving to the store and dealing with crowds.

Amazon has been really good to me, with great customer service. Their return policies are generous, and they pay return shipping if there's a problem with an item.

I adore Zappos, even though I don't order from them too much. They offer free return shipping, which is a major perk. I can order six pairs of shoes, try them all on and pick my favorite, and return the remaining 5 pairs. Once, they somehow got a pair of snowboots for DH to hour house on a Saturday afternoon, after having ordered them at 9pm the night before.

I don't tend to buy clothes online very much, though. I can be difficult to fit properly so I usually have to suck it up and go to a store.

[DottyG]

I abhor clothes' shopping with a passion.  So I pretty much get all my clothes online.  And, now that I've been properly fitted for bras and know the styles that will work for me, I can even do undies shopping via the internet, too.

I've gotten to where I do most of my gift shopping online as well.  I hate going the mall even more than mere clothes shopping.  Any way I can get out of going there is a wonderful thing.

And I strongly back Slart's recommendation of www.retailmenot.com.  I won't buy anything online without checking that first.  I've gotten stuff for over 50% or more off just by being wise in checking that first.  And that comes to food purchases, too.  Don't order pizza online without going to that site first.

[Softly Spoken]

I don't drive and I live in an expensive city, so online is my default for buying many things. I used to only buy books on Amazon. Now I love being able to find other items through their marketplace, and the prices are often amazingly low.

Example: I had to replace a bulb in a full spectrum reading lamp that my mother ordered from a catalog more than 8 years ago. Even if a local store had carried them, I don't usually go to home stores without a longer list to make it a more productive trip (effort vs. reward since anything out of walking distance is a P.I.T.A. and a time-suck ). I just put "full spectrum lamp bulb" in the Amazon search engine and in a matter of seconds found myself looking at a picture of a bulb that was identical to the burned out one in my hand.  By contrast, I could have walked to the hardware store which is only 3 blocks away, and had them tell me they didn't have it because (while they carry good basics) they are too small. No thanks!

I ordered a new vacuum cleaner online from Home Depo because they were too far away. I was glad when I saw the box sitting on my porch - no way would I have taken that home on the bus! 

I don't like ordering things online if they need to be tested or need visual/tactile inspection before buying. Sometimes I have to, but it will depend on their return policy and how well I know the company. I don't like ordering clothes, definitely not shoes. However, since I am plus size I basically have to order things online and hope they fit.  I have trouble ordering things that may not be done justice by photograph are not ordered online if they are really expensive. So I order a lot of stuff online but I am still kind of picky.

I order specialty food online (Schwans frozen food and Wisconsin cheese curds), but I live close to a grocery store so not that much food shopping online.

Online is awesome if the thing you want is rare, out of print/production, out of season locally, discontinued, etc.

ETA: to make it easier to read 

[Hmmmmm]

I have a little bit of an online shopping problem.

I have an Amazon Prime membership and a Zappos VIP membership, so I can have pretty much anything delivered to my house in 1-2 business days. Often Amazon's prices will be about what the item would cost at Target/WM, and I don't have the hassle of driving to the store and dealing with crowds.

Amazon has been really good to me, with great customer service. Their return policies are generous, and they pay return shipping if there's a problem with an item.

I adore Zappos, even though I don't order from them too much. They offer free return shipping, which is a major perk. I can order six pairs of shoes, try them all on and pick my favorite, and return the remaining 5 pairs. Once, they somehow got a pair of snowboots for DH to hour house on a Saturday afternoon, after having ordered them at 9pm the night before.

I don't tend to buy clothes online very much, though. I can be difficult to fit properly so I usually have to suck it up and go to a store.

Well, I said I didn't order shoes, but I'll admit to doing this. They seem to actually encourage it and make the return super easy.

And we also had an Amazon order show up in less than 24 hours. We were shocked.

[HoneyBee42]

If I can, I shop online (clothes, electronics, etc).  There's only been one time when I had an issue getting the stuff I had ordered, and that was the fault of the post office (which that company used for their standard delivery), but the police helped me get that straightened out.

I hate shopping (where people are) with a passion.  Shopping online, I have been pretty successful although I still miss MyShape (which would have you take a gazillion measurements, not just the usual bust/waist/hips and then recommend what size to order in a particular brand as well as sorting out which things would be most flattering on the shape one has--I still get a ton of compliments whenever I wear clothes purchased through MyShape).