PFB Question Of The Day - What WebSites Do You Recommend?

Amazon is the one I think people have the least bad experiences. Such
a plethera of items for sale and for the most part reasonably priced.


I also like K-Mart because I have NEVER had an issue with any orders I
have placed with them. I receive my merchandise as quickly as possible
and (luckily) have never had to re-order because something was out of
stock...not even at the busy holiday seasons.

I've not had any real bad experiences with websites that I'd say to
avoid (I did have a really bad one with Amazon, but that was with a
third party merchant that sold through Amazon that has since been
removed), nor really had any outstanding experiences that are worth
recommending a sight.

The one thing I do have as a recommendation, if you are looking for a
good way to help charity with minimal extra effort, I'd suggest going
to goodsearch.com and using the shopping feature... they provide links
to lots of online stores that will donate a portion of the proceeds
from your sale to charities of your choosing.

Does anyone know of a good site for grocery and health and beauty
coupons?

I already mentioned Kifaru below... so for others..


1) Amazon of course. I can often get new items for less there. And if
the item I get is wrong, they're very good about taking care of
things, including free return shipping etc.

The only thing I dislike is - for when I was in the Navy and stationed
on a ship - there are some items they will not ship to FPO addresses.



2) BH Photo.
They primarily sell photography supplies, but they also sell various
electronic items.

Most importantly, they'll ship to FPO addresses. So when I wanted a
sony reader... amazon wouldn't ship to me, but BH photo would.

The other amazing thing is that they're pretty fast. I ordered that
reader on a holiday and it got to me 8 days later. In Japan.

(for those of you who aren't familiar with Military mail... getting a
package to an overseas home port in 8 days is *shockingly* fast)


3) LA Police Gear.
Eh not really fast, but they have good sales on 511 clothing. And
they'll ship to FPO

Definitely Amazon is one of the best around. I've even written a
complimentary letter on PFB to them, when I ordered an item late at
night on a Thursday, and received delivery on Monday. I've had
nothing but positive things to say about them with every single item
I've ever ordered.

Also highly recommended: QVC (qvc.com). Those 3 letters stand for
Quality, Value, and Convenience, and trust me, they live up to every
single one of them. I have yet to find a single company which even
comes close to them in customer service. This was another company
that delivered an item to my house just a few days after my order.
Additionally, the quality of their merchandise is 100% guaranteed.

As several others have mentioned, Amazon.com. I have found really
obscure items there and service is great. Amazon was a lifesaver when
I was in college. I was able to buy my textbooks for much less than
our campus bookstore (which was supposedly "non-profit") and through
my Marketplace account I was able to sell those same books to others
at a good price rather than the few pennies the bookstore was willing
to pay to buyback my textbooks. Free shipping on most purchases over
$25 makes my cash go farther.

Ecolips.com: Burt's Bees, step aside! This company sells a variety
of organic lip balms and various accessories to keep your balms at
hand. The company, based in Cedar Rapids, Iowa had to relocate after
the devastating floods last summer, and donated a portion of all sales
to flood relief. Free shipping on purchases over $15. I highly
recommend the "Bee Free" line, esp the Pomegranate flavor. Amazing
customer service: when my order was delayed last year, the CS rep
personally went to the floor and packed my order, and sent extra free
product plus a coupon for 20% off my next order.

everydayminerals.com has high quality mineral makeup and brushes. A
high quality product at reasonable prices... Not sure what shade to
choose? EDM offers sample kits where you choose the colors...a 5 item
kit is free with S&H of $2.50. Samples are generously sized...the
sample blush I got was larger than the full-sized product I got from
another company! When you decide what shades work for you, you can buy
kits with full-sized products...a kit with 12 items only costs $50!!
Extra products are often included for free when you buy the full-sized
kits. Fast shipping, a huge range of shades and the highest quality
mineral products and brushes I have ever tried at incredible prices.

clothing company sizes, even with the handy sizing chart. These guys
were happy to take care of my error, even upgrading the shipping on
the replacement item! Then they sent me a bonus promo rugby jersey and
gave me upgraded shipping on my next order. Outstanding service.

organicflowers.com has fantastic products and great service

1. L.L. Bean.---I have been ordering/returning/exchanging from them
for years. Even before internet, I would phone in an order and the
reps were awesome! I use their credit card and get free shipping and
free return shipping. They never refuse a return. Mr. Bean would be so
proud!

2. Lands' End----enough people have posted about them. I agree.

3. Amazon.com---easy to use website and I like the marketplace where
you can buy slightly used books for next to nothing! I bought my son a
copy of the Polar Express for $1.49 plus 3.99 shipping. A hardcover
book that was brand new for a little more than 5 dollars. I bought a
few cookbooks that way too and have nothing but great things to say.
One downside is that any returns are not free but I only had to return
1 thing in the last 10 or so years I have been ordering from them. My
parents order something from there once a week, I swear!

4. Shoebuy.com---I have not ordered from here in a while but I love
their free shipping both ways policy. Ordering shoes without trying
them on is a gamble so I like how they let you return/exchange without
any extra postage. They usually have some promotional code you can get
10 dollars off any purchase.

EDDIE BAUER. I love being able to return unwanted internet orders to
the store -- no additional shipping costs incurred that way.

AMAZON.COM. Those poopheads! I always end up with an order of about
$21 or $22, so then I end up spending $35 or $40 in order to get the
free shipping that comes with $25 orders. They suck me in every time.
I love when a shipment of CDs/books arrives.

NEWEGG. Electronics. Excellent prices, excellent customer service
reps reachable by (gasp!) telephone!

Amazon.com, hands down!

I love that website. When I have problems (rarely!), I was always
helped quickly and to my satisfaction.

I like how results get personalized to my shopping habits, though I
thought I wouldn't, but I really do pay attention to what it
recommends and 9 times out of 10, they present things that I would buy
if I had the money. I also like their daily deals and when I had
Amazon Prime, I got items so quickly!

So, yeah. I'm like an amazon.com fangirl. Never had a big problem with
them.

Avenue.com is great for the plus size ladies (even my size 14). Site
is easy to use and the CSR's are wonderful if you need to return
something.

Land's End - if they make a mistake they fix it.

Sierra Trading Post - courteous, quick, fast shipping
You'd think they were a small outfit instead of a big company

Woot.com - they're a hoot

Drugstore.com - quick service, good phone service

I could come up with more.

In real life, anything less than perfect is considered failing. This
is major industries, and the two I can think of are Steak 'n Shake and
Holiday Inn.
Whenever you phone in a survey for a free menu item or chance at a
gift card, etc. or complete an email survey, it is tracked the same
way as the star system. Anything less than perfect is considered
failing. In the case of Holiday Inn, our previous management was FINED
by the parent company (franchisor) for not having a good enough
rating.
Refunding the money to buyers in any situation is a good thing. The
answer to one issue is don't ship internationally. And if you avoid
parcel post and media mail, a package will not be "delayed" by the
post office except in very unlikely circumstances.
While some buyers simply cannot be satisfied unless you teleport
yourself to their front door, kiss their feet and hand them the item
seconds after the auction closes, that is why they consider all of
your ratings.
I know I am in the minority, but I think it is logical from the buyers
perspective and in a business sense. If buyers are satisfied, then
they will buy more, therefore more FVFs for eBay. And since sellers
have nowhere else to go that is an effective alternative, they know
they can get people to comply with the way they want it to be.
Every website has rules, whether it be getting high ratings when
conducting a business transaction all the way down to the simplicity
of not criticizing a letter writer on a public forum.
I recently didn't get an item I paid for. On the old eBay, I most
likely would have had to go through the motions of a drawn out PayPal
claim coupled with retaliatory negative feedback. Now, I simply called
a 1-800 number and had my refund in about a day.

If it weren't that simple, they would lose customers. People would
become dissatisfied and leave the site.

Don't ship internationally? Half my buyers have been from outside the
US lately; I shipped two items to the Netherlands so far this week
alone. Don't use anything but Priority? There go the rest of my
sales. Books don't sell if they don't go Media Mail, and I've never
had one lost yet. I've had first class packages lost however, never
mind delayed. Just flat out gone; I think somebody somewhere helped
themselves to some free jewelry. Those buyers got refunds of course
without needing to file, which meant as a seller I was out my original
outlay for the merchandise and both Ebay fees and postage. The only
ones making money on the deal were Ebay and the US Mail.

It's part of the risk you take when you ship something. Anything.
Even with delivery confirmation the USPS sometimes screws up, and
anyone who tells you different is delusional. UPS loses stuff too.
That's what insurance is for, only it's not cost effective to pay
$1.75 to insure every $5.00 item, especially since the USPS generally
finds a way to weasel out of paying up. My profit margins are razor
thin as it is. Add insurance, which I'd have to pay for since no one
wants the added expense... yeah, right. Charge $5 for first class
shipping, and watch the buyers scream overcharge.


If I followed your advice, I'd be out of business in a month. I sell
vintage and antique items, which are not mass produced or widely
available. They are vintage, which means often imperfect. If you buy
only new mass-produced stuff, or sell it, your opinion makes sense.
For anything else, the term impossible comes to mind to put it mildly.


As to customers leaving, you make the mistake that Ebay itself often
does. It forgets that the people who pay its bills are not the buyers,
but the sellers. Its CUSTOMERS are the SELLERS, not the buyers.
Buyers pay no fees for the privilege of buying (don't let them see it
or they might try that too!) but sellers pay fees for breathing.
Ebay's customers are leaving left and right, and every time they make
things more seller-unfriendly more smaller dealers make tracks.

PS - It's far more common to sell an item and have a buyer renege on
paying than it is to pay and not get something. I currently have one
item officially sold, and allegedly paid for by an e-check that hasn't
cleared yet. The buyer is NARU, so I'm not holding my breath that it
actually will.

Zappos and FatBrainToys

Most people here haven't heard of them. Kifaru is a company that
specializes in backpacks, rucksacks, etc for backpack hunters &
military, as well as some top notch shelters.


Oh I don't know where to start with this... there are so many
wonderful factors to consider...

1) warranty is for the life of the product. (repairs from regular wear
might cost, but outright breaking or defect is covered)

2) Return policy - 30 days after you receive the product. (note i said
"receive")

3) 100 % made in the USA... specifically in Colorado.

4) Message board. Although you can easily email the staff, you can
also talk to them and other customers via the message board. There's
a pretty strong community there.

5) excellent customer service


One of the best examples I can give is one from a year or two ago. A
customer was having trouble with a shelter he purchased, and posted on
the company message board. At the advice of another customer he posted
a picture of his tent on the message board.

Someone replied that it had a defect and to contact the company.

Before he could contact them, one of the employees contacted him to
make arrangements for repairs.

yes. as soon as the company saw an item was defective they took the
initiative to contact the customer to repair the item.

To me that, says it all right there.


Now there are a couple of downsides to this company. Not bad things,
but things you need to consider before buying anything

1) They are not cheap. However... for what you pay the stuff's going
to last a long time

2) It takes 2-3 months for a pack. If you're military headed for
deployment (.mil email address can be proof) you'll get priority
though.


Of course... that brings to mind one other factor with the sacks.
Resell value.

Typically you can expect a 90% resell (sometimes even more), simply
because the buyer won't have to wait as long. Plus the warranty will
be valid.


So .. yeah... when it comes to awesome companies... I can only think
of Kifaru.

I have loved the way 1800flowers.com has treated me. When I had a
problem, they fixed it quickly. I even wrote a letter to them on this
site about that.

I shop online a lot, but very rarely do I ever have to contact
customer service.

I had a good experience this past holiday season with Amazon.com, and
TurboTax, when I used it, had great customer service, very fast in
replying to an issue that I had.
I also like shopping on Origins.com, as they send fun samples! :)
Great service too, and lots of sales.

www.zappos.com is definitely the best ever.

Hmm what others...

www.simplywhispers.com, I get hypoallergenic earrings there and they
have good service and prices.

I've always had good luck with Amazon and with amazon prime I get
things so fast.

Fashion Bug! I love ordering my clothes there, never had a problem
with the website or store. Orders are always quick and accurate.