I love great deals. Who doesn’t, right? In fact, If I am shopping for clothes online, I first search the sales and clearance items. I am not bargain shopper; I am smart shopper. One huge problem with purchasing online, especially the great deals, is that you often receive a product different then what you have expected. For example, I bought a black, silk dress for an upcoming wedding online, and on clearance, from a popular clothing line… for twelve dollars (not including tax or shipping). Yes, twelve dollars! This was too good of a deal to pass, so I purchased the dress and received it three days later. To my surprise, the dress look very different than what it did online and was three sizes bigger than the size on the tag. Needless to say, it cost me more in time and money to return the item and now I am aphrensive of “great deals” and will not shop that clothing line anymore.
After this experience, I started to think about how many companies do not list pricing or specific information on their website. Understandably,the nature of competition is to learn everything about others in your industry and hope that they do not learn much about you. So many companies do not post their pricing and specific information online. But who ultimately pays the price? Customers. It is the customer’s time and money spent “shopping around” on the phone to learn and compare the cost and quality of products.
I am very proud that Grosh backdrops and drapery created their website for people like me, who want to know exactly how much a rental will cost (tax and shipping also available online), what the product looks like, and the conditions involved in the rental relationship. Once a backdrop is created at Grosh, we hang the backdrop in our warehouse and take a picture of the backdrop. Our images on the web are NOT enhanced or graphically designed. We list all of our pricing and offer an option to purchase a rental immediately online. These practices were created for the customer in mind, and not the competition. What you see is what you get.
What frustrations have you experienced with searching for rentals online?
What information is essential for you to know before you rent products?
~Guest Blogger
Jane Mohr, Marketing Communications Manager