Online Buyer's Guide
Where the Deals Are
By Rick Aristotle Munarriz (TMF Edible)
November 22, 2000
You know what you want. That's good. You've got one hand working the mouse. You've got your other hand grasping your credit card, rubbing your thumb over the raised block number lettering. You're feeling empowered. You're wearing some really cheesy looking bedroom slippers.
So, you're off to the hot shopping sensation of the new holiday season -- FoolMart! You've heard that Industry Focus 2001 makes for an ideal stocking stuffer. Maybe its the Ruykeyser Wreath or the Peppermint Piggy Bank that draws you in. Either way...
Okay, maybe you're not off to FoolMart. This time. Your first instinct might be to not stray too far from the creature comforts of your home page. If you are on America Online (NYSE: AOL), you might be won over by the Shop@AOL icon. If you're a Yahoo! (Nasdaq: YHOO) barfly, it's awfully tempting to stroll into Yahoo! Shopping.
Unfortunately, determined as you might be to close the sale quickly, this is basically the same thing as driving to your nearest high-rent shopping mall. The stores featured on these catch-all portal sites are the ones who paid for the right to be a tenant in these lease-intensive cybermalls. They are quality stores, sure. But, like any mall, the alternatives are limited and the rent is often passed on to the end user in merchandise markups.
Remember, you knew what you wanted to buy, not where you wanted to buy it. Wait a minute. Don't tell me you're not sure that you knew what you were looking for? Why didn't you tell me this five paragraphs ago?
Okay. Breathe out. That's fine. We've outlived Boo.com and online grocer Streamline.com (Nasdaq: SLNE) -- we can make it through this.
The Internet is ripe with sites like Consumer Reports and CNET that offer online product comparisons and reviews. If you need more than one voice, check out community product reviews at Epinions.com.
Set? Good. Let's get back to shopping portals. Don't worry. You didn't miss much while you were out. In essence, they offer the same convenience as your typical suburban strip mall, but you're not in your car, you're online. Every vendor -- no matter how distant -- is just one click away. Relish the notion and start somewhere else. Start everywhere else.
Like? Comparison sites. Places like mySimon, eCompare, and DealTime.com are perfect examples of sites that take full advantage of the Internet's strength -- information sharing. Type in what you're looking for, and they will spit back the prices different online retailers are selling it for. If all you want is a book or a CD, maybe you're just splitting hairs. Or are you?
A great feature at mySimon is that, not only can you sort by selling price, but also by the total price including each merchant's shipping rate. So, if I'm looking for the new Nine Days CD, and then sort by total price, I find 15 merchants carrying the same title, but it will cost me as little as $12.92 and as much as $18.47 to have it delivered.
The stakes get higher as we move into bigger-ticket items. If I wanted a low-end digital camcorder like the Hitachi VMD 865LA, I get four sellers at mySimon, ranging from $549 to $699. An Apple Computer (Nasdaq: AAPL) G4 Cube? The rift grows more than $200 apart.
However, not all comparison shopping sites are alike. DealTime had just one retailer listed with the Hitachi camcorder. However, the upside is that it was an entirely different retailer (in the middle of the range, pricewise). So, yes, sometimes comparison shopping also involves comparing the comparison-shopping sites themselves.
So, you've made it this far. You know what you want. You've checked out what others had to say about your choice. You've been able to screen a few retailers and have narrowed it down to a retailer you are comfortable with at a great price. You're ready to confirm the order. Your itchy finger is longing to click... but wait. Stop that shopping cart! You've only just begun to shave your costs.
Next: Getting it for Less »
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