According to shopperTrak one of the reasons why the 2012 black Friday sales dipped as compared to previous years, was because many shoppers skipped the line and shopped on-line. A similar report showed that Cyber Monday shopping of the same year rose by 15% compared to previous years. These reports show that many shoppers are opting to shop on-line.
They are many people who are still hesitant shopping on-line especially shopping for clothing on-line. Their reason being that they would prefer to first wear the clothing item, to make sure it fits them, before they can take the dress or clothing item home. This is definitely a very good reason. In spite of all the conveniences of on-line shopping, on-line shoppers buy every product on good faith that the description of every product is “as it is”. On-line retailers especially on-line clothing store owners make a conscious effort to ensure that every on-line shopper who shops in their on-line store(s) has a very good shopping experience. They always provide very good images and detailed descriptions of every clothing item such as; colors and sizes of women’s dresses, ladies church suits, pants,women’s tops and blouses, men’s suits, men’s dress shirts, and other men’s clothing items. The same information is available for infants’ and kids’ clothing. In addition to complete description of every clothing item, on-line clothing stores give information about the material from which every clothing item is made from such as; cotton (as in cotton t-shirts, cotton dress shirts), or polymer as in (polymer sweatshirts), or leather (as in leather scooter jackets), organic materials as in (organic baby dresses or organic baby blankets) and any other information that gives good and detailed description of the clothing item in question. The detailed information provided to customers on every clothing item helps them to decide if they will buy the clothing item or not.
Use Sizing Charts to Choose Clothing Sizes
Besides providing information on the available colors and sizes of every clothing type, on-line clothing retailers post sizing charts for every clothing they sell. These sizing charts guide customers on how to determine the size of clothing they want to buy.
Different fashion designers have different sizing formats. One sizing format for women’s clothing has three main size groups; petit, regular, and women. Each of these three main size groups has sub-sizes such as; petit small (S), petit medium (M), petit large (L). Similar sub-sizes are available for regular and women size groups. Other designers use sizing format such as; extra small (XS), small (S), medium (M), large (L), extra large (XL), 2XL, 3XL, 4XL, 5XL, 6XL. Similar sizing formats are available for men’s clothing, infants’ and kids’ clothing. Whatever the sizing format a designer uses, the chart is always available to guide the customer on how to choose appropriate size that will fit her/him or the child without first wearing the clothing to ascertain its fitness.
On-Line Shoppers Have Access to Variety of Styles and Designs
One of the advantages of shopping for clothing on-line is that on-line shoppers have the “whole world as a shopping mall”. A shopper can make selections from different stores and also from a variety of designs and styles. There are many new clothing designs and styles that may not be readily available in brick and mortar stores in a person’s immediate locality, but on-line shoppers have easy access to these products from the comfort of their homes. For instance from one on-line store, a shopper can find a variety of men’s casual shirts, men’s fashion suits, or European modern style suits, Italian designed suits, denim suits, linen suits, men’s tuxedo, men’s business suits, men’s dress shoes and many other varieties of men’s clothing, including boys’ suits, and boy’s dress shirts.
On-line Shoppers Save Money and Time
The most interesting part of shopping on-line besides convenience is low prices for most clothing items bought on-line. Every on-line shopper enjoys the low price they pay for almost every clothing item bought on-line as compared to prices of the same clothing item bought from brick and mortar stores. The reason for the huge price differences between clothing bought on-line and those bought from brick and mortar stores is that many small on-line retailers do not keep large inventory of the clothing they sell, nor pay store rents, nor mortgage. On-line retailers pass on the savings they make by not keeping large inventory and store rents to their on-line customers, as such making every clothing item a good bargain for their customers. Besides the low prices paid for the clothing items, on-line shoppers save money on gas that would have been used to travel to brick and mortar stores. They also save time, rather than standing on line they use a fraction of the time to search for the items they want and make payment for them in no time. These items are often delivered at their door steps at no shipping and handling cost.
On-Line Shoppers Make Informed Decision before Buying
Shopping for clothing on line is a great way to guide against “spontaneous buying” or shopping addiction. Many people who shop in brick and mortar stores often buy “spontaneously”. They gather clothing without a second thought, like asking themselves if they actually need the clothing they are taking off the shelves. This is the reason why many people make return trip to the stores in order to return the clothing items they had bought. Shopping on-line helps shoppers to guide against “shopping maniac”, as a shopper in the comfort of his/her home has enough time to go through every clothing item and decide if he/she wants the clothing item or not. It is also a good check/incentive to read the retailer’s return policy before completing any on-line transaction in that way an on-line shopper makes an informed decision to buy or not to buy the clothing item in question.
Source by Irene A Essien-Akpan