Tips for Online Shopping

I wanted to write about this topic for a long time, but it was not until today that when a friend of mine asked me for the site to buy for a good lap top.

This is solely based on my experience. Some of you might have different opinions/tips.

• I would first research on an item that I m looking for. I would research by going sites like Epinions.com. This site provides reviews along with recommendations from other customers/consumers who have the same product you are looking for. I m not saying that you should totally depend on the consumer reviews, but its a starting point, and you will get some idea on the product.
• After I get some information on the item then I would search for that item on comparison shopping sites. Some of the comparison sites I visit include shopping.com, pricegrabber.com, shopping.yahoo.com, mysimon.com. You can read more on comparison sites on my previous post.
• Once you find the right price, make sure that you read the feedbacks left my customers to the merchant. Selecting the lowest price is not always an good idea. Sometimes, the merchant wants you to call them so that they can convince you to buy other extra stuff such as warranties, and other accessories.
• Please note that the price that appears might not be up to date, so you might want to confirm by calling the merchants.
• Next I would check whether the site is secured or not. There are number of ways to find whether the site is secured or not. You could look for the URL/website address that starts with "https://"
• You can also check for an image that looks like golden "padlock" at the bottom right of your browser, and when you just point your mouse over the lock, then you should be able to see "SSL secured" written.
• If you still feel unsafe then you can always call the seller and ask for other alternatives. Or you could even get information on seller by calling "Better Business Bureau."

Well this is some general tips. I m sure I might have left some out. I will try to add more later.

ps. Shopping.com, and Epinions.com is now part of Ebay.