Nowadays, shopping doesn’t have to be place in a store, but also can be on the Internet. People are using the Internet for shopping more and more these days. The Internet is a useful tool that lets you book a hotel, send a gift to friends, buy an online ticket, or purchase favorite products. There are a lot of benefits that you could find from online shopping; however, there are also some problems and concerns may happen for the consumers. Therefore, I will provide some tips to help customers know how to avoid the problems and ensure that they have enjoyable online shopping. 

        Shopping online offers lots of benefits that customers won’t find in a store. First, convince is the biggest reason that people like do online shopping. For example, the Internet is open 7 days a week, 24 hours a day, so that buyers can shop anytime. Also, the goods can be ordered from any location and delivered directly to them. Second, online shopping offers the ability to compare prices and research available products. Therefore, consumers are able to find the best price. Even though, there are several benefits to do online shopping, before consumers decide to go shopping on the Internet, there are some potential problems that they should know how to avoide.

        There are some problems that people worry about when shopping online. First, they worry that their credit car number will be stolen. Second, they fear that their personal information will be abused. Third, the products received may not be what they promised. Moreover, some of the sellers might try to charge more than the original price. Last, customers could possibly be charged for a purchase they never made, or their credit card number might be used fraudulently at a later time.

        For these reasons, there are some tips that consumers should know while shopping online. First, customers should use a safe Internet browser, which complies with security standards. Second, research the company. Anyone can set up shop on the Internet, so the potential buyers should have a good idea of the merchant that they want to purchase from. Next, choose a creative password and keep it private; avoiding use of telephone numbers, birth dates or PIN numbers. In addition, a new option is the smart-chip credit card, which is coded for the purchase authorized with a personal swipe device that used at home. After ordering a purchase, buyers should make sure to print a copy of the purchase order and confirmation.

        Compared to shopping in a store, online shopping saves time and money, and provides more detailed information. On the other hand, some kinds of products such as clothing or shoes are difficult to check or exchange directly. However, most purchases, like books, electronic devices, tickets are much easy for consumers to buy online and possibly they can get a good deal. People could even buy a town or an island on the Internet! Here are some popular websites that people like to visit:

Ë        www.amazon.com

Ë        www.ebay.com

Ë        www.bestbookbuys.com

Ë        www.pricegrabber.com

Ë        www.bizrate.com

Ë        www.cntet.com

        E-commerce is big business and there are a lot of benefits from shopping online. However, there are also some potential risks. Before customers go shopping on the Internet, it is important to understand what the risks are and how to avoid them. Knowing these steps will ensure that shopping online is convenient and inexpensive.

August 2003