But now the party is over, and not everyone went home smiling. A survey by research firm Jupiter Communications found that one in four customers was unhappy after buying online. Gripes included technical glitches as frustrating as the crowded malls shoppers were trying to avoid and the unavailability of some products. Many retailers launched their sites just in time to cash in on the holiday boom and were ill-prepared to handle the volume of orders they received. Worse pitfalls await the buyer who wants to return a purchase.
Many vendors are small-time operators with no exchange policy.
Even if you stick with trusted retailers, you may be forced to make a return in person at a brick and mortar store. Not too troubling, provided the nearest outlet is not hundreds of kilometers away. Some products have always been more suited to Web shopping than others. Books and CDs, for example, are a much safer bet than clothing. But even the promise that those items can be found much cheaper on the Net than in real stores could be a myth.