Who was the champion of thrifty online shopping this holiday season? My dad.
While I heavily favor brick and mortar after having had several great customer service experiences this year in tech shops for large purchases, my dad believes price is the most important factor, so he buys most of his tech from eBay. Often these items fail, especially the cheap accessories, which is not surprising considering they cost him a few dollars (yet he bemoans, "they don't make anything like they used to"). I've introduced my dad to Etsy, but he thinks goods sold on the site are too expensive, so he returns to eBay time after time because paying more than $5 for a smartphone case doesn't seem reasonable.
While I do love shopping online as well, my habits are very different from my father's, and I was wondering if this is something that is generational and just skipped him. It seemed like 5 years ago the conversation was different, with my dad championing Walmart for the deals while I explained to him the wonders of the online marketplace. If I'm making a large purchase I want to build a relationship during the sale and so better cement the support foundation that will almost inevitably be needed.
I like returning to the same places and having people greet me by name, and my grandfather agreed, while my father could only shake his head at us. My grandfather loves the gents he buys lumber from know him and are always on the lookout for the kind of pieces he needs for his work (he makes classic wooden toys), and I understand why a store like that is worth going back to. Granted, not everything is always available locally and so shopping online is often necessary, but you can still have some of that relationship if you're shopping small even when using the internet.
The biggest point of difference that came up is when I can, I'd rather pay more to someone I like and purchase a quality object that lasts than go the "bargain" route, only to have it break after only a few uses. Is this true for everything? No, but give me an tablet case made by an artisan in Iceland any day over something possibly made under harsh conditions, cheaply, in a factory. The other similarity between my grandfather and I is that we're less likely to buy something than we are to make it, and are firmly in the less is more camp. We're also more than a little weirded out by bulk shopping and find Extreme Couponing to be all sorts of terrifying.
My dad says price is the most important and that I'm getting sucked in by marketing/liberal hype when what I really need to be is focused on the bottom line. He thinks my grandfather is old fashioned but that there's not excuse for me since I'm not 89 years old and I need to "get with the times." We say that there's a value in buying only what you need and doing it from businesses that you like.
Where do you stand?
(Images: 1. Flickr member Breibeest, licensed for use under Creative Commons, 2. Jason Loper)
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It's not always the case, but often you get what you pay for. Cheap often equals cheap.
I think its misleading to say that most items purchased from Ebay fail. I've been purchasing tech from Ebay for years, and have had mostly good experiences. If you know exactly what you're looking for, and you have a good sense about which sellers to buy from, Ebay can be a great value.
For my mother in law who thinks everything she buys is 'lemon', I always suggest buying tech stuff from places like Costco so she can easily return them if she doesn't like them.
For me, I am very price conscious so I spend hours looking for the best deal online for the quality stuff. I make sure I read at least a few reviews. For tech stuff, I tend to buy them from places like newegg.com and amazon.
My inlaws are leery of buying online, so they've always bought their tech stuff at Best Buy. I've finally convinced them to buy from Amazon this past christmas when they were going to buy a case for their new cellphone and BB had one case for $49.99, when they could buy one off Amazon for 1/3 that price.
For me, I usually buy tech online from Amazon, Newegg, Monoprice, and TigerDirect. If it's an emergency and I need it today, then I'll go to CompUsa/TigerDirect retail store.
You're mainly talking about accessories I assume, because the tech gadgets themselves are the same no matter what platform you buy them from. I don't shop in person very much any more, especially for something like electronics. I do the research online, see what seems to be best within the price range spelled out, and then order it from wherever has a good price on that particular gadget. I hate going to a store that doesn't have the inventory to have a good selection of items.
I also am not going to be all that trustful of the advice of salespeople. Take a gear head (or mechanical engineer) out with you to buy a car if you want to know how much salespeople are talking out of their elbows about technology. I feel better when I get a blank stare at a relatively simple question, because then at least they aren't lying to me. (But for goodness sake, you're selling cars, you should know how they, you know, go.)
Anyway, newegg and amazon all the way.
My father and I have the same dynamic, he only seems to care about getting the lowest price for things, regardless of how long it will last. While I prefer quality, and doing business with real people in person, even if that means paying a little more. Obviously, everyone wants to save a little money, but if it means I am going to have to replace whatever it is that much sooner, to me it is not worth it.
Tell your father to get off ebay and get on newegg.
It depends for me ... usually it depends on how quickly I want whatever I am buying. I always buy my Apple products from the Apple store (it's conveniently located near my office), but I got my newest TV online. I have never been a person that would purchase anything on eBay mainly because I've never really liked them as a company. I don't buy a lot of stuff anymore anyway- a few books here and there and that's about it. I would and do pay more to support a business that I like, but generally won't go out of my way to support a chain store like Best (Beast) Buy. If I purchase a DVD, Iusually buy it from Amazon (typically used, though). I'm not crazy about Amazon's business practices, but of the giant retailers, they are the least offensive.
Where and how people buy things are based on personal values and level of comfort. I don't believe that any person who is comfortable buying everything online can be argued into buying in a bricks-and-mortar store and vice versa. There is no right or wrong answer and unless someone is being majorly ripped off, I'd stay out of it. There are so many other useless things to argue about on the holidays such as who gets the wishbone.
You must be talking about a place like Abt or similar because in no way would I go to a Best Buy for anything over Amazon.
Both Abt and Best Buy still sell HDMI cables for %2000 markups (sometimes more), for instance. This is not a deal at all, and the people that know your name will be more than happy to suggest them with a smile.
Electronics, these days, are the very last thing I would buy at a retail location, because (as meecee pointed out already), the product does not change from store to store.
But I wouldn't do eBay nor Etsy for tech, either. Newegg, Amazon, or monoprice. You don't have to worry much about failed items because they mostly back everything sold.
Where do we buy our tech?
Cell phones at Best Buy -- locally, they have the best customer service, believe it or not, and the best deals. Upgrading your phone and whatnot can be a real PITA.
Tech accessories -- mostly Amazon.com with some occasional eBay, and the rare direct-from-manufacturer. I have a Prime membership to Amazon that makes it cost-effective for me to buy stuff there. Locally, that sort of thing tends to be overpriced.
iPads -- Our household has 3, and 2 of them were purchased from Best Buy. The remaining one was purchased directly from Apple.
Video game consoles and accessories -- GameStop. My husband frequently trades in old games for credit, making this a good deal.
Desktop Computers -- NewEgg.com has the best deals, when we've purchased. That's rarely. For example, I had to give up my 10-year-old desktop because McAfee no longer made antivirus files for it.
In order.
Brick and mortar store if price is close enough or will ask for price match. Some stores I favor and protect fiercely, such as Barnes and Noble. It would be a horrible thing for those stores to one day close like Borders.
Directly from the manufacturer. Examples being ram memory from Crucial.com or a computer from Apple.com.
Next would be specialist online merchants such as New Egg or Nook.
Last, and only if I can't find the item elsewhere, is Amazon. I try my best not to give that company any of my money as it has done the most to destroy brick and mortar stores on the race to the bottom of razor thin margins. That may sound good for the consumer, ala Walmart, but it's not good for competition and the shopping experience where one can actually see and touch items and where dedicated shops and merchants can provide superior knowledge and support of the products they sell.
I buy my books from a local shop - I know the owner, he's there just about every day, and over time he's made wonderful suggestions on books I never would have thought to pick up. I could get my books for $3-5 cheaper from Amazon, but going in the shop and supporting his business is worth that extra cost, at least to me.
However, if the only shop I had available to me was Barnes & Noble, I'd have no problem just buying off of Amazon.
I totally agree with that statement, and well said too.
I tend to do both online shopping, and brick and mortar stores, depending upon what I'm buying. For tech stuff or clothing, often times it's best to shop at the actual store to feel, test items out whenever possible, or to try on as it'll save you time in the long run, even if it means a bit more out of your pockebook, but it's the service that I am after, as well as any advice I may need.
For electronics, nothing replaces feeling, checking it out, seeing how something operates, how it feels in your hand, how it sounds and all that. The reason is, how something operates is very subjective, and so is audio and to one person, a tinny radio may sound fine, but for someone else, it may not be clear enough so testing out before you buy is often the best way as I see people just buy based on price, and find out it doesn't do what they think it does and have to return it, costing them time, and perhaps money before they can enjoy it.
A good case i point to the brick and mortar store was about 15 years ago when I bought 2 clock radios for 2 nieces. It took me much of the day, going from one store to another before I found 2 that met my criterias. Things like how it sounded, how easy was it to tune as in my price range, analog sliding rule tuner dials were the norm, how easy it was to set the clock/alarm, the features, how well labeled the main and secondary controls were, and where they were placed. In the end, I found 2 different models/brands of clock radios that met 90-95% of my criteria, and both were similarly priced, I think one was $12, the other slightly more, but I doubt it was $15.
I think they were pleased as punch as that was ON their wish lists for that year.
To me, it's often the thrill of the hunt as much as it is the actual purchase. That said, I've bought plenty from Amazon too when it's just a CD or DVD, I've been known to just get it there as their prices are good, and they often have a good selection of whatever you may need, or to find vintage items, Ebay is one of the better sources for that kind of shopping.
In the end, it depends and I never like to relegate myself to just one method when more than one suffices for most situations.
Why not buy cheap cases from China off eBay? The iPhone going in the case was made right next door to the case factory, for pennies, too.
I research the products online, purchase online. If I feel the urge to demo a product at a B&M (rare), sometimes I'll make the purchase at the B&M. I'll only buy at B&M's with generous return/exchange policies. So I don't demo anything at BestBuy, for example, to spare myself a 15% "restocking" fee. Wal-Mart, Sam's Club, Staples, and Costco are my go-to B&M stores.
More recently, most of my researching can be done via a handful of product-specific websites and Amazon. If I'm on Amazon, I just filter for results that qualify for prime with at least 4 star reviews. This saves me time on researching while still providing me the opportunity to purchase the right item.