Cyber Monday and Amazon's Online Dominance 174
sturgeon writes "A report out this morning pegs Amazon with a whopping 14% share of all daily Internet users — almost twice the nearest competitor (Ebay). And this number does not include all shopping sites absorbed by the growing Amazon empire. The original report has interesting graphics comparing Amazon to other retailers like Best Buy."
I used Amazon for most of my shopping (Score:5, Informative)
I needed to get a few items this holiday season:
1. LEDTV
2. Digital camera and accessories
3. Kindle (original)
4. Clothes
5. Toys
6. Books
7. Misc
I got 6/7 items on Amazon. Why? A few reasons: I'm already an Amazon Prime member (as a student it was just stupid cheap and I like the streaming options for kids shows) and the very few times I've had a problem with what was shipped to me they have been nothing but spectacular in dealing with it; usually just immediately shipping out a new item without me having to send what I already received back before they'd send a new item.
I also personally believe the shopping experience is far superior to the other online options I looked through (NewEgg, Target and Walmart). Target's site was slow, cumbersome and confusing. Walmart was somewhat similar to Target but at least their site loaded and Amazon's prices were lower for the same or very similar product and next-day option at $3.99 or free at 2 day killed anything I saw elsewhere.
Overall Amazon has been a winner for me for years for bigger purchases and if they keep it up, they'll continue to get my business. While I don't consider myself a HUGE buyer at the holidays, aside from the clothing I bought for my wife where I needed a very specific item that wasn't available anywhere but where I purchased it from.
YMMV.
That is incorrect (Score:2, Informative)
Amazon
Newegg
Ebay
Re:screw "cyber monday" (Score:5, Informative)
1. buy a ton of something straight from Asia that's way below your normal quality standards from brands nobody's heard of
2. put it on sale near cost but understock it so it runs out quickly
3. mark up things people actually want
Even newegg got into it. I put in a newegg order about 1 in 3 days during my shop's busy season so I know what things cost and they are outright lying about the discounts. Like I ordered two Vertex 4 128GB SSDs while they were on sale for $79. They claimed it was "50% off of an original price of $149." Bullshit! It's been $110 for months. Maybe $150 was launch price or MSRP or something but either way, they're lying to their customers. And even they got into 2012: The Year of the Crappy Sub-$100 Android Tablet.
Re:It's not surprising (Score:5, Informative)
I've started buying components from Amazon instead of Newegg. For my state, almost every online retailer charges sales tax. As a Prime member, the shipping is of course way better.
The major difference for me, though, is that Amazon's return policy is so much better. I've gotten both a drive and memory from Newegg that arrived DOA. The return procedure is a bit of a pain, they don't cross-ship (last I knew), and you're charged for shipping. You also have to get a replacement, rather than a refund, or pay a 15% restocking fee. If an item from Amazon is DOA, they'll ship you a new one immediately (second-day, generally) and pay for shipping the old one back. Return or refund, no fee.
I just don't feel like paying someone to send me broken items, especially when better options are available.
Re:Why Amazon? (Score:4, Informative)
Amazon actually now charges sales tax in the following states: California, Kansas, Kentucky, New York, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Washington. That's about 1/3 of the U.S. population there.
Re:It's not surprising (Score:4, Informative)
I'm doing the same thing, but the search on Amazon is atrocious.
Re:stopped buying from amazon for sales tax (Score:4, Informative)
Enjoy it while you can. Federal sales tax is probably coming in the next year or two and every online retailer will be collecting it.
For a long time, Amazon was against a federal sales tax, for obvious reasons. But now they've done an about face, again for obvious reasons. They know it's coming, so it's now to their benefit to get it as soon as possible, since they're already forced to collect sales tax in some states. They've lost that small advantage in a few states, and they want to make sure everyone else loses it, too. Got to admit it's sound business sense on their part.
Re:It's not surprising (Score:5, Informative)
Not in Canada (Score:5, Informative)
They could do even better if 9 out of 10 products they sell didn't spit out "We are unable to ship to your address" for Canadian buyers. I am all but given up shopping on Amazon for that reason... they can't even provide a way to filter out items they can't ship to you!