E-commerce sites continue to rise and the growth of online shopping has been exponential since the early 1990’s with many consumers choosing to buy online rather than in store. Many traditional retailers have also followed suit, with most shops now having a dedicated e-commerce website from which consumers can make online purchases. From high street brands to charities, even certain brands which no longer exist on the high street are often available online.

And with the options of “Click & Collect”, and many companies offering to deliver for free, here are some further reasons why online shopping is better than purchasing in-store.

It saves time

Probably the most convenient aspect of the internet and online shopping specifically, is the time-saving feature. Online shopping is perfect for those with busy lifestyles and for those who battle to get around. And with the current pandemic, many are not as eager to leave the house in any case. Rather than spending hours browsing through multiple shops, you can buy products in a couple of clicks, online.

The process of online shopping has also become easier over the years, with a number of changes being prevalent. The addition of quick purchase buttons, allowing account holders to buy products with one click, along with automated account details that pop up, which saves you from entering this every time you want to purchase something. All of these minor changes means that the total amount of time that you spend making an online purchase is reduced to seconds. And depending on the urgency of your order, there are a number of delivery options available to you.

Additional products only found online

Very often you will find that most stores have a larger amount of stock online than at their physical locations. Stores often have space constraints whereas warehouses have a larger capacity and can thus store more options or even other items that you won’t necessarily find in-store. Also, with the help of the search button online, it’s even easier to find the products that you want, in a minimal amount of time.

Being able to access more products from certain brands online is especially important if you live in a small town or in an area without a large local shopping centre available to you. Not only this, but many stores offer online-exclusive items that are not available in stores, encouraging you to purchase specialist and limited edition items off the internet.

24/7 Shopping

Also probably one of the most convenient aspects of online shopping is the ability to shop 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. This is extremely handy if you are an exceptionally busy person or work odd hours/days leaving you with limited time to do your shopping. Where you once had to wait until the weekend, or hurry after you finished work to get the products that you needed, you now have those products at your fingertips, any time of the day. Although there are often still restrictions on human-based services such as live chat functions and same day/next day delivery, e-commerce shops are the way of the future, allowing you to buy products as and when you need them.

Online discounts and voucher codes

It is rather rare to find an in-store voucher (unless the store is hosting a particular event), whereas many online retailers offer numerous discounts and voucher codes to be used online, as part of their marketing promotions.

Many third-party websites offer exclusive voucher codes that can be used online rather than in-store. Additionally, websites tend to have more exclusive and flash sales and discounts than in physical stores. These third-party retailers are also often able to offer goods at reduced prices, meaning that you can find the same product for a fraction of its original cost. This gives consumers a much broader access and ability to find the latest deals and promotions.

Delivery to your home

If you had to shop in-store, you’d be making that journey to the store, hoping that the item you require is in stock, and then standing in a queue in order to pay for this item. One of the best elements of online shopping is that you can get your items delivered directly to your front door, or to a postal address, which is great for military personnel or anyone without a permanent home address. This is much more convenient as you can simply find the product that you want from any location and have this delivered to your door. This is also extremely beneficial to individuals who struggle to walk far or have a disability that prevents them from journeying to the shops as regularly as they would like.

Most companies now offer free delivery, meaning that you do not have to worry about the added costs to your purchase, as well as the time and fuel cost of transportation to and from the physical store. Returns are just as simple as all you need to do in most cases is fill out a postal form and send your package from your local post office, where your refund will then be delivered back into your bank account.

Avoid shopping centres

Many people find the chaos of shopping centres unsettling and stressful at the best of times. This is often the case for people with mental health issues or those with sensory processing disorders. With online shopping, they can avoid shopping centres altogether and can shop from any location. This is especially helpful when it comes to large festivity times, such as Christmas where the shopping centres can easily become overcrowded and stock available in-store is diminished quickly.

Also, when you are in a shopping centre, you are more likely to make unnecessary spontaneous purchases. This urge is lessened when shopping online as you have greater control of the money that you are spending, and there are fewer distractions that prevent you from buying only what you need.

Find exactly what you want

Have you ever gone shopping and struggled to find exactly what you are looking for? This is now not an issue when it comes to purchasing online. It’s so much easier to access another suppliers website than it is to move from store to store if you cannot find what you are looking for. With the addition of search functions on e-commerce sites and search engines like Google, you can now find the exact products and sellers that have the products that you are looking for.

More information

With online shopping, you’ll often find product descriptions, giving you a more accurate description of the product, rather than just reading the labels in-store. Now you can read all about the ethics of the company that you plan on buying from; something that you wouldn’t be able to find in stores. You are also able to find reviews on stores or products themselves from other customers experiences. This is information that you might not have been able to ascertain in a physical store.

Now is the time to begin exploring online shopping, with a huge range of brands and products available. Not only will you be enabling independent stores to blossom, but you’ll also open your access to the cheapest and most accessible deals. This will also leave you with much more time to actually enjoy the experience of shopping and leave you with more time and energy to enjoy other activities that you love.