online shopping effect essay

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The Effects of Online Shopping

The world is new and ever-changing, and in today’s digital world, the fast, simple acquiring of goods and services is greatly desired. At a glance, people can be seen walking with their cellphones in hand, listening to music, texting, checking their bank accounts, and even shopping. The ways of old are becoming obsolete with brick-and-mortar retailers being swallowed alive by the online giants, such as Amazon and eBay. On Monday, September 18, 2017, the popular toy-store chain, Toys”R”Us, filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy after being afflicted with a $5 billion debt and the ever-growing online juggernaut, Amazon. Toys”R”Us decided to close some of its under-performing stores and, in turn, expand online operations. Toys”R”Us is not the only brick-and-mortar business that suffered at the hands of online retailers; businesses such as Blockbuster, Barnes & Noble, and Walmart have all been affected by online business.

Despite its hard hit on physical businesses, online shopping has proved to have many positive advantages for consumers. Online stores are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, so the issue of a store closing before the consumer can make it on time is completely eliminated. Online shopping is exceptionally efficient during the holidays; shoppers do not have to bother with the long, exasperating lines, and they get to cut back on gas spending by staying indoors. Due to the lack of operating costs, online retailers can sell goods at lower prices; this makes the experience of online shopping not only faster and convenient, but it is also far cheaper than going to the physical store.

Although these facts may make online shopping look like the best course of action, there are many downsides to doing online business. Back-order goods can prove to be exceedingly trying for shoppers, especially during the holidays. Shoppers also lose the person-to-person communication that an online retailer cannot provide. If issues arise during a purchase, having a human contact can resolve an issue faster and, oftentimes, more efficiently; it is also easier to be refunded as well.

Online shopping is becoming an ever-growing replacement to brick-and-mortar business. This change can definitely be seen as a positive progression, but it could also prove to be a great downfall. The loss of brick-and-mortar business can render many individuals jobless; this can hurt many people financially, and job opportunities for individuals in the labor force could drop significantly.

Online Shopping Essay

500+ words online shopping essay.

The trend of online shopping has increased in recent times with the increase of e-commerce and digital technology. With just a single click, you can shop for everything by sitting at your home as per your choice, convenience and budget. This essay on online shopping will help students learn about the pros and cons of online shopping. We have also compiled a list of CBSE Essays on different topics to help them improve their essay-writing skills. These essays will also help them improve their scores on the English exam.

What Does Online Shopping Mean?

Online shopping is the activity of buying products and services over the internet using a web browser or mobile app. It means buyers have to go online to reach a seller’s website and then select the product they want to purchase. The buyer can pay for the goods and services either online with a credit or debit card or upon delivery. Online shopping sites are also known by many other names such as e-shop, e-web-store, e-store, internet shop, web-store, web-shop, virtual store and online store. An online shop creates a physical analogy for buying products or services. Some of the famous online retailing corporations which facilitate the experience of online shopping are Amazon, eBay, Flipkart, Myntra, etc.

Online shopping is a growing area of the digital world and technology. Establishing a store on the Internet gives various options to consumers. With the growth of online shopping, most businesses have started selling their products online. Now, just having physical stores is not enough in this fast-paced world. Having online store interfaces for consumers has also become essential for running a business in the current scenario.

Benefits of Online Shopping

There are numerous advantages of online shopping. People feel more convenient while shopping online. They can shop from anywhere at their own convenient time through easy and safe payment methods. Online shopping has empowered consumers with various advantages such as convenience and time-saving, lower search costs, better product selection, lower prices, etc. One of the biggest benefits of online shopping is that you can buy the items you want with just a single click. Online stores are open 24 hours a day and are accessible from any location with an internet connection.

Online stores carry more variations and provide more varieties of a product as compared to traditional stores. This is because online stores don’t need to attractively display their items on shelves, and they can keep a larger amount of inventory on hand. They might also have small amounts of each item since they don’t need to display them and can order more from their supplier as needed.

Online shops tend to provide more information about items for sale than you would get in a physical store. Product descriptions most often include a description from the manufacturer, another description from the vendor, specific technical and size details, reviews from professional magazines and journals, and reviews from people who have bought the product. Having all this information available when you are considering a purchase makes you a more informed consumer without having to perform extra research by yourself.

Online stores are not burdened by the costs of running a physical store, such as the rent of the physical premises and wages of sales staff. The cost savings by online stores lead to lower pricing on the internet, passing on cost savings to shoppers. The internet encourages online vendors to compete with one another by lowering prices.

Disadvantages of Online Shopping

The benefits of shopping online also come with potential risks and dangers. When you shop online, you can’t touch or try out the product. You have to depend upon product pictures only. You can’t buy the product instantly. If you don’t get the product in hand immediately after payment, you have to wait for delivery, which can take days to weeks. There is no guarantee that you will get the product in its original shape; it might get damaged on the way. Sometimes, the product is very different from the pictures and description due to various reasons and also has poor quality. If, after receiving the package, expectations weren’t met, you need to go through a returns process which can be time-consuming. Apart from these, there is also a chance of security threats from online shopping. If the site is not secured, you have a risk of losing your card information.

Online shopping is one of the convenient ways of purchasing different products. However, there are some products which are better if they are purchased from physical stores. So, in the future, we can expect online stores to improve their technology, making way for a much easier and faster shopping experience.

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Cause and Effect of Online Shopping | Best Homework Writers

Online retailing is a type of e-commerce that facilitates or gives a platform for buyers to purchase services and goods online. Recently, online shopping has gained fame, and more people are turning to online shopping. There are particular reasons which lead people to shop; however, online shopping norm has an impact not only on the businesses but also the economy.

The need for a wider selection of goods and to have a comparison of goods. This is one of the major reasons why most buyers prefer to purchase goods from an online store. A majority of buyers rarely know what they are looking for when going shopping. Therefore, turning to online shopping, they can have access to various products that are in stock (Lim et al. 403). For instance, by using Amazon only, a buyer can access items from different categories, e.g., books, electronics, furniture, detergents, among others. The need to access a variety of goods goes hand in hand with the need to have a better comparison of commodities. Buyers do not have time to move from one physical location to another to compare commodities. They choose to from online stores since they can compare the quality, quantity, and price of products. Some products are counterfeit and may have different pricing on different platforms. Going through the review section of the item helps one understand the quality and durability of the product. Likewise, one can determine which platform has the best rates for a particular product. The customer requires a wider range of products to choose from.

Other causes of online shopping are convenience and the need to save on time. Shoppers enjoy the freedom of purchasing commodities conveniently from home (Bucko et al.). All they need is to have access to the internet, choose the products you wish to buy, make an order, and they will be delivered at your doorstep. Buyers do not have to travel to the physical location of the retailer to buy what they need. Also, they do not struggle to get a product of their choice; it is easier to identify which store is selling a particular product. It’s different from offline stores where one must move from one retailer to the other in the search for the desired products. Most people usually look for easier ways to shop without wasting much of their time. Through online shopping, buyers will not waste their time by visiting supermarkets and other retailers to buy goods. Also, they save on time that is wasted by shoppers making long queues in supermarkets. Online shopping saves buyers the hustle of looking for a car park and the time wasted switching products that are not necessary from the shopping trolley. Technological inventions help businesses improve their business and serve clients better, and therefore, buyers are looking for a retailer that is convenient.

Online shopping has affected offline retail shops in several ways. One, they have decreased the loyalty of customers towards a certain brand. Shoppers don’t keep on buying items from one store since they have a variety to choose the best, depending on what fits them best. Using online reviews, buyers are able to make a clear decision of what they want to buy before visiting the stores, unlike when people used to depend on shop attendants for advice. Organizations have been forced to create websites where they update relevant information regularly. They inform customers of new products, discounts and also customers are allowed to make a review of particular products. This has affected engagement between the company and its customers. The company is able to create a direct connection with its clients.

Online shopping may be convenient, but what most people do not realize is that it affects our health. The habit of online buying could be making our body weaker day by day without people’s knowledge. It is convenient since it does not involve carrying shopping bags, among other items, from shop to home, but this ruins the body muscles. Body muscles wear out more so as people grow older; however, this may be reduced through body exercise. Therefore, online shopping accelerates wearing out of body muscles. People are at the risk of becoming obese or adding weight extraordinarily since all they do is just sitting at home without body exercises. Offline shopping facilitates some form of body exercise by walking to shops and back home. People are bound to lose weight through body exercise but at the same time add weight if they spend more time sited.

People who are addicted to online shopping have a high probability of developing agitation, depression, isolation, and boredom. People who spend their time shopping online may develop depression due to a lack of enough money to purchase needed products. Online buyers behave like they are in isolation since they spend most of their time on phones and laptops searching for what to buy (Hsu and Pham). Most of their time is spent online, and they rarely interact with other people. They have a poor social life compared to that of other people. Agitation is a type of mood disorder that develops from stress (Lee et al., 2011). In this case, agitation can be caused by a lack of money when order is not delivered on time, among others. Online buyer’s minds are occupied by activities of online shopping and rarely involve themselves with other activities.

Too much of anything is poisonous, and so is online shopping. Most online buyers spend a larger percentage of their time, which results in addiction (Bhargava and Kiran). It develops some odd or weird behaviors to the affected persons to the extent that they may not realize it. It forms some kind of irresistible shopping habit that is beyond limits or excessive purchase of products. Such habits can be termed as compulsive buying and might result in the abuse of resources or regrets. Compulsive buying is a disorder that develops a kind of cycle similar to that of drug addiction. At this time, shopping becomes a routine or rather habit; it is done in order to alter our mood. Such people are forced to shop more and more despite having enough shopping in order to achieve some kind of satisfaction.

In conclusion, there are particular reasons which lead people to shop; however, online shopping norm has an impact not only on the businesses but also the economy. People opt for online shopping due to several reasons. One is the need to have a wider selection and comparison of goods. Convenience and the need to save time has also caused people to turn to online shopping. The norm of online buying has not only reduced the loyalty of customers to particular brands but also made it harder for companies to compete with each other.  In addition to the lack of privacy and increased fraud cases, online shopping has led to a reduced collection of sales taxes by the local state.

Bhargava, Neha Ramnani, and Kiran Gehani Hasija. “Effect of Online Shopping Addiction on Mental Illness among Youth.” Gnited Minds Journals, 2019, ignited.in/p/89567.

Bucko, Jozef, Lukáš Kakalejčík, and Martina Ferencová. “Online shopping: Factors that affect consumer purchasing behavior.” Cogent Business & Management 5.1 (2018): 1535751.

Hsu, Shu-Hung, and Pham Minh Luan. “The Perception Risk of Online Shopping Impacted on the Consumer’s Attitude and Purchase Intention in Hanoi, Vietnam.” Journal of Business & Economic Policy 4.4 (2017): 19-29.

Lee, J., Park, D. H., & Han, I. (2011). The different effects of online consumer reviews on consumers’ purchase intentions depending on trust in online shopping malls.  Internet research .

Lim, Yi Jin, et al. “Factors influencing online shopping behavior: the mediating role of purchase intention.” Procedia Economics and Finance 35.5 (2016): 401-410.

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The Pros and Cons of Online Shopping

6 Benefits and Drawbacks To Keep in Mind When You Shop Online

Pros of Online Shopping

Cons of online shopping, how to make the most of online shopping, money-saving tips for online shopping, frequently asked questions (faqs).

The Balance / Jiaqi Zhou

Online shopping is more popular today than ever before. A report from the U.S. Census Bureau found that in the first quarter of 2022, an estimated $250 billion was spent in retail e-commerce sales. In the second quarter of 2011, for comparison, retail e-commerce sales were $47.5 billion.

Due in part to new and growing technology, online shopping has become incredibly easy and convenient. It also offers a greater selection than one storefront, opening the doors to products and services that may not be available at a nearby brick-and-mortar store .

While online shopping comes with a number of benefits, there are drawbacks to know about, too. Let's dive deeper into the pros and cons of shopping online.

Key Takeaways

• Online shopping is convenient and offers a variety of products you may not be able to find at your local stores.
• It's easier to comparison shop online, where you can access prices, reviews, and product details with a click.
• When you shop online, you need to wait for your product to be delivered to you, and you might spend more than you would if you went to a brick-and-mortar store.
• There's also a risk of fraud when you shop online, which you can combat by choosing trusted stores and paying with a card that offers fraud protection.

Convenience

Greater selection

Easy access to information

Can be more expensive

Increases risk of fraud

Leads to longer wait times

Using your computer or another digital device for your shopping needs can be convenient, offer more options, and provide insight you might not find in person at a store.

The greatest benefit of online shopping is its convenience. Through the digital space, you can buy anything you want from the comfort of your own home. Since online stores are open 24/7 and accessible from anywhere with internet access, it's easy to fit online shopping into your life no matter how busy you are. You don't have to plan your purchases based on when a brick-and-mortar store is open and available to serve you.

Greater Selection

Because products online live within the digital space, online retailers are not restricted to shelves and often have more inventory on hand with a wider selection of products. Also, online shopping gives you the chance to buy anything from any retailer, no matter where you're located. If you're in the market for a new lamp, for example, you'll have more options available to you than you would if you only shopped at stores in your local area.

Easy Access to Information

When shopping online, you will often find more details about a business's products than you would get in physical stores. Instead of speaking to one or two sales associates in person, you can peruse product descriptions, recommendations of similar products, and reviews from other shoppers online that may help you make a more informed purchasing decision.

Online retailers also tend to have membership options, typically via email or newsletters, that give shoppers early access to sales, seasonal releases , and other events. This way, you can be one of the first to know of offerings from your favorite brands.

Shopping for items online can also have its pitfalls, including hidden price mark-ups, an increased risk of fraud, and the inability to use or wear the item you purchased right away.

Can Be More Expensive

Online purchases can cost you more for several reasons. Even though many major online retailers offer free shipping, they generally require you to meet a minimum to qualify for it. In addition, online retailers may use several strategies to encourage you to buy more items or more expensive items than if you were shopping in person.

Depending on the state you live in, you may be required to pay an internet sales tax , too. In Texas, for example, you may have to pay a tax on out-of-state purchases delivered into Texas or purchases made from online-only sellers.

Many online retailers take part in digital tactics to convince shoppers to make more purchases, often considered impulse buys . Some include using "limited time" sale pop-ups that reset every time users reload the page, fake customer testimonials, or messages that promote higher-cost items.

Increases Risk of Fraud

Unfortunately, online shopping scams do exist. According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), online shopping was the fourth most common fraud category for consumers as of February 2022. Some scammers pretend to be legitimate online sellers with fake websites or create fake ads on real sites.

Always pay by credit card rather than a debit card, as you can easily report fraud to your credit card company. Also, it is best to avoid online sellers that only accept payment via money transfers, gift cards, or cryptocurrency. Scammers may encourage you to pay through these methods so they can access your money faster.

Leads to Longer Wait Times

When you shop at a brick-and-mortar store, you can walk away with the product you bought and use or wear it right away. Online shopping forces you to wait days, weeks, or even longer for your order to arrive. If you're in a time crunch and need a product right away, such as a gift, going to an in-person shop may be a better option for you.

These tips can allow you to enhance your online shopping experience.

Know Which Products To Buy Online

Some items are better to buy online than others because you can find countless consumer reviews, discounts, or other deals pertaining to them. For items you regularly use (such as a laptop, phone charger, luggage, or textbook), the internet may be the best place to compare offers. For things you require to have long-lasting value (like a car) or must get right away (such as groceries), shopping in person may be best.

Read Reviews

Before you check out, read reviews on the retailer's website as well as third-party sites like Google and Facebook. This can help you find out if the retailer is legitimate and whether there may be any potential issues with the product you're about to invest in. Reviews are beneficial for small businesses , too. Ninety-eight percent of consumers read online reviews of local businesses, according to marketing consultancy BrightLocal's 2022 Local Consumer Review Survey.

Some companies have more nuanced review options than others. Clothing rental service Nuuly, for example, lets its customers add photos of themselves wearing products with written reviews, enabling future customers to make empowered, smart purchasing decisions.

Examine Product Details

If you’re interested in a product, read its description. Make sure you know what it’s made out of, whether it comes with a warranty, what sizes are available, and so on. By doing so, you can avoid unwanted surprises that cost you time, money, and headaches when the product arrives.

There are many ways to save some money while making online purchases. Consider these tips to improve your online shopping experience.

Comparison Shop

If you have a specific product in mind, it's in your best interest to comparison shop, similar to how you would when looking for life insurance. Look at various online stores that offer what you want. Then, compare prices so you can find the best deal.

As you comparison shop, read product descriptions very closely. The FTC recommends looking out for words like "refurbished" or "vintage," as this could mean a product will arrive at your door in less-than-perfect condition.

Follow Online Retailers on Social Media

Online retailers often promote their sales and discounted items on Facebook, Instagram, and other social media channels. If you follow some of your favorite companies on social media, you may be one of the first to see and purchase the latest offers.

Use Money-Saving Apps or Plug-ins

There is no shortage of apps or plug-ins that can allow you to save money online without the hassle. Some examples are Honey, Swagbucks, Capital One Shopping, and Rakuten. You can also look for coupon codes online on sites like RetailMeNot.com and Coupons.com.

How do you get your money back from an online purchase?

This process varies by retailer. Some may automatically refund your money when you report a problem with your purchase; others may require you to return the product first. You may not be able to get your money back at all, especially if it's after the retailer's return window. If you're buying something that may not work for you, like clothing, check the retailer's refund policy before you buy.

How has the internet changed shopping?

The internet has completely changed the shopping experience. People have access to products from around the globe. Payments are instant, and recommendations are tailored to your shopping and browsing habits. Brick-and-mortar retailers have had to respond by launching websites and improving their in-person customer experience.

U.S. Census Bureau. " Quarterly Retail E-Commerce Sales 1st Quarter 2022 ," Page 1.

U.S. Census Bureau. " Quarterly Retail E-Commerce Sales 2nd Quarter 2011 ," Page 2.

Texas Comptroller's Office. " Taxes: Online Orders - Texas Purchasers and Sellers ."

University of Michigan. " Impulse Buying: Design Practices and Consumer Needs ," Pages 6, 9, and 11.

Federal Trade Commission. " Consumer Sentinel Network ," Page 7.

BrightLocal. " Local Consumer Review Survey 2022 ."

Nuuly. " Forget Me Not Mini Dress ."

Federal Trade Commission. " Online Shopping ," See "Comparison Shopping."

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Thomas Williams

Great topic. I think that the thesis and the connection to STS needs to be worked on. Citations could be stronger and they need to be linked in the chapter. Add links to keywords? Sections need to be labeled with topics. Your images need to be labeled and add alt text. Over all, the chapter could be more explicit and provide more examples. 

Introduction

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused people to make many changes in their lives. One of these changes is a significant increase in shopping online instead of in physical stores. The pandemic has caused increased use of online shopping as an alternative to physical stores that will remain after the pandemic ends.

Connection to STS Theory

The shift from physical shopping to online shopping is related to the Theory of Path Dependence , which states that current decisions made by people are based on decisions made in the past due to a resistance to change. After the pandemic had taken off, customers stuck with shopping online because of past experiences with shopping during the pandemic. Since the ratio of online shoppers to in-store shoppers decreased during the pandemic, many people decided to continue the convenience of shopping online as opposed to changing their routine to travel to the store.

Online Shopping Is on the Rise

More people are shopping online after the pandemic than before. According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (abbreviated UNCTAD), the number of purchases made online has risen by 6% – 10% since the beginning of the pandemic ( UNCTAD , 2020). This increase in online purchases shows that the pandemic has caused people to shop online more.

People do not feel comfortable or safe when they are shopping in person.  Why are people shopping online more? People do not feel comfortable or safe when they are shopping in person. In decades prior, people would have had to take that risk, but in 2020, we have an alternative. According to a Morning Consult study, which was shared by Forbes, 24% of consumers said that they would be uncomfortable shopping for 6 months after March ( Meyers , 2020) ( Columbus , 2020). People are not comfortable shopping in person, so they are now shopping online.

Will This Go Back to Normal?

This change in behavior is likely here to stay.

Is this a permanent change? This change in behavior is likely here to stay. According to CNN Business, consumers are embracing these new changes with no sign of reverting to pre-Covid numbers ( Riley , 2020). This is consistent with the path-dependence theory, which states that humans will make choices based on previous choices. Behaviors do not change unless they have to.

People have begun shopping online as an alternative to in person shopping during the pandemic. They did this to feel safe. Even after the pandemic is over, people are likely to continue this behavior, as there will not be anything that forces them to change it. Online shopping is now more prevalent than ever and is here to stay.

UNCTAD. COVID-19 has changed online shopping forever, survey shows. (2020, October 08). Retrieved November 02, 2020, from https://unctad.org/news/covid-19-has-changed-online-shopping-forever-survey-shows

Columbus, L. (2020, April 28). How COVID-19 Is Transforming E-Commerce. Retrieved November 02, 2020, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/louiscolumbus/2020/04/28/how-covid-19-is-transforming-e-commerce/

Meyers, A. (2020, April 10). When Consumers Say They’ll Feel OK About Dining Out and Other Activities. Retrieved November 02, 2020, from https://morningconsult.com/2020/04/10/consumer-expectations-normal-activities-comfortable/

Riley, C. (2020, October 13). Online shopping has been turbocharged by the pandemic. There’s no going back. Retrieved November 02, 2020, from https://www.cnn.com/2020/10/11/investing/stocks-week-ahead/index.html

Path Dependence. (n.d.). Retrieved December 03, 2020, from https://www.britannica.com/topic/path-dependence

“Shopping trolley with medical mask.” by focusonmore.com is licensed under CC BY 2.0

To the extent possible under law, Thomas Williams has waived all copyright and related or neighboring rights to COVID 19: A Student Perspective , except where otherwise noted.

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The Truth About Online Shopping and Its Environmental Impact

Global e-commerce has grown steadily over the past decade. The COVID-19 pandemic has pushed the sector even more, triggering changes in consumer behaviour and leading to staggering records in sales. Big companies such as Amazon, Alibaba, and Walmart have monopolised online shopping and increased consumers’ expectations. Nowadays, they expect goods to be delivered on the same day and to return them without cost. Digitalisation and technological innovations have indeed allowed the industry to do what was believed to be impossible just a few decades ago. However, this revolution comes with high costs for our planet. We take a look at the growing trends in online shopping and its environmental impact. 

Modern Consumerism

We are living in a time when consumerism is at its finest. The digitalisation of modern life as well as new, innovative technologies have completely transformed the way in which people shop. In the past decade, the number of digital buyers has climbed at an unprecedented pace, turning e-commerce into a multibillion-dollar industry. Furthermore, since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, digital channels, which were already growing at a steady pace, have become by far the most popular shopping alternative for consumers around the world, sparking an extraordinary increase in online purchases. In June 2020, global retail e-commerce traffic reached a record 22 billion monthly visits and a staggering US$26.7 trillion in sales . 

By the end of this year, Asia is set to account for 50% of the world’s total online retail sales, most of which take place in China , currently the world’s leading country by retail e-commerce sales. Singles’ Day, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday are just a few examples of the initiatives that push consumers to buy more and more goods. During these shopping “events”, retailers that have monopolised the global economy such as Amazon, Walmart and Alibaba, as well as smaller companies that  are trying to keep up with this trend to stay afloat within the industry, deliberately and accurately orchestrate sales by pressuring people to purchase products under the spell of discounts and limited time. Even though this year these three events, which all take place in November, recorded enormous online sales worldwide and in China, where Singles’ Day – or ‘Double 11’ – has seen a record 540.3 billion yuan (US$84.4 billion) in sales, online traffic has dropped from 2020. Experts describe this drop as a consequence of a change in the consumers’ behaviour, as they have started buying their Christmas gifts much earlier in the season for fears about the supply chain . 

Indeed, over the past two years, major shipping companies have had a hard time keeping up with the demand and they have been struggling to deliver packages all over the world. The global supply chain is at a breaking point and, unless consumers change their shopping attitude and their expectations when buying online, the crisis is likely to reach a point of no return. And as much as big corporations are easily blamed for this crisis, consumers are equally responsible. 

There are three key differentiators that consumers seek when buying online: price, speed, and convenience. Amazon, the world’s leading online marketplace in terms of traffic, has found the perfect formula to satisfy all three of them, by training its customers into believing that free and fast shipping is something they should have, thus forcing smaller retailers to adopt the same strategy in order to keep up with giant competitors. While buying online was initially a way to find the best deals, with innovation and technology, e-commerce has turned into a fast machine conceived to satisfy more and more consumers’ demands and expectations. In September 2021, several industry groups representing over 65 million transport workers wrote an open letter to heads of state at the United Nations General Assembly, warning that, if this trend continues to grow at the same rate, global transport systems are going to collapse. 

You might also like: 7 Fast Fashion Companies Responsible for Environmental Pollution

The Issue of Over-Packaging

The online shopping addiction of modern consumers is not only leading the global supply chain to a point of no return, but it is also having a huge environmental impact with huge catastrophic consequences on our planet. Indeed, with the boom in online shopping came, not surprisingly, huge environmental issues. The effects can be seen worldwide. However, there is one country where the industry’s repercussions on the environment are particularly visible: China. The country’s e-commerce success is unmatched worldwide, with experts predicting that 52,1% of the country’s retail sales will come from online shopping in 2021 . The success is mainly attributed to China’s rapid evolution of the internet and the digitalisation of payment systems. However, as the country’s e-commerce is able to generate hundreds of billions of dollars in revenue from a single shopping day like Double 11, environmental groups warn consumers that this shopping extravaganza comes at a dramatic cost to the planet. 

Products’ packaging contributes in large part to CO2 emissions from producing plastics, polluting ecosystems as well as adding enormous amounts of waste to our landfills. 3 billion trees are pulped yearly to produce 241 million tons of shipping cartons, the forest conservation group Canopy found. And of the 86 million tons of plastic packaging produced globally each year, not even 14% is recycled . As for China, statistics from the State Post Bureau showed that the country’s courier handled 83 billion express parcels in 2020 alone, which accounted for 1.8 million tonnes of plastic waste and nearly 10 million tonnes of paper waste. In Hong Kong alone, 780 million pieces of packaging waste from online shopping was generated over the course of 2020, according to a recent study by the local group Green Sense . The study also showed that, on average, 2.18 pieces of packaging were used for each product in the same year, mostly consisting of mixed materials, which are hard to recycle. As space for landfills become scarcer, China is struggling to keep up with the growing e-commerce waste mountain. Companies such as Alibaba are thus developing more sustainable packaging, trying to reverse the trend while the Chinese government is taking steps to regulate packaging standards.

The Impact of Shipping Goods

Shipping emission is another online shopping environmental impact to consider. The transport of goods across the world is responsible for a huge portion of CO2 emissions generated by e-commerce. In 2020, the shipping and return of products accounted for 37% of the total GHG emissions . The major problem can be attributed, once again, to the consumers’ appetite for convenience. It is estimated that by 2030, the number of delivery vehicles will increase by 36%, reaching approximately 7.2 million vehicles. This will not only result in an increase of about 6 million tonnes of CO2 emissions, but it will also increase commutes by 21%, as vehicles will take longer to travel due to higher traffic congestion.

The real problem, however, lies in fast shipping. As new technologies improve the transport of goods and make it as fast as it had ever been before, more and more consumers request same-day and instant deliveries, two options that have been growing 36% and 17% annually , respectively. These two options, as the World Economic Forum reported, are particularly popular in China, making up more than 10% of the total amount of parcels being delivered each day, which are on average nearly 3 million. A study from MIT found that traditional shopping has two times the carbon footprint if compared to online shopping. This discourse, however, is valid only if one does not take the rushed online shopping into account. Indeed, when consumers opt for a fast delivery, the emissions far exceed those generated from in-person shopping. A major reason for this is that delivery companies cannot afford to wait for all products to arrive before shipping them out. When dealing with a one- or two-day shipping window, they are often forced to send out trucks that are filled at half their capacity, generating more traffic and thus emissions.

You might also like: How E-Commerce Companies are Making Online Shopping More Sustainable  

But shipping is not the only issue. As more and more online retailers, big and small, offer the option to send back goods easily and often for free, return rates, especially of fashion items, have skyrocketed, exceeding 30% of all purchased goods . A study on consumers’ behaviour showed that 79% of consumers want free return shipping and 92% of them are likely to buy again if the items they purchase are easy to return. It is statistics like these that incentivise companies to offer such options, as they will eventually be lucrative for them. 

There is little doubt that the e-commerce revolution has brought enormous advantages. However, online shopping and its environment impact must not be ignored. Nowadays, most consumers choose convenience over principles. And, as much as companies trying to become more and more sustainable is a good step in the right direction, these changes alone will not entirely solve the problem. Consumers are the ones that have the last word, and it is their behaviour and their decisions that eventually determine the impact of this industry. Thus, the only way to reverse the dangerous trend that e-commerce has taken, there needs to be a mind shift from both the producer’s as well as the consumer’s side.

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Essay on Online Shopping in 100, 200, and 300 Words.

• Updated on  
• Dec 23, 2023

Shopping is something that many people love. It is particularly cherished during festive occasions such as Diwali, Navratri, Christmas or New Year etc. The shopping world has changed and evolved majorly providing us with various options of the same. The convenience of online shopping platforms has now come into play. Those days when individuals have to take on a long journey of shopping are now past us, all thanks to the various online shopping platforms that are now at the tip of our fingers. This is just a brief introduction to how to write an essay on online shopping. Now let’s have a look at the samples of essay on online shopping.  

Table of Contents

• 1 Essay on Online Shopping in 100 words
• 2 Essay on Online Shopping in 200 words
• 3 Essay on Online Shopping in 300 words
• 4 Advantages

Essay on Online Shopping in 100 words

The way of shopping has been revolutionized by online shopping. It has made it possible and convenient to shop virtually from literally anywhere. 

The sheer convenience of shopping is one of the biggest advantages of online shopping. For those individuals who are busy and struggle to find time to visit stores, online shopping is a boon. 

Payments are easy this way with the variety of options available such as debit card, cash on delivery, etc. However, there are some drawbacks to online shopping as well. One of them is the delivery of the wrong item or a different item than that seen online. So one should be cautious and should make informed decisions.

Also Read:- My Aim in Life

Essay on Online Shopping in 200 words

In today’s world, as science and technology are progressing, a lot of things have become more convenient for us. One such thing is online shopping. Over the years due to its high demand and convenience, it has become very popular. It involves virtually placing an order on any e-commerce website without the need to go to a physical store. Various items such as shoes, gadgets, household products, and even groceries can be ordered from the comfort of your couch.  

Some of the key benefits of online shopping are mentioned below:-

• Crowd Avoided:- since online shopping is virtual, going to crowded places is avoided.
• Convenience:- we can shop from the convenience of our homes.
• Variety in products:- on different platforms, a vast range of products is available. 
• Variety in payment options:- Debit card, cash on delivery, etc payment options make it all the more convenient.

Although there are many pros of online shopping, there are some drawbacks as well. There have been many instances where wrong or damaged goods got delivered. There can be instances where a product may not match its depiction when delivered in terms of color, etc. 

Some websites even scam people and are fraudulent. Hence, it is important to take caution while shopping online. 

Also Read:- Essay on Pollution

Essay on Online Shopping in 300 words

During the 1990s, the concept of online shopping came into play and since then, it has grown exponentially. Its principle lies in the ease of browning a wide variety of products on various e-commerce platforms. The e-commerce platforms have played a central role in enabling different businesses to connect with a global audience. 

There are various advantages of online shopping, one of them being the ease of online shopping. With virtual stores, you can shop whenever you want and from wherever you want. The limitations of time don’t apply to the online stores. They are accessible 24/7.

Wide Range of Products

When you shop online, you don’t have to limit yourself to only some products. Online shopping opens a portal to a wide range of products to select from.

Saves time and money

When you shop online, you don’t have to go to stores. You can shop from the comfort of your couch. That saves time. And generally, online stores have some kind of offers and discounts going on which saves you money. 

Although online shopping has many advantages, there are also certain cons that it carries with it. Some of those cons are mentioned below:-

Shipping issues

There can issues with the shipping such as the product may get damaged during its shipping or it may get delivered to the wrong address.

Return Policies

If the product is different and the customer wants to return it or get a refund, there can be certain policies that prevent the same. 

Different item Delivery

There can be instances where the product, when delivered, is different from the one shown in the images online. Returning the same can be a hassle too as it has to be repacked for some resellers. 

Hence, when shopping online one should always be cautious and take calculated decisions. 

Also Read:- Importance of Internet

Ans: Essay on Online Shopping in 100 words The way of shopping has been revolutionised by online shopping. It has made it possible and convenient to shop virtually from literally anywhere.  The sheer convenience of shopping is one of the biggest advantages of online shopping. For those individuals who are busy and struggle to find time to visit stores, online shopping is a boon.  Payments are easy this way with the variety of options available such as debit card, cash on delivery, etc. However, there are some drawbacks to online shopping as well. One of them benign the delivery of the wrong item or a different item than that seen online. So one should be cautious and should make informed decisions.

Ans: Online shopping can be explained as virtually buying of products from an e-commerce platform without going to the physical store.

Ans: Some of the key advantages of online shopping are mentioned below:- -Crowd Avoided:- since online shopping is virtual, going to crowded places is avoided. -Convenience:- we can shop from the convenience of our homes. -Variety in products:- on different platforms, a vast range of products is available.  -Variety in payment options:- Debit card, cash on delivery, etc payment options make it all the more convenient.

Related Reads:

This brings us to the end of our blog on Essay on Online Shopping. Hope you find this information useful. For more information on such informative topics for your school, visit our essay writing and follow Leverage Edu.

Deepansh Gautam

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Online Shopping is Significantly Increasing IELTS Essay

Online shopping is significantly increasing. What impact does this have on people, what are the disadvantages and what are the job opportunities?

Online shopping is significantly increasing. What effects does this have on the environment and the types of jobs required?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience. You should write at least 250 words.

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Online Shopping is Significantly Increasing Essay

With the proliferation of the internet and smart phones, the trend of online shopping is growing rapidly. This positively impacts environment as it reduces the need of a shop which has a huge ecological footprint. This impacts society in a favourable way by reducing the cost of goods and in an adverse way by reducing employment.

Traditionally, the products are sold in a physical shop that requires lighting, air conditioning, and infrastructure. All these result in environment damage as these require a lot of electricity and raw materials that lead to emission of green house gases (GHG). Online shops, on the other hand, merely transport goods from a large regional warehouse whose ecological footprint, a measure of GHG emissions, is lower than local shops. Thus online shops contribute in environment preservation.

Online shops have better economies of scale and thus offer prices which are lesser than local shops. This reduces the financial burden on pockets of the citizens and enables them to spend more on education, culture, and entertainment. These activities promote social stability and harmony. However, they often lead to lower employment in a society. Various studies have proved that online shops employ fewer people and they result in shutting down of local businesses. For example, Amazon and Flipkart offer heavy discounts on various products that local stores can not provide. This shifts consumer choice to these websites and this results in loss of local jobs.

In conclusion, online shopping impacts a society and the environment in various positive and negative ways. While it reduces employment opportunities for some, it reduces the cost of goods for a large majority of people. It also reduces the impact of business on the environment. This builds environment sustainability, social stability and economic prosperity in a region.

IELTS Writing Task 2 Online Shopping

In recent years, online shopping has gained more and more popularity all over the world. This tendency has several impacts on the environment and on various jobs related to electronic commerce.

The rise of online shopping is both beneficial and harmful to the environment to some extent. One obvious benefit of this trend is that it can help reduce the number of private vehicles travelling to brick-and-mortar stores since orders of customers from different locations can be grouped and delivered to homes at once. This will eventually lessen a great deal of exhaust fumes which is one of the causes of air pollution. However, if people are encouraged to shop online more, more plastic wastes will be released to the environment, especially water body such as rivers and oceans. This, as a consequence, will do harm to natural habitats of numerous marine species and worsen the problem of environmental pollution.

The growth of e-shopping has also brought both negative and positive impacts on people’s employment. On the one hand, this trend has created a variety of work opportunities for people, especially for those who major in information technology. To maintain an e-store, there will be a need for many kinds of jobs such as database administrators, web designers, delivery drivers, etc. On the other hand, when e-shopping is becoming more and more popular, an influx of people working at traditional retail stores might lose their jobs and face unemployment. This will place a huge burden on the government to create alternative jobs for these individuals, which might take a long time and require a large amount of budget.

In conclusion, online shopping impacts the environment and the labour market in both positive and negative ways.

Online Shopping is Increasing Significantly IELTS Essay

Recently, online shopping has become a hot trend. Purchasing and selling online has become popular and the services are increasing manifold. eBay and Amazon offer a wide variety of products, which we can avail from the comfort of our home. Major disadvantages included in window shopping are time-consuming, traveling to faraway shops, parking the vehicles at a time of a rush hour, etc. Online shopping has reduced these inconveniences for consumers.

While shopping online or browsing the internet, people come across a wide range of products to choose from. They are able to compare the prices and features of their choices on different websites. This helps them to make a well-thought decision. Flipkart and Jabong are two famous online shops in India. They not only provide the product description and price information but also allow comparison of products of the same category, providing customers reviews and opinions and ratings. The ordered items can be altered or canceled as per the customers’ needs. You can return or exchange the items you bought if you are not satisfied with the quality.

Shopping is considered a social experience. Certain people enjoy shopping and lingering about in the markets at leisure. Popular websites often sell things at a cheaper rate than local stores, offering attractive discount rates. This is also another reason why online shops are being preferred recently.

Online shopping is much more beneficial for customers in comparison to in-store purchasing. Since it is hassle-free, online shopping is convenient. Thus, shopping over the internet is definitely a positive trend, and will grow more popular over the years.

Online Shopping Impact on Environment IELTS Essay

The world in which we live has seen significant changes due to the advent of modern technologies such as the internet. Shopping is not an exception. These days, thanks to the development of the internet, online shopping has dramatically flourished. This essay seeks to investigate the effects of this trend on the environment and society.

While the development of internet shopping has a cascade of effects on the environment, some of them are more significant. Firstly, the number of conventional shops has dropped due to the lack of their necessity; hence, the space needed for their construction remained undeveloped. Moreover, less traveling is needed by people in order to purchase a merchandise.

Consequently, less emission is produced because of the fewer number of the vehicles on the streets; therefore, the air is less polluted. As a tangible example, studies show that in the United States alone, the tendency toward online shopping has prevented 10 million cars from leaving garages during the first three months of 2017. One can only imagine how much pollution has been averted.

The society has also been affected by this trend. First and foremost, indolence is spread. People are less active because of online shopping. The only physical activity needed is to press a button on the computer. Secondly, local commerce is negatively suffered. People prefer to buy online due to its convenience; therefore, fewer patrons visit local shops to buy products; hence, local businesses are disappearing. For example, statistic shows that after the development of online shopping, the survival rate of small businesses has dropped from 61 percent to 23 percent.

To summarize, online shopping has a plethora of effects on both our environment and our society from changing the look of surroundings and cleaning the air to rendering people lazier and jeopardizing small businesses.

IELTS Essay on Online Shopping

Despite the fact that we know what time it is on the clock, what the weather is like outside or there is a pandemic, we can conveniently buy the things we need in online stores. Very few people feel the need to take risks in stores. It cannot be denied that online shopping has become more popular and less tedious than in-store shopping. This trend has positive and negative sides, which are discussed in the following essay.

To inaugurate with, the fact that online shopping brings more benefits than shopping in a store. Firstly, it saves time for both buyers and sellers, as buyers don’t have to travel and sellers don’t have to show their products one by one to each consumer. Furthermore, they can get a perfect knock on prices and can easily compare products before pressing the buy button, which can lead to significant cost benefits for the buyers. In this manner, so people can make smarter decisions after evaluating and considering size, price and models. Also, it allows them to easily shop from any part of the world. As a result, the number of job opportunities in the future will increase as demand grows.

On the other hand, online shopping does not allow you to touch or see the product, which in fact makes it difficult to check the quality of the product, which leads to the purchase of an inferior product, and sometimes it is impossible to return or exchange the product, which in turn leads to wasted money. Another problem is that online shopping has made people compulsive shoppers. In addition, there is always the risk of financial information being obtained for use by hackers for security reasons, since there is always news of data leaks even from well-known brands and websites.

In conclusion, it can be clearly seen that although product reliability and financial risk have a certain impact on people, employment opportunities for them, especially in the field of employment, should also be considered. However, one must be careful about fraud and misrepresentation when buying from different sites.

IELTS Writing Task 2 on Online Shopping

The ubiquity of online shopping has brought with it concerns about the environment and an evolving job market. In my opinion, online shopping increases fossil fuel emissions and requires a massive, unskilled workforce for both delivery and production.

Online shopping uses fossil fuels in the making and transportation of goods. In order to manufacture a given product, such as a television, book, or bag of muesli, there is an environmental cost from sourcing and transporting all the elements, powering the factory that assembles it, and creating the plastic packaging, which is also a petroleum byproduct. In the case of a large company like Amazon, the product must be driven or flown to various centers around the country in order to be available for next-day delivery. From the storage warehouse, it is then driven or flown to the consumer who ordered it, further burning fossil fuels. The net impact on the environment is self-evidently massive and hastens climate change.

Moreover, online shopping is such a sprawling business that it manipulates the labor market. First of all, there are the workers directly involved. Deliverymen must pack, unpack and ship products while the whole operation also requires a variety of managers, foremen, and office workers. These workers are notoriously underpaid and exploited when working for the largest online retailers, who also streamline the means of production in order to offer the lowest prices. Instead of sourcing from local businesses, which would be slightly more expensive, they opt for large factories largely based in China that can cheaply and quickly produce standardized products. This requires an army of factory workers, working at low wages in unsafe conditions.

In conclusion, online shopping contributes greatly to climate change and has created deep fissures in the job market. Governments should regulate these companies before their rampant profit-driven efficiency has unforeseen social and political implications.

Also Check: Immigration has a Major Impact on Society IELTS Essay

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Home — Essay Samples — Business — Online Shopping — A Comparison and Contrast Between Shopping Online and Traditional Shopping

A Comparison and Contrast Between Shopping Online and Traditional Shopping

• Categories: Online Shopping Shopping Mall

About this sample

Words: 496 |

Published: Jan 30, 2024

Words: 496 | Page: 1 | 3 min read

Table of contents

Convenience, social interaction, online shopping.

• Ability to shop anytime and anywhere: Online shopping allows consumers to make purchases at any time of the day from the comfort of their own homes.
• Saving time and effort: With online shopping, consumers can avoid the hassle of traveling to physical stores and waiting in long lines.
• Access to a wide range of products and stores: Online shopping provides access to a variety of products and stores that may not be available in a local area.

Traditional Shopping

• A physical shopping experience: Traditional shopping allows consumers to physically see and touch products before making a purchase.
• Immediate product availability: Consumers can immediately obtain the products they purchase without having to wait for shipping.
• Opportunity for tactile experience: Traditional shopping allows consumers to try on clothing and test out products before making a purchase.
• Unlimited product options: Online shopping provides consumers with an almost limitless variety of products to choose from.
• Access to international stores: Consumers can access products from international stores without having to travel to those countries.
• Ability to compare prices and reviews easily: Online platforms allow consumers to compare prices and read reviews from other buyers before making a purchase.
• Limited product options based on local availability: Traditional shopping limits consumers to products that are available in local stores.
• Limited access to exclusive deals or discounts: Traditional shopping may not provide access to the same exclusive deals and discounts that online platforms offer.
• Lack of easy comparison for prices and reviews: Consumers may find it more difficult to compare prices and read reviews for products in traditional stores.
• Shopping alone without any social interaction: Online shopping lacks the social aspect of traditional shopping, as it is typically done alone.
• Limited personal assistance or advice: Consumers may have limited access to personal assistance or advice when shopping online.
• Possibility of anonymous shopping: Online shopping allows consumers to remain anonymous and not engage with others during the shopping process.
• Opportunities for personal interaction with sales associates: Traditional shopping provides consumers with the opportunity to interact with sales associates and receive personalized assistance.
• Social engagement with fellow shoppers: Consumers can socialize with other shoppers and seek their opinions or advice when shopping in physical stores.
• Ability to obtain immediate assistance and personalized advice: Traditional shopping allows for immediate assistance and personalized advice from sales associates.

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Traditional vs. Online Shopping Essay

Introduction.

Shopping constitutes a compulsory function for humans in all walks of life. For a majority of people, shopping is an activity that has transcended from being merely a necessity to one that has become a favorite pastime that brings happiness, recreation, and ‘quality time with friends and members of the family. There are basically 3 kinds of shopping where we buy things we require, things we convince ourselves we require, and things we look at (window shopping) just for pleasure. In the modern world of today, it is possible to indulge in all 3 kinds of shopping by utilizing 2 methods: Traditional shopping and ‘Online’ shopping.

Traditional shopping involves shoppers physically entering a brick-and-mortar store or shopping mall to select items of their choice, pay for them in cash or by credit card, and either take delivery personally or have them delivered to their homes by the retailer. ‘Online shopping is a relatively new method of shopping that involves the shopper sitting in front of a Personal Computer at any location (it could be at home, in the office, in friends’ apartments or in internet cafes), browsing through different categories of products at selected websites either alone or with the assistance of family members and/or friends, choosing items, paying for the purchases by credit card or by electronically transferring money from a bank account (from personal experience, I have noticed there is usually no other payment option).

The selected goods are delivered within a period ranging from a day to a week or even longer. In almost all cases, due to the fact that while selecting an item its availability is also clearly mentioned, the entire selection is delivered; if for some unforeseen reason some items are not delivered, then the value of those items is refunded to the customer by the ‘Online’ seller.

Traditional and ‘Online’ shopping are similar in two ways. Firstly, both forms of shopping follow the general concept of commerce; in both cases, there is a buyer and a seller, both of whom share a specific understanding of how the commercial transaction is expected to unfold, run its course and reach its satisfactory conclusion. Secondly, the prominent method of payment in both forms of shopping is credit card payment; although traditional shoppers can opt for check or cash payment, and although ‘Online’ shoppers can opt for electronic transfer of funds from their bank accounts, credit card purchases are preferred in both cases.

Traditional and ‘Online’ shopping is different in several ways. In one group of differences, Traditional shopping holds ‘absolute’ superiority: Firstly, shoppers experience the physical thrill of shopping. Shopping is commonly seen as a way of unwinding after a hard day’s work, or (especially in the case of housewives), escaping from the monotonous routine of everyday life (cooking, cleaning, and looking after the kids). Then there is festival shopping, which usually involves the entire family shopping for decorations and gifts for such occasions as Christmas, Easter, and Thanksgiving (personally, I have several fond memories of this).

Secondly, Traditional shoppers are brought face-to-face with an item that they can touch, feel and examine at close proximity – this goes a long way towards making up their mind to buy it. Thirdly, Traditional shoppers are able to talk with the salespersons or merchants of the store or mall upfront, and freely seek clarification or additional information about products that interest them. Fourthly, Traditional shoppers are able to bargain and obtain a better price for their purchases.

Although people in the United States do not usually engage in energetic bargaining, there are people of several other international cultures (such as Italians, Greeks, and Indians), to whom bargaining forms the essence of the shopping experience, and without which they would end up with the uncomfortable feeling of being cheated. Fifthly, Traditional shoppers are able to judge the merchant’s reputation (and by association, the products being sold in that store) by interacting with other customers. Sixthly, Traditional shoppers are able to take home their purchases immediately, or at the most have them delivered to their homes on the same or the next day.

They, therefore, save time as do not have to wait for days or weeks to receive their purchases as is the usual case in ‘Online’ shopping (there is also the distinct possibility of some items not being ultimately delivered due to some reason such as shortages caused due to improper inventory management). Lastly, almost everyone is well aware that today’s world is blemished by an increasing number of cybercrimes.

These have grown at an alarming rate with increasingly ingenious methods being adopted by computer-savvy criminals. A very large number of innocent people have been, and are being fleeced of their hard-earned money over the Internet – their only crime being that they had to give their personal and bank details while shopping online. On the other hand, Traditional shoppers do not need to give their names, address, and (most importantly) bank account information which are all ‘must-do’s in the case of ‘Online’ shopping.

In the second group of differences, ‘Online’ shopping holds the ‘absolute’ superiority. The first difference involves selection. ‘Online shoppers can browse through a wide selection of products from different retailers and place a single order involving products from different retailers, rather than otherwise embark on the tedious exercise of visiting several stores or malls physically to pick up a few items here and a few items there.

Secondly, ‘Online’ shoppers are benefited by a significant reduction in prices as ‘Online’ sellers have vastly reduced overheads to contend with (especially store/mall rent/maintenance and salaries/perks for salespersons) and are able to comfortably pass on a sizeable part of this benefit to customers in the form of reduced prices for the products sold. Lastly, ‘Online’ shoppers have the luxury of doing their shopping at leisure from the comfort of their home, without having to drive to far-away shopping destinations and being traumatized by rash drivers and difficult car parking situations.

In the third group of differences, both types of shopping score nearly equal points. The first difference involves the time element. In Traditional shopping, customers save time as don’t have to wait for days or weeks to receive their purchases. ‘Online’ shoppers choose the time and place to shop, thus saving valuable time and problems associated with traveling to and from the store.

Secondly, while admitting that the ‘sight and touch’ factor is important, ‘Online’ shoppers find it is irrelevant in the case of items like computers, consumer electronic items, cosmetics, perfumes, and jewelry, where ‘Online’ specifications are clear-cut, very detailed and imminently satisfactory. Lastly, while Traditional shoppers can get clarification and further information about a product from the salesperson or merchant, ‘Online’ shoppers have access to clarifying the information in the form of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) and ‘Online’ customer service for the products they intend to purchase.

From a fair and impartial judgment of both cases, it is my contention that Traditional shopping is definitely better than ‘Online’ shopping simply because the comparative number and weight of its advantages vis-à-vis ‘Online shopping is much more significant as compared to ‘Online’ shopping own unique advantages. As a result, while agreeing that ‘Online’ shopping continues to grow in the United States, it will not overtake Traditional shopping mainly because of the two greatest ‘arrows in the quiver’ of the latter – Firstly, it involves the formidably unique ‘sight and touches’ advantage that Traditional shoppers enjoy.

And secondly, it gives people an opportunity to mingle with others, interact with acquaintances, friends, and relatives and spend ‘quality time with them – in our increasingly busy and modern world of today comprising people increasingly cocooned in their own lives and problems, this pleasurable human interaction afforded by Traditional shopping is literally priceless.

• Chicago (A-D)
• Chicago (N-B)

IvyPanda. (2024, March 8). Traditional vs. Online Shopping. https://ivypanda.com/essays/traditional-vs-online-shopping/

"Traditional vs. Online Shopping." IvyPanda , 8 Mar. 2024, ivypanda.com/essays/traditional-vs-online-shopping/.

IvyPanda . (2024) 'Traditional vs. Online Shopping'. 8 March.

IvyPanda . 2024. "Traditional vs. Online Shopping." March 8, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/traditional-vs-online-shopping/.

1. IvyPanda . "Traditional vs. Online Shopping." March 8, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/traditional-vs-online-shopping/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . "Traditional vs. Online Shopping." March 8, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/traditional-vs-online-shopping/.

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IELTS Writing Task 2: Essay on online shopping/virtual shopping/e-shopping; with planning and model answer

This IELTS Writing Task 2 post is about ‘online shopping and its merits and demerits’ . Here, I’ve discussed the advantages and disadvantages of virtual/online/e-shopping and presented a model answer on this Task 2 question. This model answer can guide you to write an answer to any online shopping related essay.

Let’s have a look at the question we are going to discuss today.

The language of this task 2 question can be different in different exams.

Here’s another example of the same question:

An increasing number of people are buying what they need online.

What are the advantages and disadvantages for both individuals and companies to shopping online?

Nowadays, e-shopping or shopping online has an increasing trend among shoppers. It has both positive and negative sides. First, we need to make a plan for writing on this topic.

Here’s a short plan that may help you.

Planning and organisation:

Here is how I’ve planned the essay with a 4-paragraph structure:

• Introduction: topic + thesis (2 sentences can be sufficient): Introduce the topic – ‘online shopping getting more popular’. Then write a thesis on how you are going to show that there are some positives and negatives of the issue.
• Body paragraph on the reasons behind virtual shopping being so popular: You can write about straightforward ideas e.g. people get more convenience, and availability or choice of products. Give some real-life examples here.
• Body paragraph on the negative sides of online shopping: Again, present some very general ideas e.g. customers get cheated and people become more isolated. Give some real-life examples here too
• Conclusion: restate your ideas Online shopping has both advantages and disadvantages. You can give your personal opinion on how the disadvantages can be reduced.

Now let’s take a look at the model answer.

Model answer: expected band score – 7.5 to 8.0

In recent years, the rate of in-store shopping has plunged due to vast opportunities for buying different products including daily necessaries from hundreds of online stores. This essay will try to demonstrate chances such as convenience and product availability as the reasons behind the popularity of e-shopping whereas it will focus on swindling and isolation as the pitfalls of this issue.

Initially, the prime reason behind the popularity of e-shopping is convenience which can be easily understood from the thousands of virtual shops all over the world. To illustrate, people nowadays are busier than ever because of the fast pace of the world and they want to save as much time as they can for relaxation. Virtual shopping gives this magnificent prospect of time-saving and so people enjoy taking it. Besides, superstores sometimes run out of products in the precise moment when people need them which online shops rarely have this crisis. For instance, I needed a flat-screen monitor a few months ago but my local store had it out of stock. When I peeped into some online stores I found it easily on eBay.

Meanwhile, though shopping on the internet looks very promising, it is not without its setbacks. Many people, mostly the newcomers, regularly complain of getting tricked on virtual shopping and the rate of complaints is increasing at a faster rate. To explain, one of my friends has recently got swindled when he paid in advance for a smartwatch. Additionally, people often become isolated in their rooms through e-shopping which can affect their feelings and behaviour. As an example, a friend of mine started shopping online a couple of years ago even though the nearest superstore was only 500 metres away. His neighbours, nowadays, describe him as an ill-mannered and antisocial person which, needless to say, is the result of being home and becoming isolated from the outer world. 

In brief, virtual shoppers obtain greater benefits if compared to in-store shoppers. Converting such shopping to a stress-free experience, it is turning out to be progressively more convenient. However, as clients may sometimes get deceived and become cut off from the social world, concerned authorities should look into the matter cautiously. (360 words)

Here are some other Task 2 questions which can be answered taking help from the given essay example on online shopping:

• Some people support online shopping because it is convenient, while others argue that shopping on the internet poses threats. Discuss both views and give your opinions.
• Nowadays on-line shopping has become more popular than in-store shopping. Is it a positive or a negative development?
• Nowadays many people go shopping in their free time. Shopping has replaced many other activities that people used to choose as their hobby. What are the reasons for this? Is this a positive or negative development?

If you have written any answer to this question, you can post it in the comment box and we can discuss about it in details. 

Click here for a model answer to Cambridge 14 Test 4 Writing Task 2

Click here for a model answer to agree-disagree topic: elderly or young people as company leaders

Click here for a model answer to advantage-disadvantage topic: online shopping

Click here for a model answer to opinion essay: urbanization in countryside/ problem of housing

Click here for a model answer to opinion essay: qualities of a good supervisor/boss

Click here for a model answer to descriptive essay: advantages/facilities/benefits of vocational education 

9 thoughts on “ IELTS Writing Task 2: Essay on online shopping/virtual shopping/e-shopping; with planning and model answer ”

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Guest Essay

You Don’t Just See a Total Solar Eclipse. You Feel It Completely.

By Ryan Milligan

Dr. Milligan is a senior lecturer in astrophysics at Queen’s University in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

Almost one year ago, in the middle of the night, I drove from my hometown, Belfast, Northern Ireland, to Dublin to catch an early morning flight to Munich. From there I caught another plane to Bangkok, another to Singapore and yet another to Perth in Western Australia. There, I rented a camper van and began a drive of more than 750 miles north to the town of Exmouth on a remote peninsula on the northwest coast of the continent.

This was the only reasonably accessible location on the planet with decent weather prospects from which to view the total solar eclipse on April 20, 2023. The entire event lasted 62 seconds. It was the 10th total solar eclipse I’d traveled to witness.

Even as a professional solar physicist, I find it difficult to convey why eclipse chasers like me go to such extraordinary lengths to witness such a fleeting phenomenon, again and again. I was extra determined to make the pilgrimage last year after I was thwarted by clouds in Chile in December 2020, and I couldn’t afford the eye-watering cost of traveling to Antarctica in 2021. I needed to whet my appetite before embarking on another expedition to see the totality of the April 8 eclipse in Mazatlán, Mexico.

It may sound absurd, but there is no other celestial event that anyone I know would devote so much time and effort to seeing. If you wish to see the northern lights, you can hop on a plane to Iceland or Norway and have a fairly decent chance of seeing them in the winter months. If you are on the nightside of the planet during a lunar eclipse and the skies are clear, you just need to go outside and look up to see it happening. But unless you are fortunate enough to live within or close to the path of totality, witnessing a total solar eclipse will probably require meticulous planning and marshaling time and money to get you to an optimal location and a bit of luck to make sure the weather forecasts you’ve pored over hold true.

Believe me, it is worth the effort.

A total solar eclipse is not something that you see — it’s something that you experience. You can feel the temperature around you begin to drop by as much as 15 degrees over the five to 10 minutes that lead up to the eclipse. The birds and other animals go silent. The light becomes eerie and morphs into a dusky, muted twilight, and you begin to see stark, misplaced shadows abound. A column of darkness in the sky hurtles toward you at over 1,000 miles per hour as the moon’s shadow falls neatly over the sun, turning day into temporary night — nothing like the calming sunset we take for granted every day. Sometimes, a few stars or planets begin to appear faintly in the sky as your eyes get used to the new darkness.

The hairs stand up on the back of your neck and the adrenaline kicks in as your brain tries to make sense of what is going on. But it cannot. It has no other point of reference to compare these sensations to. A total eclipse elicits a unique, visceral, primeval feeling that cannot be evoked by a photograph or a video or a newspaper article, and that can be experienced only within the path of totality when the moon completely obscures the disk of the sun.

And then of course there is the crowning glory: the sun’s corona, the pearly white outer atmosphere of our nearest star that we can otherwise see only using a fleet of dedicated solar-observing spacecraft. It has an ethereal beauty that is challenging to articulate.

For those brief few moments when the corona appears bright in the sky, all the effort made to experience the totality becomes worth it. You want to soak up every second of it and process every feeling, because it is over all too soon. Once the moon’s shadow has passed you feel both exhilarated and deflated because the next opportunity to experience this sensation again could be years away and on the other side of the world. And it is something that you will crave.

There is also, of course, the professional motivation for me to gaze upon the subject of my research with my own eyes. Most other astrophysicists only get to look at exploding stars or distant comets through gargantuan telescopes, where they appear as mere pixels on a computer screen or a squiggle on a graph. It’s easy to get detached from the beauty of astronomy when your job becomes more focused on securing grant funding, teaching, administrative duties and bureaucracy. Eclipse chasing reminds me why I chose this field of work in the first place and reignites my passion — and I want to inspire my students with that same passion.

Each eclipse is different. The shape and structure of the solar corona varies over the course of each solar cycle. The longer the duration of the eclipse, the darker one’s surroundings are likely to seem. And sandwiched between the sun’s “surface” and the corona is the crimson red chromosphere, the layer of the sun’s atmosphere that I have been researching for almost 20 years to understand its relationship to solar flares. In Australia the briefness of totality meant that this region was exceptionally bright and distinguished, and one could even spot some solar prominences (clouds of hydrogen gas suspended above the chromosphere) with the naked eye. That may also be the case on Monday.

People mistakenly think that a partial eclipse is good enough. It is not. When outside the path of totality, the visibility of even 1 percent of the sun’s disk is enough to outshine the entire corona. The buzz around this year’s eclipse through North America has reached a fever pitch not seen since the “Great American Eclipse” of 2017. The duration of totality will be almost twice as long — almost four and a half minutes. (Whether the weather will cooperate is still an open question .)

This is far from the first time I’ve tried to cajole people into experiencing the totality in full. In 2017, I persuaded several of my friends in the United States to join me in Nebraska to enjoy the spectacle without forcing them to traipse halfway across the globe. They later told me that they at first thought I may have been somewhat exaggerating the experience because of my professional bias, but when the eclipse was over, I knew that they finally got it. Their faces were overcome with emotion and they struggled to articulate how they were feeling. Because it wasn’t just about what they had seen — it was about what they had experienced.

Ryan Milligan is a solar physicist at Queen’s University in Belfast, Northern Ireland. He has held research fellowships at NASA and the Science and Technology Facilities Council in Britain and was affiliated with NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center for over a decade.

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