| Why we should all be CybershoppersEve Liu July 20, 2016 
I have come to observe that more of my friends and family are making the switch from conventional to online shopping. I am not the least surprised as Singapore has one of the highest smartphone penetration rates in the world and Singaporeans admittedly love shopping with a capital L! In fact, just for the record, we are Southeast Asia's top online shoppers.
More and more retailers have started peddling their wares online to keep up with the wave of online shoppers who are savvy about the benefits of cybershopping. You can buy virtually anything under the sun through a web portal - from makeup to lingerie, food to furniture and books to sex toys.
E-commerce has definitely evolved. In fact, it is a booming business. Online consumers will grow to 1.623 billion in 2018 from 1.079 billion in 2013 according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. Shopping has hit a heady high.
So, why is online shopping the new religion? |
1. SAVE MONEY WITH BETTER DEALSShopping online means you can browse and compare prices while doing this can usually take up to hours at a mall. A survey conducted by Singapore Polytechnic last year revealed that youths prefer shopping online as they can find cheaper items. And it's true. Many online retailers offer attractive discount coupons and rebates. |
2. AN OCEAN OF POSSIBILITIESShopping online is just like walking into a hundred stores with an efficient salesperson on the side to recommend complementary items within minutes. You are presented with a wide variety of options in your preferred style or taste. Malls and high rental mean limited physical space to showcase products. |
3. THE IMPORTANCE OF COMPARABILITYNot only do you get to compare prices, but you can also compare a host of other features and functions at the click of a mouse. The power of search engines makes hunting for what we want so much more efficient and enjoyable. |
4. SAVES PRECIOUS TIMEI don't know about you but fighting with crowds and waiting in line just isn't my thing. Throw in kids-gone-wild and see what you get. Try shopping on weekends or public holidays too. And did I mention the frustration of not being able to find parking space? |
5. BETTER PRE-SHOPPING RESEARCHA lot of online shops come complete with first-hand shopper reviews to give you feedback on the user experience and product critique. This means you can make more informed choices which lead to better purchase decisions. |
6. NO PESKY SALESPEOPLE!Shopping online eliminates salespeople who try to upsell their wares and stalk you while you are trying hard to make mental calculations of their complex promotions. |
7. IT'S ALL ABOUT CONVENIENCEYou can literally be in your pyjamas or whatever weird garb you're usually decked out in while surfing the net in the comfort of your home. Ideal for those who work shifts, mothers who don't want to lug their children around and those who need their cats and other pets on their laps while shopping. |
8. BE A TRENDY-LADY OR HIP-MANMany sites also share the latest in industry trends and updates in a bid to attract their customers. Content-driven sites mean you have more interesting and useful information related to your purchase, right at your fingertips. Moreover, some sites feature carefully curated products or Editor's picks so that you can zoom in quickly on what's hot. |
Don't get me wrong. I don't mean we should all just blindly jump on the bandwagon as there are downsides to consider as with anything else. But secure online payment services like Paypal and the added safety assurance of making payment with credit cards are a given these days and there are many safety mechanisms in place and precautions you can take as a savvy cybershopper.
At the end of the day, what more could I ask for if I could shop endlessly while lounging around with my signature messy hair, an “ugly” un-made up face and my favourite track entertaining me in the background? I'm converted. |
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