“Buy what you don’t have yet, or what you really want, which can be mixed with what you already own. Buy only because something excites you, not just for the simple act of shopping.”
― Karl Lagerfeld
For savvy shoppers , it has become a popular option to conduct thorough Products and Prices reviews and checks before embarking on their shopping sprees on line and in stores .
Recently , I decided to treat myself and give my kitchen "a make-over" ; by replacing the kitchen gadgets I had used for years with new and latest designs of a bigger frost-free fridge - freezer , a new washing machine , a complete Tea set , a shiny Red four-slice toaster and a shiny Red kettle.
To get the best products and prices reviews , I decided to check for them on the websites of products reviews experts who know which sellers are offering the best deals for the products I desired to buy.
With a vast array of products choices before me., to say the least is to say I was spoilt for choice,
I had loads of fun and laughter reading all the products reviews !
After reading all the product reviews , I couldn't decide which ones to choose, because there were so many lovely products to choose from , which were within the same price range.
Finally , as usual, I decided to choose the best quality products with the best brand reputation, though they were a bit more expensive than the ones with lower brand names .
Surprisingly , minutes after I logged off the various shopping sites , my Amazon and eBay accounts , my smart phone , email and the side panel of my Face Book accounts were inundated with flashes of adverts of more and more top of the range designs of frost-free freezers , red four -slice toasters and kettles , and washing machines ; the latest deals in the market!
This would give you an idea of how competitive sellers have become .
How, you may wonder, did these stores know my phone number , my email , Face book accounts and other accounts ?
They know because the websites use internet cookies and because prior to that time , I had shopped and paid for some other goods on their websites using my lap top or my smart phone.
When you shop on line , you pay with bank cards or with store cards only. These cards contain all your contact details including your home address , phone number and email accounts.
Also your email address and phone number could have been obtained in the past from you by the stores to enable them to confirm your payment for the goods by text or by email and to inform you of your goods delivery tracking.
As for how these stores would trace any one's Face Book account, the stores like anybody else could easily trace that one out .
Goods on offer in stores and on line which compete for the shoppers' attention range from the smallest items like office or household bric-à-brac to essential stuff like foods , drinks , medicines , insurance policies , fashion wears , cosmetics , perfumes , jewellery and then the "heavies" such as computers, electronics , household gadgets, lap-tops, mobile phones ,cameras , cars , trucks , heavy machinery and even caravans , flats and houses and the list goes on.
It is the desire of every shopper to get value for their money .
When numerous similar products are claiming to be the best of the deals on offer , the decision to buy which one becomes a challenge and a time consuming effort .
Like I always do, when I am " at sea " about which product to choose, I would get the best deals by resorting to checking independent products reviews and comparison websites.
Product reviews and price checks are essential for millions of shoppers , especially for those who shop for high-priced goods on line , whereby it is impossible for them to do physical checks before they purchase their desired goods and for people who do not have the luxury of the time to spend on conducting such thorough reviews.
The best products reviews are obtained when the buyers do their own searches by using ready-made independent reviews and the recommendations of experts and of consumers who have used these products for some time; and so they have had a first-hand knowledge of the quality of the goods.
Are products' reviews and products prices comparison a waste of time and effort ?
Since when did looking before leaping become a waste of time?
It is a waste of time and effort to return goods purchased in a hurry .
When the quality of goods do not match what their advertisements described them to be; they are not fit for purpose . As such, more resources and time are wasted in in returning them to the sellers and ordering for their replacements .
" Since hunters have learnt to shoot without missing ; birds have learnt to fly without perching ".
It is not enough to rely on the manufacturers and sellers glowing reviews and descriptions of their products . For the reason of making high figure sales , these advertisements could be embellishing the facts about the quality of their goods.
Professional and reliable product reviews and price checks for all goods and services are best obtained from the independent product reviewers such as the Consumers' Protection Groups which are made up of popular review sites like : Which?, GoCompare, Confused.com, CNET , CompareSearch.com , TopConsumerReviews. com , AskJeeves.com, Buzzillions.com, reevoo.com, OmgiliProductsReviews, hotdiamonds , Ask.com , Epinion.com etc.
Usually , sellers would give previous buyers of their products the chance to rate them and to write products reviews and recommendations beside the products on display on their website; with messages by the sellers on their websites like these:
"On a scale of 1 to 10 how would you rate this product's performance ;10 being the highest score?"
"Would you recommend this product to a friend ?"
Getting favourable raving reviews and the highest numbers of stars from independent reviewers is the name of the game for attracting customers and huge sales.
The higher the number of stars and the number of the "Yes , I would recommend this ....!" reviews , the easier it is for people to decide to opt for its purchase .
Some popular top quality products score up to 5 stars and they could have up to one hundred positive comments and reviews attached to them on line .
Since anonymous comments and previews are allowed to be posted on line , people do have a field day , feeling free to writing the facts they know about the products which they are reviewing .
Some customers see it as their civic responsibility to warn potential buyers ; and so they would not hesitate to give a straight answer like : "No! Not recommended ", if they were not impressed by the standard of the quality of any particular product.
Most of the products reviews and comments I have read on line are positive ones.
Products reviews even when they are negative ones , they are not glaringly malicious negative reviews. .Some products deserve negative reviews and such reviews if many , could put off potential buyers.
Unfavourable reviews , putting them mildly , would read like these :
" HANDS OFF! DO NOT BUY THIS! " , "This is junk stuff!" , " DON'T even go there !", "What was I thinking when I bought this ?!", "I bought this and returned it two days later!", "Not fit for Purpose!", "Not recommended!" ,"Did you say ; "this is top of the range ?" "Bull !"; and so on.
Some products get so many bad reviews and unfavourable comments that your heart would go out to the sellers and you would wonder what the sellers of those products were thinking when they decided to give people the privilege to write reviews of their not-so-good products on their websites!
For all it is worth , whether good or bad ones , independent consumers product reviews are here to stay .
They aid not only the consumers but the manufactures and sellers as well.
For the big companies , their Customer Relations Departments monitor all the comments and reviews which are made about the quality of their products and their services to members of the public .
The companies use these comments and reviews for their staff training purposes and for improving the quality of their goods , leading to better reviews for them in future.
“A shopping cart flipped upside down forms a cage that I use to protect myself from consumerism.”
― Jarod Kintz, Who Moved My Choose?
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