E-Commerce and The Urban Consumer: Who’s Afraid To Shop Online?

Article written by: Angela L. Serrette
Posted on: May 12, 2009

You are bored at work, surfing the web. You see an online advertisement for a big sale on Coogi. You click on the ad and find that the website has a killer sweater in your size for 80% off!

But you’ve never heard of the website before. How do you know if the company behind it is legit? What if they turn out to be one of those web scams that will charge you for the item with no intentions of making good on your purchase, or worse, steal your identity and charge bogus purchases to your account? And what if the company is legit, but you somehow “do something wrong” while entering your info and inadvertently expose all your personal information to a hacker?

How do you make sure your online transactions are secure?

Consumer convenience has always been a cornerstone selling point of advertising and marketing. Catalogues, TV ads, newspapers, coupons, fliers, promos are all aimed at bringing the product pitch into the comfort and convenience of your home. Over the last 10 years, e-commerce has been a retailer’s dream come true as a way to generate sales without costly storefronts and cashiers. Online shopping is also a consumer’s powerful tool that allows us to product research, compare prices and have it all sent to our homes without having to hit the mall or wait on hold.

Question: How do we help some consumers get over or minimize their fears of shopping online? Do they have legitimate concerns for fearing online shopping?

The fact is the slickest and flashiest shopping websites are worthless if they do not satisfy the consumer’s need to feel comfortable and secure when shopping online. There are several reasons some consumers do not shop online:

1-Fear of theft identity (SS#, passwords, security questions, pin #, family info, etc.)
2-Fear of fraudulent offers
3-Lack of experience with shopping online
4-Fear of credit card or bank account information being stolen
5-Anxiety that the retailer will turn out to be shady and does not deliver as promised

These and other factors will diminish online sales and positive experiences online. Is it mandatory that we shop online?? Absolutely not. Is it a convenience that may come in handy at some point? Absolutely.

How do you stick to “safe” online shopping?

-Play it safe. Stick to reputable online shopping sites such as Amazon, Macy’s, DrJays.com, K-mart, Karmaloop. These are large, bona fide online retailers with online shopping systems that are held publicly accountable for millions of online consumer purchases and resolving customer support issues.

-Consider using only 1 particular debit/ credit card for online shopping. This will make monitoring your purchases and transaction activity easier.

-Use a “temporary” credit card number service such as MBNA’s ShopSafe. You download a small program that generates a single-use credit card number. You specify the amount and when it expires. To the merchant it’s a regular credit card number so no hassles. If anyone tries to use it for more than the amount authorized or after the expiry date, the transaction is refused.

-Install a firewall and Internet security software to fend off hackers and spyware. Brands such as McAfee, Norton/ Symantec etc. to name a few are reputable brands that can be purchased in electronic shops and of course-online. If you use your computer at work and your company has staff to maintain the computer network, you should be covered in this area (or your IT department should be fired).

-Enable “parental controls” if children are in the household.

-Look for “security safe” icons on the homepage. Sometimes the icon is a “lock” which means the website site has taken precautions to safe guard on line shopping and consumer’s personal information .

-Create unusual passwords. Do not use birthdays, anniversaries, maiden names or pets names.  A random combination of letters and numbers is safest. And don’t write them down where people can find them.

A special note to seniors or those who have never used a computer:
It’s understandable that some seniors simply have no desire to use some of today’s technology. In this case live and let live. But if you know seniors who are interested in shopping online but afraid, try these suggestions.

1-Open dialogue to find out how much experience they have interfacing with the online technology.
(ask what is their main interest for using the Internet; shopping, medical research etc.)

2-Check out their neighborhood community centers to see if they offer computer classes for seniors.

3-Discuss all online safety factors as mentioned above.

4-Investigate if their previous employers/ co-workers will volunteer a few hours to give lessons on how to operate a computer and “browse” the internet.

5-For seniors with slight arthritis or wrist and back ailments or visual concerns address these issues first and have them ask a medical professional to suggest proper seating, hand positions and lighting for comfort.

E-commerce offers countless possibilities from shopping to real estate to educational and medical research or simply booking a cruise to name a few. The convenience is great but only if the consumer feels comfortable certain safety nets are in place to protect their personal information.

In this day and age technology allows us to move information at the speed of light from one continent to another. For some this may be a wonderful time in our world of information technology. While for others fear of unfamiliar territory causes them to shutter at the thought of putting personal information over the Internet.

Responsibility and awareness of safety precautions can help replace fear with empowerment and comfort. It takes a little time and well spent effort to learn a few ways to make yourself internet savvy and shop online with ease.

If the online retailer and consumer both do their part, that can help make online shopping a pleasant and profitable experience for all.

Still hesitant? No problem, no pressure, go at your own pace.

For now just browse online only…..one step at a time…..until you’re comfortable…..and have fun!