More online shopping tips!

I was speaking with our former principal at her retirement party a few weeks ago, and she expressed interest in learning more about online shopping.  I didn't even bring it up.  You should have seen the look on Traci's face.  Anyway, I promised to email her information about how to navigate the online shopping world.  I copied and pasted my former post about online shopping, and then I wrote even more.  Lucky for you, I've included most of the text here!  It still doesn't cover everything, but y'all, it's pretty darn close.  Buckle up.

I recommend Amazon.com for lots of different things--for music, they often offer assorted albums for $5 if you download them from the site.  Amazon does not have very many coupons or offer codes (but still search for them!); however, their prices are generally lower than you can find elsewhere.  It's still a good idea to search for a specific item on google, though (just enter the name of it in google after you've found it on Amazon and compare prices from other sites, keeping shipping costs in mind).

LandsEnd.com has great promotions on things all the time.  The key with that site is to wait until they have at least 20% off everything you buy (not just one item), plus free shipping (which comes with almost every promotion), and stock up on things then.  It's a good idea to shop their "overstocks" section since most of what's on there is highly discounted.  It's tougher to find sizes, but it's worth it when you can get a $25 turtleneck for twelve bucks!

Many sites have search categories that help you find just what you need.  Shoe sites like DSW.com and clothing sites like LandsEnd.com have menus on the side where you can choose size, style, color and other things that will narrow down what you see.  That's an excellent way to increase your shopping efficiency.  It allows you to only look at things that you can use instead of wading through all styles and sizes only to find that your size or color is out of stock.

Photos and shopper reviews are the final key to being a smart online shopper, especially when it comes to something like shoes.  Look at the construction of the shoe or garment and compare it to what you know about your foot shape or body type.  If you have a wide foot, look at the photo of the shoe from the top or from the bottom.  Does the shoe look wide enough?  Check user reviews to see if they agree.  Lots of the time, reviewers will tell you if the shoe is right on or too narrow/wide.  One or two reviews, maybe not as reliable.  If five users say the shoe runs narrow, believe them.  Even if the pictures look normal.  Clothing goes the same way -- does the garment look too fitted or too boxy when laid out?  It probably is (again, check reviews to see).  

If the site doesn't have reviews or if no reviews have been posted yet, check the return policy -- if they have a good one, order it and try it out.  Sites that have actual stores allow you to return items to the store; ones without stores will often pay for your return shipping if you aren't satisfied.  But it's always a good idea to check the return policy for every site, and be sure to check designer garments, swimsuits, and other often-unreturnable things to make sure the return policy applies to that particular item.  Always check the shipping costs for the site before placing an order, too.  Sometimes that's how they'll get you.  If you aren't eligible for free shipping, that is. ;-)

Happy deal-hunting!