Advice for Shopping Online

Whether you use any of the sites or services described on Cool Blue Bargains or not, here is some general advice on online shopping:

• Be a little skeptical. The internet is like one great big bazaar, so there is a lot of hard-sales pitches and come-ons to get your attention. Most of these are technically true, but misleading. Especially common online are "FREE" offers that are often linked to signing up for a service.  It is general internet marketing practice to overstate or hype the offer. It is also general practice to use "testimonials" as part of an aggressive sales strategy. 
  
  Just pay attention to the details and remember that e-commerce businesses still have to make a profit to stay in business. Like anywhere else, if the offer seems too good to be true, it probably is.



• Look for basic clues that the merchant is reputable: Unlike a "bricks and mortar" business that you can walk into and see the merchant, e-store merchants are invisible and can be located across town, across the country, or across the world. It is also easier to setup and close a web site than a store. But, the internet also offers the opportunity to get a great deal from a small business, so you don't need to avoid a site just because it is not a well-known company.
  
  Look for businesses that are willing to put their company name, phone number, and address on their web site. Even better is having a person's name (you then have some chance of tracking them down if you ever need to) or a customer service contact. 
  
  If you are nervous or are looking at an expensive item, email the contact first and see how they treat you. Sites that have been around a while are also good signs that the business is fair (or they would be out of business). At the very least, you can see how long they have had their website name, and who is behind the business by checking the domain database. (Click here to see how to do this.) There are also several "Better Business Bureau" type services that certify e-commerce site, but often only the larger businesses apply for these certifications. 
  
  
• Understand your rights: E-commerce within the US falls under the same general rules as mail-order*. This means that for the most part, you have 30 days to return the merchandise for refund (you may get stuck with shipping costs). *This is not legal advice so consult with your attorney for specifics.
  
  If you have a credit card, use that instead of "echeck" because you have 20-30 days to pay and can "freeze" the payment and have the credit card company help you get a refund if necessary.  This is part of the contract that the credit card companies have with the merchants who take them. (I hate to admit it but I once had to have my credit card company get a refund of more than a thousand dollars from an unreputable merchant.)  If you do not yet have a Visa or MasterCard, apply for one here. There are also some good online payment services like PayPal and Yahoo' payment service that monitor the merchants that use them.
  
  
• Use reasonable caution to protect your privacy: Under NO circumstances should you ever provide personal information like credit card numbers or Social Security numbers without having a secure page connection. Just look in the bottom right part of your browser frame (both Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator) for a closed gold lock symbol like the one shown at left.
  
  Beyond this, be aware of what their privacy policy is when you provide your name and email address (many sites publish it right on their web site). Most merchants, including me ;-) will offer a free newsletter to keep you as a potential customer. Good newsletters provide information that is useful to you with just enough advertising to offset its cost. Some are nothing but flagrant advertising promotions. I subscribed to one (for only a week) that sent me 10 advertising emails every single day. 
  
  You can also get a second email address at one of the free online services (Yahoo, Hotmail, Excite, Bigfoot ...) to use for requesting information and still remain somewhat anonymous.  Then if you find yourself getting a lot of junk email (spam) you can just cancel the account without having to change your ISP or tell all your friends a new email address.

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If you have other advice that you want to share with our readers, send it to me to include on this page. (feedback@coolbluebargains.com)

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