Despite the prolonged self-isolation regime and the decline in real incomes, many still want to buy clothes, shoes and accessories. For some it is a way to relieve stress, for others it is an opportunity to support their favorite brand or retailer, and for others it is a chance to snatch a great item with an unprecedented discount. Since large stores and shopping centers are closed indefinitely, and many of them may go bankrupt and not open during the forced vacation period, the Internet becomes the only link between the seller and the buyer. However, the fear of facing scammers, ordering the wrong thing or getting something that does not match the image in the picture sometimes pushes you to give up online shopping. Here's what to keep in mind to avoid bad experiences.
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How to find a verified online store
Runet has 2 thousand stores, where more than ten orders are made per day, and about 100 stores with more than 1,000 orders per day. According to research by Yandex. Market”and the agency GfK Rus, when choosing an online shopping platform, 87% of Russians are guided primarily by its reliability. To do this, check the following information:
- availability of requisites (the website must indicate the seller's address, place of manufacture of the goods, full company name of the seller or manufacturer);
- privacy policy (the site is obliged to obtain consent to the collection and processing of personal data and not disclose them to third parties);
- offer (the site is obliged to sell the goods to anyone who applies on the same terms).
When checking the reliability of an online store, many also pay attention to the presence of an offline point, social networks, press publications and customer reviews. Some sites do not provide an opportunity to leave reviews about purchased goods or services received, so you can check them using third-party services - Yandex. Market”,“Otzovik”and“IRecommend”- or social networks.
In the process of referring to reviews, it is necessary to take into account their subjectivity: it is not a fact that what did not fit and did not like one user will not like and will not suit another, and vice versa. In addition, many clients spend time leaving reviews only if they are not satisfied with something, and some reviews - both negative and positive - are written to order.
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How to recognize fake reviews?
Many online stores and services that specialize in providing reviews moderate, rate and remove fakes, and warn users about this. You can independently recognize unreliable reviews by the following signs:
- abuse of epithets ("magnificent", "fantastic", "incredible");
- cliché phrases (“optimal prices for services”, “quickly and efficiently”, “now only here”);
- links to third-party resources ("this site did not please, here cashmere is better");
- justification of the indicated shortcomings (“order confirmation had to wait several hours, but this is understandable, because there are so many customers”);
- accompanying the said images from the Internet (this can be checked through the service "Google Images").
You also need to pay attention to the commentator's profile: if the date of his registration on the site coincides with the date of the comment posting, the avatar seems very common, and the nickname is indistinct, then it is better to leave it unattended.
It is much easier to check the validity of a review on the social networks of an online store - for example, on Instagram. If the profile of the person who left the comment is open, and the publications in it are long, extraordinary and "live", then it is quite possible to be guided by it.
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How can I find the best price?
Standard sites specializing in the analysis and comparison of prices in online stores work exclusively in the categories of household appliances, electronics, cars, sports equipment, children's goods and clothing in low and medium price segments. One of the few services that helps you find objects of desire from the catwalks - be it a crocodile bag, silk skirt or cashmere cardigan - is Mark. Moda.
Initially, it was created as an analogue of the Barbie doll game, only online: users are invited to choose a figure of a woman or a man, dress her up in branded clothes and receive ratings from other platform guests for this. However, now all these things can also be bought - both on the Mark. Moda website itself and in its friendly online stores Tsum.ru, Farfetch, Yoox, Aizel, Luisa Via Roma, Net-a-Porter and Mytheresa. The service experts analyze the prices for the product that the user likes and offer the best one, taking into account all promotions and discounts.
The main disadvantage of Mark. Moda is that the buyer can only select a product from the list of those presented on the platform. If there is no item you like on the platform, you will have to analyze prices in different online stores yourself and manually. However, some sites - for example, Babochka in St. Petersburg - offer to reduce the cost of goods to the level of competitors. To do this, you need to prove that you really could find a thing cheaper by sending a link to it and a screenshot by mail or online chat.
How to determine product characteristics
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The size
Now it's time to make sure that the item you choose is right for you, and thereby minimize the possibility of a return.
Before ordering clothes, you need to measure body parameters:
- growth;
- chest girth;
- waist circumference;
- hip girth.
And additionally, but not necessarily:
- girth of the neck;
- arm length;
- shoulder width.
A centimeter tape will help with this: for the reliability of measurements, it should fit snugly to the naked body, pass along the most prominent points in front, from the side - through the armpits, and from the back - clasping the shoulder blades. The waist circumference is measured strictly horizontally along the narrowest part of the body, passing through the most prominent point of the abdomen, and the hips - horizontally in the middle of the thigh, passing from behind along the most prominent points of the buttocks.
The measurements obtained help to independently determine the size of the clothes using tables, and some online stores ask you to specify them during the checkout process. The Mark. Moda service uses parameters to evaluate the fit of some items from the assortment. For this, the site has a virtual fitting room.
Before ordering shoes, you need to measure the length of the foot - the distance between the perpendiculars from the end of the most protruding toe to the most protruding part of the heel. Measurements should be taken while standing, barefoot, evenly distributing the body weight on both legs and using a ruler. For convenience, you can either trace the foot on a sheet of paper with a pencil, or use the "wet footprint" method. If the length of the right and left feet is different, you should choose and focus on the larger one. The results obtained in cm must be correlated with the shoe size according to the table.