Online Shopping & Internet Marketing

Online shopping in Indonesia is not currently very popular compared to the same industry in many other countries. Indonesia is a little left behind concerning online shopping; the majority of people are not having the same privilege to access news, entertainment, and markets through the internet as the smaller amount of people do. However, there was a report in 2010 by e-Commerce Consumer Monitor that as many as 24% of Indonesians’ purchasing were made through online market. It is true that the number is still behind what other big Asian countries achieve, but Indonesian people are trying to catch up. Odds are that more Indonesian will be using internet as the biggest market soon. The symptoms of the addiction to online shopping have been felt in most parts of the country, even in small towns.

Actually, this trend is always pointing to the same reasons. First, it is easier to compare prices from many online stores through the internet. Second, online shopping is far more comfortable and time saving. Probably, we have to count that big cities in Indonesia have very busy roads; transportation problems and traffic jams bring people to start enjoying shopping from home. Online shopping in Indonesia is now easier that people can make international payments from local banks. Almost all banks in Indonesia are registered at PayPal; people can easily transfer money or conduct any transaction for online shopping by accessing the websites. In fact, Indonesia has its own PayPal version of the country, which is called iPaymu. It is the local version of the international online account. Of course, online stores are not available as numerous as in many big Asian countries. Online shopping in Indonesia may still be limited in commodities or that purchase can be very pricey due to the addition of shipping and delivery service costs. Nevertheless, the trend is increasingly popular bringing the big possibilities that online shopping in Indonesia can be the answer for those who live in the seemingly distance areas from big cities where items are widely available.

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Dealing with this problem may be somewhat more difficult when the consumer purchases an item online but there are some useful tips which can make dealing with defective items significantly less stressful and failure to follow these tips can make it difficult for online shoppers to have a defective item replaced. This article will discuss some of these useful tips namely the importance of testing items immediately, contacting online retailers and dealing with unresponsiveness from online retailers to help online shoppers deal with this dilemma.

Testing Items Immediately after They Arrive

One very important tip for online shoppers is to always test items immediately after they arrive from the online retailer. This means the shopper should open and test the item as soon as possible after it is delivered. Doing this is important for a couple of very important reasons. One of these reasons is testing the item for functionality immediately will help to ensure the online shopper is able to return the item within the limitations of the online retailers return policy. Online retailers often have specific policies pertaining to returns and failure to adhere to these guidelines may result in the shopper not being able to return the item for a refund or exchange. These policies can vary significantly from one online retailer to the next and some policies may be more liberal than others. However, consumers who determine an item is defective within a couple of days after the item is received will likely still be within the period in which returns are still accepted even with online retailers who offer the stingiest return policies.

Another reason why it is important to test an item purchased online for functionality immediately after receiving the item is it helps to ensure the consumer will not lose the original packaging or receipt. This is important because most online retailers will require the item be returned with an original receipt and in the original packaging. It is certainly still possibly for online shoppers to lose the receipt but they are less likely to do so if they realized immediately that the item was defective.

Contacting the Online Retailer

Once an online shopper realizes an item is defective, the first step he takes should be to contact the online retailers. This should be done immediately because the online retailer will likely document the claim of defectiveness during this initial call and this documentation will serve as evidence of when the item was reported to be defective. This proof will come in handy if the online retailer gives the customer problems with returning the item and there is a need to pursue legal actions.

In most cases, the receipt will list a contact phone number which will put the consumer in contact with a customer service representative. However, if the receipt does not have this information the consumer may return to the website of the online retailer to find the necessary contact information. The consumer should then contact a customer service representative and describe the problem with the item as accurately as possible. In most cases the customer service representative will be able to provide the consumer with information on how to return the item for an exchange or a refund.