A Little Secret of Online Shopping Companies

Buying something? Funny how things have changed so much in the last few decades. Used to be, when you were looking for a watch, you headed down to the local jewelers (who you knew by first name), tried them all on and selected the perfect one. Then came mega malls, strip malls and Walmart. Specialty shops disappeared by the thousands. So did the quality and personal touch. Today, we do so much of our buying online.
It's surprising, but Mom and Grandma know how to add items to their Amazon shopping cart and enter their credit card information. Even if we don't actually purchase the product or service online, we still conduct most of our research there. There are countless review websites and ratings of products and services can be found in every corner of the Internet. If you're like most people, the process goes like this:
1) Search the review websites first and depending on the product maybe check out specialty sites with user opinions.
2) Decide on a few options.
3) Do a price search, find coupons and buy it! It's easy to let hours fly by only to be left with 2 or 3 choices still wondering "what is the best?"
The great thing about this time in the history of goods and services is that there are more opportunities for companies to truly shine. Look at all the cheap crap that exists today. We live in a disposable culture that believes new and shinier is better and it's ok to buy a new umbrella every year because the 5 dollar one you just purchased broke on the first windy day. A few companies are rising above this and creating quality products, then backing them with incredible customer service and return policies that the "made in China" attitude can't hold a candle to. Zappos (zappos.com) is a great example of this.
They sell shoes online, offer exceptional products, have awesome customer service and if you don't like the Maddens UPS just dropped off at your doorstep, shipping is free both ways. Other companies like sporting good outlet REI are examples of how great a store can be in a sea of disappointment. Join their co-op and they pay you dividends annually. They also guarantee the products they sell for life. Did you hear that? For Life. Bought that cycling shirt in 2007 and the left sleeve is coming unstitched? They'll replace it. Rarely do you see "Lifetime Warranty" or "Unconditional Returns" anymore. Companies won't stand behind products that will fall apart quickly.
The good news is, quality retailers like these are out there and to find them, you just need to look a lot harder. Winston Churchill said "responsibility is the price of greatness." We challenge companies to stop looking at only profits, review their current policies and consider being responsible. And for the Zappos and REI's of the world, thank you.