tools and browser extensions, including one
from Fakespot, can do this analysis for you.
Lindsey also recommends using deal apps, such
as ShopSavvy, and websites that aggregate
available offers.
But before you buy anything, try to validate the
legitimacy of the listing you found. “When you’re
looking at the first page of reviews, that first
page is usually not the best page to be looking
at,” Khalifah says.
In the age of fake reviews and phoney products,
you’ll need to scroll through several pages of
reviews to get a better sense of the seller and
product. Pay close attention.
And if you’re purchasing something for the first
time, Khalifah says, watching video reviews
is often more valuable than reading written
reviews. You’ll be able to see someone actually
using a product, as opposed to reading a review
that could’ve been written by a computer
program, or bot.
STAY THE COURSE
As you start implementing these smart
shopping habits, don’t forget them anytime
soon. Shifts in consumer shopping habits
likely won’t be going away, according to
Catherine Roster, professor of marketing at the
University of New Mexico’s Anderson School
of Management.
She says most marketers believe many of
these changes will be “sticky.” That means the
popularity of online shopping for groceries and
low-contact transactions like curbside pickup
are sticking around for a while.