Be savvy when you shop online

These days a rising number of people are doing their shopping online, with many different people purchasing their groceries and household goods via the Internet. With so many shoppers trying to cope with various other commitments such as work and family getting the time to go to the supermarket and queue up can be very difficult. However, the Internet has given busy people an opportunity to get their shopping from the comfort of their own homes with the touch of a button and get it all conveniently delivered to the door.

There are a number of benefits available for those that do their grocery shop online. The first is that they can do their shop at any time of the day or night without even having to leave their home, providing total convenience. The second is that they can get their groceries delivered conveniently to the door at a time to suit. Finally, there is plenty of choice available online, so shoppers can quickly find what they want without having to wander around the supermarket scouring the shelves.

There are also some other very important benefit to doing grocery shopping online, and one of the most important is that potentially shoppers could make a fairly sizeable saving compared to going to the supermarket to make their purchases. There are a number of ways in which consumers may be able to save money when shopping online.

Firstly, those that shop online are less likely to be without a list or be shopping on an empty stomach, and both of these things can increase the likelihood of impulse shopping, which can really add to the final bill. Another thing to bear in mind is that there are often special offers for online customers, which can be taken advantage off to boost savings even further.

Whilst there is generally a delivery charge to have your shopping brought to the doorstep the time of day that delivery is arranged for can affect the price. Shoppers should therefore aim for off peak hours if possible so that the delivery charge is lower.

Finally, shoppers can use sites such as mysupermarket.com where it is possible to do your shopping online and then see which of the major supermarkets offers you the shop for the least amount of money, which means even greater savings for the shopper. The site also allows shoppers to switch branded items to cheaper one with the click of a button, making this a fast and easy way to make savings.

Tags: Shoppers Drug Mart, shopping online, likelihood, shopping, saving

Exercising safety when shopping online

As many people will already know the Internet is home to a myriad of bargain covering a vast range of products and services. Whilst many consumers make the majority of their purchases via the Internet there are others that refuse to shop online because they are fearful about things such as security breaches and card fraud. Read more

Tags: price comparison site, online shopping, Paypal, clone site, Website, internet, Technology, Internet offers, Internet shopping sites, secure site

Can comparison sites be trusted?

In the past anyone that wanted to look at finding cheaper prices on various products or services had to go to the hassle of ringing around or trawling the shops to try and get a better deal, which was quite frankly an inconvenience that put many people off trying to get a better deal. Read more

Tags: money expert, Price comparison services, online shopping, mobile phones, broadband

Save yourself some money this Christmas

Whilst Christmas is now only around the corner there are still plenty of people that simply haven’t had the time or spare cash to get their Christmas shopping done as early as they may have liked to have done it. Read more

Tags: online shopping, shopping, Pricing, Credit card, Consumer behaviour, Retailing

Consumers becoming more comfortable with shopping online

A recent report has suggested that a rising number of consumers in the UK are becoming more comfortable with shopping online, and this is set to result in a huge boost in the number of businesses running their operations online. Read more

Tags: shopping, home, online shopping, internet, surprise, woman, huge boost, buyers and sellers

Dixons tries new tactic to beat retail rivals

High Street retail giant Dixon’s has decided to try a new tactic when it comes to beating rival retailers in the run up to Christmas. The retail giant has realised that whilst consumers want to save money on the cost of their purchases in the current difficult financial climate they also don’t want to risk purchasing something that they know little or nothing about for the sake of saving a few pounds, as this could mean that they end up with a totally unsuitable product. Read more

Tags: High Street, Electronic commerce, business, Advertising Standards Authority, online shopping, anything, number, Dixon's

Online shopping wars could start between supermarkets

It is thought that one supermarket may have sparked an online shopping war between the UK’s supermarket giants after announcing that it is eliminating delivery charges associated with having groceries that are ordered online delivered. Read more

Tags: supermarket giants, online shopping, good news, supermarkets, groceries

Fifty Percent of UK Shoppers Don’t Shop Online

According to a recent survey of the shopping preferences of UK consumers, over half of those surveyed say they are fearful of shopping online because they have to enter their credit card details on Internet shopping sites. Read more

Tags: Verified, privacy policy, internet security, online shopping, credit card details, Visa, percentage

Exercising safety when shopping online

Most of us these days have done some form of shopping online, whether it is shopping for groceries and household goods or whether it is buying gifts, entertainment, clothes, and even holidays. Shopping online has become more and more popular over recent years, with an increasing number of people choosing to enjoy the convenience, ease, and speed of shopping via the Internet. When you shop online you get to make your purchases from the comfort and privacy of your own home with no queues to worry about. You also get to enjoy incredible choice with products available from all around the world. Read more

Tags: form, risks, online shopping, debit, privacy

Shoppers choosing cash rather than credit

Consumers are cutting back on their credit card spending and increasingly using cash to pay for their purchases, it has been claimed.

A survey of 17,000 shops conducted by the British Retail Consortium (BRC) revealed that cash was used for 60 per cent of transactions last year, up from 54 per cent in 2006.

The BRC said this shows people are concerned about spending money they do not have and want to keep tight control of their finances.

Another issue raised by the BRC is the cost that credit card companies charge retailers, which is four times the amount of a cash transaction.

Consumers are forced to pay for the extra charges as retailers pass them on through increased prices.

“There should be a lower fixed fee per transaction which actually reflects the cost of processing, so new technology brings balanced benefits to retailers, consumers and banks,” said BRC director general Stephen Robertson.

Savings expert at Scottish Widows, Anne Young, recently said that young people get into trouble due to the “proliferation of credit” that is now available to them, adding that more should be done to educate people on managing their credit.

Tags: young people, Payment systems, Financial services, scottish widows, Business Finance, online shopping

Consumers’ impulse buys costs them

A love of impulse buying helped by credit cards and the internet is leaving Brits financially out of pocket, according to new research.

Findings from swiftcover.com show that 91 per cent of respondents made a regrettable impulse purchase last year with a further 60 per cent admitting to spending in excess of £100 last year on spontaneous buying.

A fifth of consumers blamed credit cards for their impulse spending while a further 26 per cent said the convenience of online shopping made them susceptible to

Tina Shortle from swiftcover.com. said: “Whether it’s a pair of killer heels, or the latest ‘must-have’ gadget, it seems that we’re addicted to spending now, paying later.”

He added: “But that means that we’ve also dropped our guard when it comes to ’sensible’ habits like shopping around and as a result we are getting stung by shops’ returns policies.”

The survey showed that seven out of ten people admitted that they do not bother to read returns policies before buying.

Meanwhile, Which? has reported that shoppers are opting for cheaper supermarkets as Asda and Lidl entered the top ten of stores used by consumers in a recent survey.

Tags: Technology Internet, consumer, killer heels, respondents, pocket

Three million use credit cards ‘every day’

Three million people in the UK use their credit cards every single day, it was claimed this week.

That amounts to nearly one in every ten of the UK’s 34 million credit card holders.

54 per cent were found to use their cards once a week, while 35 per cent use them once a month or less frequently.

The research was carried out by Abbey, itself a provider of credit cards.

Online shopping was found to be the most widespread use to which credit cards are put, with 20 million flexing their plastic over the internet.

Surprisingly, high street shopping proved to be less popular, with only 19 million spending on credit cards in real-world shops.

The research found that 57 per cent pay off their credit card bills every month in full, while only 3 per cent admit to having difficulties making regular payments.

Roger Lovering, managing director of Abbey Credit Cards, said: “There is no one way that people use their credit card and we see as many different spending patterns as there are people.”

Tags: provider, cent admit, Center for Responsible Lending, online shopping, high street shopping, cent, director