Online shopping dilemmas
Who else is doing the majority of their holiday gift shopping online and loving it?
I do more and more of my holiday gift shopping online each year… and prefer it that way. It’s so much less stressful than going to the stores, and easier to price compare (ha ha ha, just kidding, I don’t do that).
Despite my love for it though, there are a few dilemmas:
- Ordering the wrong thing – it seems the two hours I spend on the Under Armour website did not pay off. I thought I was ordering cold weather running tights for my dad. Turned out I ordered him a really nice pair of long running underwear. He seems to like them, but I maybe should have gone to the store for that one!
- Receiving the wrong thing/damaged item – I usually don’t open a package as soon as I receive it – do you? I have started doing it though! Last week I received a huge box from Gone for a Run and realized right away one of the items was wrong. I checked my order and I had ordered the correct thing. Customer service was amazingly helpful, but now I have to wait for the new item to ship and it might not get here in time because…
- Things taking forever to arrive – I started online shopping in late November, figuring I was giving myself plenty of time. Maybe not! Some items arrive 10+ days after you order them. What the heck?! Hee hee. I am used to two-day shipping at Amazon Prime, and working at FakeMeats.com where we try to ship most orders same day.
- Not remembering all the packages you have coming to the house – I am trying to order the majority of things from Amazon.com, so I have all my order history and tracking numbers in one easily accessible place, but I am still ordering from many other sites and not keeping very good track of it. I am surprised I haven’t created a spreadsheet. I usually love that sort of thing.
- Accidentally opening a gift for yourself – ha ha ha. It hasn’t happened yet this year, but it has in the past. I told my husband’s family to address any packages they sent to our house with their names so I won’t accidentally open them. Again, #4 – so much stuff coming in that I am not keeping track of it. And somewhat related to this – accidentally seeing a gift your spouse ordered you from your shared Amazon account. Trying not to let that happen!
- Confusing sizing – some clothing items are only sold online (no store front) and trying to figure out someone’s sizing for a fit can be difficult! I am already uncertain about one thing I ordered that might be just a tad too big. Hopefully the store has a good exchange policy!
- Creating all those different store accounts – I don’t know why it makes me nuts. I just want to pay as a guest. Please don’t make me create a user name and log-in. Wah. Ha ha.
- Stolen packages – Luckily this hasn’t happened since October 2012… but I don’t think I would send as much to the house if Steven and I weren’t able to work from home so much!
- SO MUCH RECYCLING! Ha ha ha. Our recycling bin is full to the max each week with all these boxes!
- Feeling lazy for doing so much shopping online. Just kidding. I feel awesome.
Any online shopping dilemmas for you?
Ha ha. These “dilemmas” don’t bother me too much. Definitely consider this a “First World Problems” type list. I still prefer shopping online above going to the stores! Like I said, it really helps keep my holiday stress levels down!
And I didn’t put “paying for shipping” on the list because that doesn’t bother me. I think because we own a small business, I get it – it costs money to ship things and some companies just can’t do it for free. You are paying for a huge convenience of not even leaving your house! I do always appreciate lowered or free shipping though!
Themocracy
This is totally saving my butt this year. I didn’t last year but with the baby going to the store is a frigging ordeal, haha! Every year previously my husband has seen his xmas gift early but with shipping arriving during the day I am hoping it won’t happen this year..
And y’all ship super fast at FM – not the norm. One reason I have loved ordering, I know I can cook -that week- with whatever I order.
my big dilemma, it all costs money, wth! Happiness is supposed to be free with a hug!
My biggest dilemmas this year have been buying something and then getting a discount code for it the next day! Argh.
I always shop around to find the cheapest price and end up spending a ton of time doing so. Which is kind of a waste but it makes me mad when I pay more money than I needed to!
Oh gosh! Yes! That does sting a bit! I bought so many things right before Black Friday… then never looked after that so I wouldn’t know if I could have saved some money. Ha ha.
Ignorance is bliss! Maybe I should try your method and stop looking at the prices after I buy things.
Every couple years these essays pop up about the horrific conditions of working in the Amazon warehouses during the holiday season. I haven’t read one all the way through because they will just make me feel awful. Especially with Amazon Prime and all of P’s extended family, I would lose my freaking mind trying to get all my shopping done any other way.
Also, I figure I’m keeping a lot of UPS people employed and I’ve heard they treat their employees pretty well. 🙂
Oh geesh. Long hours or bad benefits or mistreatment or what? All? I would like to see it, but know it won’t make me change.
Oh my goodness I hate having to create an account every single place. Just let me pay and get on with my life! I suppose filling out that info is still easier than going to a crowded store but it is still annoying.
And my computer even auto fills it and it still makes me nuts!
Where have you been? I’ve been missing your posts!
I think I’ll be back at it around the first of the year. I have some stuff that I’m not ready to share on the blog and honestly it’s just easier for me to not share anything at this point. I am looking forward to getting back to it though! I didn’t mean to totally disappear like that but life happens sometimes. I am just now finally starting to read blogs again. I miss the blogosphere! 🙂
The majority of my shopping is online this year, especially with a little one at home:) But between shopping and the new house and new baby, we have packages coming from Amazon daily, it seems, and I can never remember what I ordered!
Ha ha ha. So it’s like you are opening a box, “Is this diapers or a gift?! Only one way to find out!” hee hee
I do 95% (if not more) of my shopping online. 1. I just don’t have the time to devote to hours of shopping from store to store. One stop shopping (usually on Amazon) simplifies my experience. 2. It’s no fun Christmas shopping alone, and that’s the one ‘perk’ I’m told of headed out to tackle the crowds, is having fun with friends. Since I go solo usually-meh. I shop online in my jammies.
Dilemma’s? I have sent packages to the wrong address…ordered wrong sizes, etc…and too-forget what I ordered at time, LOL!
OMG I can’t stand setting up accounts! Guest is where it’s at. Some things are taking forever to ship this year. I’m already getting worried. I do cringe when shipping is inordinately high.
I love shopping online! So much less stress than having to schlep from one place to another. Yes accounts are annoying but my two tips are:
1-Paypal — you can bypass some account creation by using paypal.
2-a small price to pay for the convenience.
Definitely signed up for Amazon Prime and it’s great since the last minute things I decided on … uh.. today, are going to come in time to wrap and give!
Christmas is coming so early this year that I didn’t order a lot of my presents in time! I’m freaking out a little…………lol.
Well, you know I price-compare and coupon like crazy, which is one reason I love online shopping so much. I’m not impulsive, I stalk stuff for a long time. The only downside there is things selling out 🙁
I think the slower shipping thing might be if you ordered on/around Black Friday. We order Meko’s arthritis pills online, and they happened to be on a huge sale then, so I ordered a bunch (that was my big Black Friday splurge, haha) and it took a lot longer than usual to come.
You guys should get separate Amazon accounts! You can share Prime. Bob and I each have our own, and he added me as a user on his Prime account.
I really need to look in to how we can share Prime. I looked at it in the past and couldn’t figure it out.
And good point about slower shipping! At least I got the stuff, right? 🙂 An order I placed last week still hasn’t shipped though. Sigh 😉 It’s your present, so you don’t care if it’s late… right?! 🙂
I’ll ask Bob how he did it! It took him like 2 years to figure out it was possible, so they don’t make it obvious LOL 🙂
I just meant that if you order during that week, it’s probably going to take way longer than it would any other time. But… what? My present is late? It’s cool, I still have to buy one more thing for you anyway. Maybe I’ll just hold off 😉
Yep, M. Hubby and I share Prime, too, and we have different accounts. I think the main Prime account holder can just add a family member.
I don’t buy a lot online, but I don’t have a lot to buy for. 🙂
I agree with #7. Setting up accounts is super annoying. Also annoying is having to enter your addresses and credit card number before applying a discount code.
So here is one thing about online shopping that is annoying that you haven’t mentioned. It’s if your downstairs neighbor is doing it and every day when you come home there’s a ginormous package that you have to take in for her!
Ha ha ha! It sounds like you are super nice to your neighbor! 🙂
I think I did MOST of my Christmas shopping online. I got my brother completely done on Cyber Monday! Ha. I’m finding the shipping thing to be SUPER FAST. (I ordered something Saturday night and it’s on the truck to be delivered today.) Most companies are doing free shipping with a certain amount spent, so I typically get free shipping, too.
I get a little scared of lost packages (Amazon lost the Kindle my mom ordered for my brother! ERG!) and #6 most definitely. That one always scares me a little!
Apparently our apartment building is getting so many packages right now that our poor security people are overwhelmed with sorting them! I love that we have someone to accept the packages and put them in a secure location but it’s a pain to know you have something but have to dig through tons of other people’s stuff to try and find it. We have so many things coming to us right now because Jason does all his shopping online and his family is sending all the gifts directly to us. It’s crazy!
Oh gosh! That would be a nightmare to dig through other people’s stuff too. Yikes!
I love Amazon and Running Warehouse for online shopping. So far no big dilemmas. I hope it stays that way.