It appears the saying "buyer beware is starting to take root.
A new Pew Research Center study finds that a majority of Americans (58%) conduct their own research of products and services online before they buy them. Pew says this is a marked increase from 2004 when only 49% of consumers did any research before shelling out money online for a product or service.
Personally, I know I've increased my search for information before buying something online because I've been burned a few times when I didn't. I'll even research online before going to a store to buy something to make sure it's the best product available for the price.
The trick is to get your information from reliable sources because there is an abundance of misinformation and outright fiction designed to get you to buy something that may be less than acceptable.
My friend Jean Chatzky devoted an entire column to this issue in the Daily News. She says she's surprised the Pew number isn't higher because she almost always researches whatever she's intending to buy. She goes to Google and reads customer reviews and feedback on Amazon.com.
She also warns that you have to be able to differentiate legitimate feedback from a public relations pitch. So she turned to Max Levitte, the founder of Cheapism.com, and Daniel de Grandpre, editor-in-chief of dealnews.com for advice.
It turns out that reading customer reviews on Amazon may not be that helpful, especially if the review is written by someone who works for the company. So instead of focusing on individual feedback, try to spot a trend. Have a lot of people mentioned that this BlueRay DVD player is difficult to operate. Or that the camera you like is being discontinued so if there's a problem with it you may not be able to get it fixed. Levitte says don't go by the stars. They can be manipulated.
The best places are those expert reviews in newspapers, magazines and websites that specialize in whatever it is you're researching. They're from people who are knowledgeable about a kind of product or service and aren't compensated for good feedback.
ConsumerReports.org is a good place to start, although you have to pay $29.95 a year or $5.95 a month. Another good resource is Good Housekeeping's website which has reviews on home goods, exercise equipment and children's items.
Jean say she uses CNET.com for television research, and de Grandpre likes Real Simple for household items and PC World for electronics.
Begin your search by learning everything you can about the category, not a particular model or brand. You first want to see what options are available. If you're searching for a TV, you want to know what a refresh rate is and how it impacts your viewing experience. Does it have a wireless capability built in for streaming video off the web?
Another place to check is a store's website. They may not be totally objective but they have a wealth of information about the kinds of TVs available now, as well as forums where you can ask other people questions. After identifying features that are important check on price.
There are a number of ways to compare price such as shopping.com and Shopzilla.com. They're good for soft goods, like apparel or children's toys while PriceGrabber.com is better for electronics. Make sure to factor in shipping costs and tax and that you're comparing apples to apples particularly with electronics. Some items listed may be refurbished or without extras.
Also, do another search for the product or store and the word coupon. There are a ton of sites that collect coupon codes such as RetailMeNot.com and groupon.com.
