Online Shopping: Furniture Buying Tips
Freelance Writer
Furniture shopping used to be done by driving around town,
visiting all the furniture retailers until just the right sofa
or table was found. This could be very time consuming, not to
mention expensive if the furniture is not bought on sale.
Another option has emerged as furniture “e-tailers” (online
retailers) have popped up on the web. These websites offer
shoppers many benefits unavailable at conventional retailers.
The main advantage of shopping for furniture online is the
selection available. While some e-tailers cater to specific
types of furniture, such as office or that made of wood, some
strive to be a one stop shop for all consumers’ needs. With the
right e-tailer a shopper can literally furnish an entire house
from kids’ rooms to home offices – all from a single source. A
handful of websites offer hundreds of styles, finishes and
fabrics for each piece of furniture. This is possible because
e-tailers are not hindered by limited physical showroom space;
their websites are their showrooms. With this kind of
selection, the shopper is bound to find just the right look,
color, and accents for any and every room.
Another benefit of online furniture shopping is the convenience
of shopping from the comfort of your home. There’s no need to
drive around town from store to store. In fact, there’s no need
to even get dressed. Online shopping from home also makes it
easier to envision a prospective piece of furniture in the
intended room.
Because online retailers never close, furniture shopping can be
done at the purchaser’s convenience. No more juggling time or
being inconvenienced by having to work around the retailers’
schedules. Shoppers can browse and buy when it is best for them
– not when it is best for someone else.
Perhaps the most significant factor affecting a shopper’s
decision to purchase furniture online is cost savings. Most
furniture e-tailers offer pricing considerably lower than that
of available from local retailers. This is due to lower
overhead. E-tailers do not have to maintain brick and mortar
retail locations in expensive commercial areas. They only need
retail space which is much less expensive than retail space.
E-tailers have no salespeople to pay, also contributing to a
reduction in overhead. Another major advantage e-tailers have
over local retailers is a much larger sales area instead of
being limited to a customer base within, say, 100 mile radius,
online retailers can reach and sell to customers all over the
country. This creates a larger economy of scale meaning that
the higher sales volume reduces the vendors’ cost from sale.
Because e-tailers are able to save money themselves, they are
able to pass those savings along to their customers.
Many people believe that price is indicative of quality,
meaning the more an item costs the better the quality must be.
That is not necessarily the case. Take for instance, a leather
sofa that is for sale at a local retailer for $5000. Based on
the price, it’s fairly safe to assume that the sofa is of good
quality. On the other hand, that exact same sofa (same
materials, construction, warranty – everything identical) is
available online for $3500. Is the $5000 sofa of higher quality
just because it costs $1500 more? Highly doubtful! In fact, the
lower priced sofa is simply a better value with no difference
in quality.
One thing to be aware of when shopping for furniture online is
shipping costs. There are several e-tailers who offer free
shipping on every order. While this can be very enticing,
consumers must be aware that nothing is “free” and shipping
expenses must be received somewhere – usually by padding the
price of the furniture. Sometimes this can still work to the
advantage of the customer, but it provides no discounts for
larger orders or multiple items. Other e-tailers charge
shipping based on weight and mass of the items ordered, the
distance from the warehouse to the order destination, and the
number of items being shipped on a single order. This gives the
vendor the ability to offer discounts on shipping based on
various factors.
Customer service does not have to be sacrificed in order to
shop online. Just because a consumer avoids the high pressure
salesman, he does not have to give up personal service. There
are online furniture vendors who pride themselves in providing
stellar service by live, knowledgeable representatives. By
receiving excellent customer service, an online shopper avoids
the feeling of anonymity that can occur when doing business
over the internet.
Online furniture retailers are improving the way consumers shop
for furniture. Due to the lower overhead and economies of scale,
furniture e-tailers can offer competitive pricing in high
quality furniture. Without limits set by finite retail space,
these e-tailers are able to offer a much more extensive
selection to suit many different tastes and needs of their
customers. Consumers now have the convenience – the online
stores are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Additionally,
some furniture e-tailers have been able to maintain excellent
customer service without customers having to endure the
high-pressure sales approach. It’s certainly a win-win
situation for both the consumers and vendors.
About The Author: By a freelance writer sponsored by
http://www.peoplesfurniture.net/ . People's Furniture sells
high end, low cost dining, living room and bedroom furniture:
http://www.peoplesfurniture.net/
Back to Index of Home Accessories & Furniture
Search our site for any Home, Lawn or Garden Info
