Why I Prefer In Store VS. Online Shopping
With the advancement of online shopping, there is no doubt many conveniences. With websites Price putting you on a deal alert list so people can be informed when an item they want has gone down in price, effectively saving them money. For people that are super-busy not just with work, but after-work and weekend activities like helping kids with homework, recreational sports, side jobs, house chores, social commitments, etc., this is especially useful. And don’t forget more and more online merchants are offering incentives such as free shipping, promo codes, and rebates. Of course I’m busy too; maybe not super busy. And this may be one of the reasons why I like to and prefer the go to physical stores VS engaging in online shopping.
To be honest, offline stores nowadays are getting more advanced and giving a tough competition to online shops. I have heard that some of the land-based shops offer contactless shopping capabilities. Perhaps they use the Vantiq Smart Retail Solution or something similar to it to provide a seamless and safe shopping experience through automatic checkout via facial recognition and virtual queueing. I mean, if this is true, then I would fall more in love with offline shopping.
Don’t get me wrong, when I am in the market for purchasing big ticket, or even some small to medium ticket items, I almost always first Google the item, a similar item, SKU number or whatever is pertinent to find the best deal. But if there is a physical store available, I look forward to going there seeing how it works, how it feels, does it fit right, and test the quality and durability. I agree that most things are now available online, with a variety of options to choose from. For example, even medicines are now available online. Companies are using AI-and-human collaboration platforms similar to Quantified to analyze the performance of sales team members. These modifications have resulted in commendable changes in the way people shop online. Still, I’m stuck with physical stores probably because I like the fresh air and the physical presence of people.
Groceries – In Store All The Way
There are a few items in which we buy the store brand and have never noticed a real difference (some paper products, cough and cold medicine, breakfast bars and other snacks). Not all online merchants will offer their specific store brands for all items. For Target, they have Archer Farms, for Walmart, they have Great Value, and for Weis they just call their store brands Weis, but I noticed for medicines the brand is called Top Care.
There are also in-store deals that you may not find online. For example, often times we’ll find at Walmart a loaf of French bread for a dollar! It’s so cheap because it will expire in the next 3-4 days, but we just plan our meals to use it the following day or day after. We stay disciplined because for several months now, we instituted a grocery list (also recommended by super-saver Clark Howard) that we maintain on our kitchen fridge. This old-fashioned yet still effective tool really helps us stay within budget. If there is a week where we can’t take the full list and get groceries as a family, I’ll just go by myself and get the essential items on there (i.e., bread, eggs, milk, and 2 kinds of chips – of course). 🙂
We see grocery shopping as an actual family activity we research items in the store together, look for the best prices, and mess around with each other at the store. So this isn’t really a chore for us as much as it is family time because that is essentially how we treat it. It doesn’t matter what you’re doing; you can find fun and recreation in almost anything. If we didn’t go grocery shopping once a week or two weeks, I’d probably be sitting on the couch watching a couple episodes of Lakefront Bargain Hunt on HGTV thinking why can’t I get a lake house. At the same time my 6-year old may be glued to his tablet. So going out to get groceries allows him to move around, learn about products, and help with putting things in the cart and on the belt and paying the cashier, although he never wants to use his own money. 🙂
Savings on Retail Clothing & Home Furnishings
Discount Brand Name Stores are becoming more and more popular. These include Marshalls, TJ Maxx, Ross and Rugged Warehouse. On the weekends whenever we visited the lines are definitely longer than regular department stores. These stores are not as organized as department stores and it may take a few minutes to find what you need. Or you may not find it at all. But if you do, chances are, the price will be pretty reasonable. The problem is these stores don’t have an online presence. I suppose it’s to keep their costs low, which makes total sense. If they soon look into implementing technology in their stores, like self-service shopping & payment kiosks (see this to know more) or the likes, then it’s likely that the long lines can be reduced and their customers can be happier too!
We do a lot of clothing and accessory shopping at these types of stores and I reckon we save 50% or more as compared to what we would spend at a department store. This estimate is from personal experience as it’s based on mistakes I made when I was a teenager as I would visit department stores instead to buy clothing and spent 50% more those past years!
Still to give myself comfort sometimes I will read the label of an item and do a quick Google search. And 9.9 times out of 10, I will find that I am saving significantly by buying the item from one of these discount retailers. For example, we paid about $30 for this big rustic-looking wall clock that we placed in our Family Room. This same clock was selling for $80 at two different home stores; almost triple the price!
Continue to Shop Online
There are still plenty of times when I decide to shop online. I use sites like Amazon and eBay quite a bit and some stuff is super-cheap there. For example, my phone cases always come from eBay. I bought a nice quality thick plastic case for my iPhone for $3.99 and free shipping! And I bought several of those matte screen protectors (like 4-5 in a pack) for like $2-3 also with free shipping. I always find phone cases to be much more costly in store vs online. Additionally, I bought this sunglasses neck cord strap thingi-ma-jingi online for $0.99 free shipping. At my local mall kiosk, the guy was charging $5.99! For little things like these, it’s always good to check the sellers rating to make sure others are satisfied with the product.
So do you prefer in store vs. online shopping, or vice versa? Have you come across challenges in each (e.g., delivery, customer service, returns) which have swayed your decision one way or another?
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SMM, I think you hit the pros and cons pretty well. My wife and I have a similar approach to online vs in store shopping as you detail out here. Tom
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It’s fascinating because we want to buy an appliance and I was waiting for it to go on sale on Cyber Monday, but’s it’s still the same price. I suppose you may need to be a bit more flexible to find a great deal and this is also why it sometimes pays to go to the store 🙂
I prefer in-store shopping for things I’m unfamiliar with. I may, and probably will do online research, but I need to see the item before I buy it. Otherwards, I don’t have a problem buying things online.
Yes! And to feel the quality of an item like a shirt or a couch can go a long way in determining how it will hold to regular wear and tear. 🙂
SMM, Many retailers offer price matching. If you find a lower price online for a product you want, just ask and more than likely the store you are at will match the lower price. Best of both worlds, lowest on line price at your local bricks and mortar store. Tom
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I’ve heard about this and see it in advertisements too. Many of the discount places I shop at already have the lowest price as compared to online retailers. And I think one reason is they do not spend a lot of money on online marketing (e.g., shopping portals and such).
SMM, interesting perspective. I myself am more of a fan of online shopping. When it comes to things like groceries I agree and go into the store. However most other products I would rather have delivered to me instead of wasting time visiting a store.
We usually visit stores on weeknights as oppose to weekends and make an outing out of it. But yes online shopping definitely has its convenience and one-click method is super-convenient, and also dangerous at times. This might sound weird but I don’t know if I want to make shopping that easy for me 🙂
It gives me time to ponder if I really need the item.
Hello
I prefer shoppining in store, whenever possible. When shopping for bigger ticket items like TV’s and furniture I want to experience them myself as opposed to relying on reviews. How often has a movie with bad reviews turned out to be great or vice versa. When shopping go lower cost items, i don’t find the savings to be significant especially when you factor in shipping.
Generally, we wait for sales are the store or when there is a promotion or coupon. Many stores will periodically send you coupons if sign up for there loyalty cards. Also, skimming the store fliers that arrive in the mail or newspaper often have nice coupons and promotions.
I think the biggest reason I prefer shopping local has nothing to do with economics. The local stores in town are always the first to donate to the school, the local sports teams, of charities.
Amazon and others are great companies, however they don’t support the community. I rather pay a few extra dollars to provide jobs and support to my local community.
That’s a great point about supporting the local community! Most of the stores we shop at are in our hometown too. But I will feel even better knowing that I am helping the employees there as well in terms of job security. And we get coupons in the mail too (what some may perceive as junk could be SAVINGS) and almost always buy based on sales promoted in those or at the stores themselves. 🙂
Hey SMM!
I mostly prefer online shopping due to the convenience of having stuff delivered to me (I’ve gotten spoiled by it). Also, between my wife and I we only have one car, and she’s usually using it (she commutes much more than I do). So, unless we go shopping together, I have to add the expense of an Uber to my shopping trip.
So in my case, the cost and convenience factors tilt towards online shopping.
Sounds good; definitely more convenient can’t argue with that. For the big-ticket items, do you two go together to stores (e.g. furniture, TVs, etc.)?
At this point, just for TVs (to see how they look in person). We used to buy furniture in-store, but are increasingly doing so online (even though it’s risky).
TVs, yes very important to see the store what the picture looks like. Although sometimes I think they only put those background images that look super-stunning. We aren’t going to watch those all the time – hahaha. I’ve had a bad experience with buying furniture online so would only buy tables and such, not items to sit or sleep on.
It depends on what I’m buying. If prices are the same, then in-store it is (even if it’s a standard electronics product). Unless it’s books. I pretty much get all of that online.
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I never buy books anymore which is why I love the library and their automatic renew system. But I do go online to check out book reviews to see which ones I should grab from the library 🙂
I usually prefer online shopping because it saves time and it’s convenient. In store shopping is so old school. We are living in a world where we don’t have time for our families so how do you expect someone to go for in store shopping.
I usually take my whole family shopping when we go. We make family time out of it. As long as we are all together. But at the same time, we engage in online shopping as well. Wherever the best deals are to be found is where we like to be. 🙂