E-commerce. Online shopping. PayPal. These are words that I know mean what, but have never actually tried it myself. Reason? I am a skeptic with too many concerns- Is it safe to shop online? How do I know that what I get is exactly how it looks like in the photos? When I do order, how to I actually do a bank transfer? What if the order never arrives? These were just a few concerns I had which hindered me from shopping online. These, and the fact that I didnt actually own a debit card which allowed online purchases until last year. =X
I remember my very 1st purchase, which was through eBay- an iPod touch external speaker. I had gotten an iPod touch without in-built speakers (horrible, right?) and wanted speakers so badly that I searched practically everywhere. The problem was that the small portable type which I wanted was not available in stores. But, surprise surprise, when I did a Google search, there were so many favourable types! My want for the speakers overwrote my skepticism and for the 1st time in my life, I applied for an eBay account, took a leap of faith and paid for my order through PayPal.
Upon successfully getting the product in the end, my interest in online shopping peaked. Clothes, accessories.. There were so many blogshops offering various types of products. But where should I go to find these blogshops? It was through friends' recommendations that I got to know 'blogmarkets' which function as platforms for various blogshops to advertise themselves. From there, blogshops that looked attractive with clear photos and proper write-ups were the first ones that caught my attention. Reasonable prices were a definite plus, but ultimately what propels me to buy something was the reviews and recomendations from friends.
I think getting the word out is definitely one of the most important factor at the end of the day. You can have the best product and advertise on every available platform but nothing says "SOLD" faster than a recommendation from a friend. Which leads back to an important point raised in the class about social networking.
Com 125, Class A =]