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In the last post we saw the advantages of Online Shopping.  As a continuation let us look disadvantages of Online Shopping.

Disadvantages:
Lack of Shopping Experience: The main disadvantage identified by shoppers is that online shopping is not entertaining as a shopping trip to a shopping mall or center. For many, shopping is not only about going to stores for purchasing goods, but also a chance for social interaction and for a few, it is a therapy session. So when shopping online, shoppers do not derive the pleasure of any social contact. But shoppers can utilize the saved time towards meeting up with friends, relatives etc. Though meeting up with friends and relatives may not completely compensate the pleasure derived from shopping at a mall, but at least it can provide part relief.

Lack of Touch and Feel: Certain product categories such as apparels, footwear, accessories, perfumes, groceries etc need to be touched, smelt, felt and tried. But this is not possible in online shopping. At a brick and mortar store, shoppers can browse through racks and racks of physical products, feel them, scrutinize the products closely for any damages etc. If the product happens to be a cloth or an accessory, shoppers can see and feel the texture of the cloth and also try it on to see if it is a right fit. Online shoppers also have valid reasons to worry that the products that they receive may not be the same as the one that was viewed online. With the advent of 3D technology, it is possible to compensate some of the drawbacks associated with online purchase of apparels. May e-tailers in US, Europe, Japan etc are developing virtual fitting room that shoppers can use to try clothes on an image like that of their own.

Privacy Issues: Many online shoppers have serious concerns about sharing their personal information such as name, age and address with a website. Shoppers are concerned about the information they share with websites. Shoppers fear that their personal information can be compromised in many ways, including identity thefts, credit card frauds, solicitation from marketing people, spam mails, etc.

Delay in Delivery: Depending on the product availability it might take anywhere between couple of days to a couple of weeks for the product to be delivered. Normally websites do not say that a particular product is on backorder. Some websites may say that a particular product is on backorder immediately after the purchasing process is complete. Some other websites may take weeks together to inform shoppers that the ordered product is on backorder. This might upset shoppers as they would have wanted the possession of the product before a particular date.

Shipping Charges: Depending on the delivery location and product weight, the store might additionally charge towards shipping and handling. Most shoppers don’t look at the bottom line when the “purchase” button is pressed and they are bit taken back after seeing the final charges as it is normally expensive than the original charge. Sometimes the shipping charges might exceed the market rate.

Too Many Choices: Websites by being virtual and not limited by physical boundaries possess the capability of infinite shelf-space. Many websites boasts tens of thousands products especially online book stores. Though unlimited shelf-space can be very attractive, but shoppers have limited attention span and may be unable to process thousands of products, at a single go. Therefore online stores should ensure products are organized properly under their respective categories and facilitate queries based on product features such as color, weight etc.

Access to Computers and the Internet: Anyone can visit a brick and mortar store for their purchases. But on the other hand, online shopping requires access to computers, an Internet connection, knowledge of computer and Internet, and more importantly a credit card. With so many blocks, senior citizens and those with aversion towards computer and credit cards tend to shop at retail stores.

Shipping Blues: Since websites ship the purchased products through a third party, shoppers can never be sure whether they would get the product in time. There is also a possibility of receiving damaged products and the store could also be delivering products in installments.

Inability to Negotiate: In brick and mortar stores, shoppers have the ability to interact with the salesperson directly. This enables shoppers to negotiate prices and payment terms on products, including those with prices marked. But negotiation of prices and payment terms is not possible in an online environment due to lack of face-to-face interaction.

Returns: Even with brick and mortar stores, returns and exchanges can be a nightmare. Just imagine how much more difficult returns and exchanges will be when dealing with online stores. This is due to lack of personal interaction. Many online stores also charge restocking and shipping costs for handling returns. So it is advisable for online shoppers to verify the online store’s policies related to shipping, returns etc before shopping with them.