by Carmel Brulez

Created on: October 18, 2009   Last Updated: October 19, 2009

Online shopping has become much easier, has a lot of advantages and is very popular. As with everything, however, there are pitfalls too.

The biggest pitfall to online shopping is that you have to order the item and then wait for it to arrive, whereas if are able to purchase it from a local shop you can have it straight away.

When you order things online there is the risk that the people you pay to send you your goods do not. They are not local so you cannot go around there to discuss it with them, you probably cannot get any address or phone number and if you send them an email they may just ignore it. Most online stores are reputable and would not treat their customers this way, but there is this risk.

You also have the risk that you are sent something you did not order. The wrong colour, size or a totally different item. Then you have the hassle of getting it back to the supplier and hoping they send the correct one next time, which means you have to wait even longer. This may add another two weeks onto the amount of time you expected it would be before you had your item.

Some items may get lost in the post through no fault of the supplier. You wait and wait and then.... nothing ! Wow. Do you wait a bit longer in case it got held up or what? You have paid for it. It belongs to you. This is unlikely but it is a possibility.

Sometimes an item is described in flowing terms yet when it arrives it turns out to be not as fabulous as expected. Perhaps it is made of inferior materials. If you had had a chance to see the item close up in a shop you could have checked this out first.

If you are ordering a large item you may be expected to take time off of work to be there for when it arrives. They cannot tell you which day it is coming, or can only tell you morning or afternoon. This can be exasperating, but it least it only happens now and then. If you had been able to go to a local shop for the same item you may well have been able to take it home with you there and then.

There are pitfalls and advantages to everything. In my view the many advantages to online shopping make it the best way to shop. But we have a choice. We may do some of our shopping online and the rest in local shops. Choose the option that suits you best.

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