Internet Shopping

Internet Shopping Tips

Think of shopping on the internet like being approached on the street by a person with a bunch of goods under their overcoat. Not all internet vendors are illegitimate, but a good number of them are. You as a shopper need to be savvy in who you choose to deal with. There are some basic things that can help you assess whether or not you choose to purchase from a site: (See Sample 1 (JPG), Sample 2 (JPG), Sample 3 (JPG))

Address

Does the site have an actual physical address listed that you can verify through another source, phone book, lookup or through other records. Can you find them if something goes wrong. If you had to make a claim where would you go. websites can be from anywhere on earth, any place, any country or right next door. Legitimate internet businesses can be physically found.

Misspelling or Poorly Written Text

Are there spelling and grammar errors, a clue that there may be other problems or the site may not be from the native country, or legitimate.

Contact information

Is the email associated with the domain name? Names like contact@toys.com where toys.com is the site and is registered to the company (with real contact information and address) have more credibility than a site with an @yahoo.com, @hotmail.com or other mail service that can be obtained easily and just as easily disappear.

Other Things to Consider

How long have they been in business? This can be hard to tell but you can look for their history or activity on the internet as well. Try a search on the company and include "complaint" in your search.
Secure transactions should have https:// in the URL, the "s" after "http" being for secure.
Too good to be true usually is - use your common sense. There are many sites with fake goods and other scams to get your credit card or personal information. Some wait till months later to take advantage.

Online Shopping Resources

Be savvy as you shop and interact online.