*Originally published on 6/1/09
Online shopping revolutionized the way businesses and consumers operate. Before, you had to go out to the store, browse around, deal with crowds, it was a mess. When Amazon and eBay hit, things changed forever. Now, all you had to do was type in the product you wanted on a search engine, click a few buttons, type in some info and the product would be at your door within a few days.
People's ability to find things increased when others started selling stuff that they didn't want anymore online. While purchasing something on Amazon will usually save you a few dollars from the shelf price at chain stores, buying a product used saved you even more.
It can be a great tool as there are several upsides.
Not everything is available on a shelf nowadays. Let's say you wanted to get into retro-gaming by purchasing an Atari 2600, you're not going to find one in any electronic store. However, there are people (as well as some local stores) that may have one to sell. Using a site like Amazon as an intermediary, you can get the item you want from somewhere else.
A lot of books end up going out of print as well and for bibliophiles, buying used copies online is a great way to obtain something you wouldn't have been able to find. Case and point, I was able to acquire The Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck, a graphic novel that has long been out of print as well as a copy of The Bachman Books, a collection of novels written by Stephen King that has also been out of print for some time. Thanks to used bookstores posting them online, I was able to purchase them and add them to my collection.
As mentioned before, buying items used can be a great money saver. We recently purchased a love-seat for cheap from someone who was selling theirs.
If you are a big book or movie collector, buying these things used can be a great way to cut the cost and keep some money in your pocket.
You can also get a chance to help a small business. Some shoppers have grown weary of the "warehouse" style stores and buying a used item online will often go through a smaller bookstore chain. I'm not sure how Amazon and the store divvy up the money, but if you are an avid supporter of small business, making your transactions through them is a great way to help out.
There are however some downsides as well, for example, the risk is greater. This depends on what site you use, Amazon is pretty reputable. While I've never used eBay myself, a lot of other people have and speak highly of it. While there are certainly deals to be had on Craigslist, it can also be one of the riskier sites to navigate.
Shipping will also take a lot longer. Whereas with an order made directly through Amazon will take a couple of days, buying used will take a couple of weeks. It's normally not that major an inconvenience, but it is something to take into consideration.
Speaking of shipping, the shipping costs will kill you. The additional charge can be quite devastating at times and can ruin what would've otherwise been a good deal. Getting a used book for three dollars doesn't work out as well when you pay six bucks in shipping. You'll also want to avoid buying multiple used items online as each comes with its own shipping charge and that will add up quick.
As mentioned before, you can find some hard to find items by shopping for used items online. The downside is that some of those hard to find used items can get awfully expensive. For a long time, the aforementioned graphic novel was only available used for about $70 and that was the cheaper copies. Eventually, I found a store that sold it for $20 but sometimes you have to wait a good while if you want the price to go down to a reasonable level.
We all like having stuff, and there are times where it gets a little difficult to afford all the stuff that we want. Buying used items, whether they be books, movies, or video games, can be a great way to save money. However, it's still important to keep all the various factors in mind before you make your transaction.
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