tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13445517.post115388709441135189..comments2024-03-01T00:20:49.948-08:00Comments on the curious shopper: Stores will never diesarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07734068259421243637noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13445517.post-63335415788705273562007-03-01T17:36:00.000-08:002007-03-01T17:36:00.000-08:00The difficulty I see with the choices in the super...The difficulty I see with the choices in the supermarkets is that so many of them are "false choices". Many are even made by the same company, but have different labels. They are essentially the same thing in different packages. True choice is lacking - for example, in the produce department we no longer see anything that can't be shipped easily or has the wrong ratio of fruit to seed. The agricultural industry has severely narrowed our choices (which is why farmers' markets are beginning to make a comeback).<BR/><BR/>As for your point about knowing what you want and not knowing, I think it's valid to a point. I usually go to a brick-and-mortar store when I want some very specific items and I want them now. Groceries, for example. Or a book I just read about and want right away.<BR/><BR/>Oh, I am putting that book on my wishlist. It sounds like just the ticket to me, just the type book I love to read. Along with all the other types. Thanks for the recommendation!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13445517.post-1157680840334344702006-09-07T19:00:00.000-07:002006-09-07T19:00:00.000-07:00I have just included you in a post at http://floor...I have just included you in a post at http://flooringtheconsumer.blogspot.com and listed you in my blogroll. I really enjoy your blog.CB Whittemorehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03737846177421292411noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13445517.post-1156344512209920982006-08-23T07:48:00.000-07:002006-08-23T07:48:00.000-07:00Sara.., I agree with you on what you said about wh...Sara.., I agree with you on what you said about when to use a website for shopping and when to use the brick and mortar stores..but then I disagree on your point made in the first few lines, about too many products ruining the experience...<BR/><BR/>Well, let me speak in the Indian perspective..I have lived through two phases - pre 1991 and post 1991 when the economy was liberalised.. and I can see a huge difference in what I get to choose..<BR/><BR/>Back then, everything had not more than two brands in the category...Yes, we never had to worry about what brand to go for..but the quality was bad as well..but now, the simple concept called compeitition is giving me so much value for my money...i will never want to let go of this...so, from my experience.., too many is not bad at all...Anandhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17081797537780680742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13445517.post-1154362009209998222006-07-31T09:06:00.000-07:002006-07-31T09:06:00.000-07:00I have been browsing the Internet for kitchen furn...I have been browsing the Internet for kitchen furniture. I found my "dream table" and some great chairs online, but would be reluctant to order them without seeing them in person, particularly the chairs. How would I know if they were too tall, too wide, or uncomfortable? But where are the stores that have these items on display? Very hard to locate!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13445517.post-1153965177648246632006-07-26T18:52:00.000-07:002006-07-26T18:52:00.000-07:00Thanks Stacy and Hillary for your great points.How...Thanks Stacy and Hillary for your great points.<BR/><BR/>How about this. If you can type your item into a search box, and get back meaningful results, you officially "know what you want." At least in my book.<BR/><BR/>You don't have to know the exact item (ie "The Lonely Planet China Guide") but you have to know enough about the item to narrow down the world of, say, books. Try typing "book" into google and you get back a bunch of new search engines, confused that you haven't been more specific.<BR/><BR/>If you just know you want a video camera, a store will give you a better experience of exploring and perusing. That's not to say you couldn't learn about the item online, or find way more detailed, objective or opinionated information. You can read that it weighs 2.5 pounds, but how does that feel in your hand?sarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07734068259421243637noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13445517.post-1153943750613842082006-07-26T12:55:00.000-07:002006-07-26T12:55:00.000-07:00obviously certain products will cross the boundari...obviously certain products will cross the boundaries set forth by your 2x2 assertion. <BR/><BR/>in the zappos example, shoes have certain standards based off of brand, sizing, etc. i would order shoes by trusted brands online, certainly if i owned the brand before and knew my sizing. i'm generally a size 8 but that can fluctuate. with most clothing (and sometimes shoes), it's not as straight-forward. i would not want to have to deal with ordering the same product in various sizes (esp. since most online places don't offer free return shipping) to find the right fit. this would esp. be difficult with unknown brands.<BR/><BR/>in zach's example (on your flickr site) of books, he claims that you can browse online easily because of user reviews and stuff. first, this asserts that you DO know what you want (a book about china for example) and is of a product where there's only one level of unknown (whether you will like the book). there are no fit/quality of product issues that makes online shopping difficult. with books, if all i knew was that i wanted one, walking around borders and having that experience of just feeling out what might appeal to me is HUGE; looking at covers, reading book jackets, and stuff like that.<BR/><BR/>as for brick-and-morter stores, i think that some are better at immediately helping you find stuff when you know what you are looking for than others are. obviously employees can help (which i'm not all that into), but often signage and organization are especially superior. okay...so i can't really think of a great example, but stores like the apple store (which is super-open and easy to see products/features) or stores with products that are highly organized (uh, like book stores) can be good at this.<BR/><BR/>while browsing shopping sites online can be a completely gratifying way to spend my working hours, i wouldn't give up wandering around real stores for anything. i think when it comes to fashion, especially, inspiration comes from the immersion. <BR/><BR/>lastly, i also think that all of our opinions are coming from being people who are extremely internet-savvy. it's going to be a LOOOOOONG time before my mom would do any, if all, of her shopping online.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13445517.post-1153921121667048292006-07-26T06:38:00.000-07:002006-07-26T06:38:00.000-07:00I think a website that is beginning to fit the "I ...I think a website that is beginning to fit the "I don't know what I want" niche very well is Zappos.com, a shoe store. They do it in quite a simple way, too: free shipping AND free return shipping. <BR/><BR/>My old roommate (who, granted, is a bit of an obsessive online shopper) was the perfect person for this ploy. She would order 10 different pairs of black heels on Zappos. They would all arrive 1 to 2 days later. She would spend the evening trying them all on. Then, she would return 9 of them. It's not immediate satisfaction like at a store (and I'm sure her credit card was a morass of charges and un-charges) but Zappos made it EASY to try things on...and they had a better selection than you'd find in an entire mall worth of shoe stores.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com