Impact of online shopping on society

Home shopping options are many and varied and changing all the time. Most major supermarkets are now on-line, offering home delivery of goods and increasingly, the major high street stores are also competing for on-line trading. The Internet lends itself to shops selling goods which are easily portable, such as CDs and books.

The benefits of home shopping to the customer include:

         .You can avoid long queues, save time and shop from the comfort of your own home.

         .You do not have to travel into city centres or pay for car parking costs.

         .You can shop around for the best prices and shop abroad for cheaper goods.

         .It can offer the customer a wider range of shopping, 24 hours a day all year round.

         .People who are house-bound have the ability to shop and have goods delivered.

The possible drawbacks of home shopping include:

         .Security worries about payment by credit card over the Internet.

         .You do not get to see the goods before purchase which may be defective.

         .You may worry that the goods will never arrive!

         .There may be concerns over retailers collecting details about the buying habits of customers.

Benefits to the company include:

        .It opens the market to customers nationally and internationally.

        .It enables smaller companies to compete with larger companies.

        .There may be a possible reduction in staffing and/or shopping outlets, thereby reducing costs.

        .You can offer 24 hour shopping at minimum cost.