Shopping clothes online can be very convenient but if you don’t know the steps to buy clothes online without losing money, you’ll be regretting it in no time. Let me paint this picture:
You are browsing through Instagram or Facebook, reading interesting feeds, liking and screenshotting beautiful pictures too. And then you spot a lovely dress you’d love to add to your wardrobe. Quickly, you send them a DM and await your delivery. Unfortunately, when the dress gets to you, it doesn’t fit perfectly as it fit the model. The next thing you’d do is to let your friends know that you’ve just gotten what you never ordered for.
Sad, huh? Well, that was just a painted picture. It won’t happen to you. You’re never going to experience what you ordered vs what you got because you’re about to read the simple steps to buy clothes online without losing money. If you already have experienced receiving clothes ordered online that never met your expectations, this article will teach you how to prevent future reoccurrence.
Benefits of Buying Clothes Online
You may wonder how and why people enjoy shopping online. Besides knowing and following the steps to buy clothes online to curtail sad experiences, they know the benefits of online shopping and harness it. Some of these benefits include:
Better Display
You know, when you go to a clothing store, you have to start going through the racks to find what you want. Most of the time, the stores have limited spaces to display clothes and you wouldn’t be able to see all their stock because many will be hidden in the racks. This is different online. Here, you don’t have to search for anything rack by rack. You can easily see all the vendor has in store for you by browsing through their shop page and scrolling down up until you find your choice.
Convenience
Without leaving the comfort of your home, you can update your wardrobe and have it delivered to you. You don’t have to step out and head to the store especially if you have a busy schedule. All you simply have to do is log on to the e-commerce store, make your choice and check out so it can be delivered to you in a jiffy depending on your location.
Lower Prices
Online cloth vendors usually give discounts, flash sales or premium offers from time to time. This makes it cheaper than going to a store. Some even give free deliveries all in a bid to win and sustain your patronage. You won’t get this every time you visit a brick and mortar clothing store, you know.
5 Proven Steps to Buy Clothes Online Without Losing Money
1. Consult the Brand’s Size Guide
The secret to buying clothes that fit online is to compare your measurements with their size chart. Unless you buy from the same online clothing vendor, you should always consult their size guide. A size guide/chart is a chart that shows the measurements of typical sizes, that is small (S), medium (M), large (L) and extra-large (XL). Different brands have varying measurements for each size. Always remember that there is no universal size M or size L. Therefore, a medium size for a particular brand will fit you differently than a medium size from another brand.
Importantly, before consulting their size guide, you should know your measurements. Knowing your exact measurements and comparing it with the size guides of the online vendors will help you determine the exact size of clothes they sell that would fit you. It also lets you know if you will have to take the cloth to a tailor for adjustments or not.
Furthermore, note that US sizes are different from UK sizes. So while looking at the size chart, be certain you aren’t looking at a US size guide thinking it’s a UK one.
2. Always Read Product Descriptions
Before ordering for clothes online, ensure you read the product description so you can know what you are buying. Most e-commerce stores give detailed descriptions of the clothes, shoes and products they sell. Under the description, they include valuable information such as the type of material, the style, the cut, how to care for the clothes and other important additional stuff.
Before reading the product description, you should have an idea of the fabrics and styles you like. If you see that the fabric or style of the clothes isn’t something you like then skip it. Checking out the product description also helps you determine if the item would suit a particular weather condition or not. For instance, if the climate is cold, then you know wool is what you need and not cotton.
To get familiar with the fabric of the clothes you see online, go through your wardrobe and check for the material compositions of the pieces you love or hate most. Take note of the names you see so if it is included in the product description of what you want to buy, you know if you should go for it or not.
3. Read Their Return Policy
Before checking out an item on a website, read their return policy. Fashion brands usually accept returns within a specific timeframe. You should always look at their return policy before buying so if you don’t like the cloth or it doesn’t fit right when it gets to you, you’d know what it takes to return it. A good return policy answers the following questions:
- How many days do I have to return the item?
- Can I open the package and try on the clothes first?
- Am I to pay for shipping or the vendor would?
- If I’m to pay for shipping, how much would it cost?
- Is there a fee I’m to pay for returning the item?
4. Check for the Vendor’s Contact Details
If you are shopping from a website, you should always check for a contact form, phone number, email address, business location and their social media handles. Even if you don’t have any need of them, it feels safer knowing you can always communicate with the company anytime, any day should things go wrong.
Also, if it’s a new website, you should check their social media pages to be sure they are active. Although some businesses do not update their social media pages often, one way you can know if they are still up and running is to send them a message or reach out to them via any means stated above. But you don’t have to worry about this if you are shopping from big vendors or websites you regularly visit.
5. Check their Payment Options
You need to understand that just as you don’t entirely trust the seller to deliver if you pay before delivery, they also don’t entirely trust you to pay on delivery especially if your location is far from theirs. To handle this, give them the benefit of doubt after checking to see that the risk is more on the vendor rather than you. Then check their contact details to be sure they are legit so you can easily run back to them should things go awry. However, if you are in the same location as they, you can request to pay on delivery.
In conclusion, when shopping clothes online, you have to be flexible. Always remember that sometimes the colour of what you see online may have a different hue in reality as a result of camera lighting. So be open for slight differences when the order gets delivered. This doesn’t mean that if you don’t like what you see, you shouldn’t return it.
If you want to buy clothes online but still have reservations, you should read Ria Kosher’s free report on the 7 Sure Ways to Buy Clothes Online Without Worrying about Losing Money. It offers more detailed steps to buy clothes online to avoid cases of What you ordered for vs What you got.
