I love to shop online. It saves me time and a bit of my sanity. But there are some things you need to watch out for.
1. Never click on a link in a spam e-mail. Never, Never, Never. Period. I don’t care how good the deal sounds.
2. Always look for the padlock before entering any personal information.
3. Watch for sales. You can sign up for email alerts at your favorite sites.
4. Take time to compare prices. Just like shopping at the store, you want to make sure you’re getting the best price. And online – it’s easier to get from one store to another!
5. Pay attention to the amount you need to spend to get free shipping. many time, buying one more item will make shipping free. It’s like getting that item for free.
6. Shop where you can earn rebates.
7. Always right down or print out your reciept and tracking information. Email is not always reliable anymore. You may not get a copy if your filters stop it from getting through. And you want to be able to keep track until you recieve your order and make sure it’s ok.
In all the years that I’ve been shopping online, there was only one time when I didn’t get what I had ordered, and paid for. I ever ordered a bicycle one year. The postman was thrilled with me that year – NOT!
Online shopping is basically safe and secure as long as you take a few precautions. And the time and gas you’ll save! Plus, you can shop at 2 in the morning if that’s when you have some free time.
One more tip – make sure you get your holiday shopping done soon to avoid higher shipping fees, or risk not getting the presents in time!
Happy shopping!
Carole
a.k.a. – ‘Mother’