Nowadays, millions of us prefer to shop online. Getting the most from e-commerce means developing a little bit of experience and employing a few worthwhile tips and tricks. Let’s run through a few of the more effective of these.
Know Your Measurements and Read Reviews
Shopping for clothes online can be difficult. When you can’t try prospective purchases in a changing room, you leave yourself open to the possibility that something won’t fit quite right. Make sure that you know exactly what size you are, but be aware that sizing can vary from one brand to the next. It’s therefore worth glancing at reviews – in some cases, you might find insights into the fit of an item. If clothes from a given source are consistently tighter than average, for example, you might look to go for a larger size than you normally do.
Stay Safe by Using Secure Websites and Payment Methods
Online shopping brings with it the possibility that you’ll be scammed. Fortunately, it’s easy to avoid this by sticking to the reputable sites. At the very least, encryption should be a requirement. You can tell whether a given site is encrypted via HTTPS, thanks to the padlock icon in the URL. In many cases, a browser will provide a large red message indicating that a connection is not secure.
The way you pay also matters. If you use a credit card, then you’ll benefit from an extra layer of protection if the retailer suddenly goes bust. The same applies to popular payment services like PayPal and Payoneer.
Protect Your Accounts with a Password Manager
If a malicious person gains access to your account with a given online retailer, then they may be able to impersonate you elsewhere on the internet. Often, breaches can go undetected, meaning that you’ll suffer without knowing it. Make sure that your passwords are secure and difficult to guess. The best way to do this is with the aid of a free password manager, which will fill in the password every time it’s called for.
Take Advantage of Loyalty Programs and Discounts
The online retail space is highly competitive. You might be offered special discounts for signing up to a mailing list, or for participating in the right loyalty program. Sometimes, you’ll be offered a discount after you abandon your shopping cart, which makes it worth doing this on large purchases. If you are offered a voucher, but you forget to use it, then don’t assume that it won’t work – sometimes, even expired codes will save you money. There are also special services like Honey, which will search for and apply discount codes on your behalf.
