Surf and Turf - are you an impatient online shopper?.

Not guilty m’lud!
I revel in the speed and simplicity, the fact that I can get home at 5 o clock on a BH Monday and have my week’s shopping delivered by 8 on Tuesday morning (whether or not I remember-and I didn’t!) to plan ahead.
I have however once fallen into the trap of “editing”my order but failing to go through the whole check out process as an oversight, and losing the whole thing

Not me either. I do sometimes spend a long time trawling and searching for things, particularly if I'm looking for the perfect gift for someone. Then I may add something to my basket and leave it there while I continue to search. But once I'm decided I always remove the unwanted items and proceed with the transaction. Why wouldn't I? Can't see the point of losing patience with the process - you've either got to go through the whole thing again or, shock horror, actually go out in the real world to real shops!

Another Not Guilty here.You certainly learn something new every day..............and I have duly noted this "Surf and Turf!!"

There is a belief / perception that if you put stuff in your basket (online) and then leave it in there without paying and checking out, that the company will notice and offer you something like "free delivery" or 5% off your next order. That will then encourage you to buy and you get it a bit cheaper.

I hadn't thought of that wildswan.

I can see how folks could think that they might get offered a bargain by abandoning goods. After all we are lead to believe that every footprint we leave on the internet is being 'mined' by someone or other.

But in the radio programme I was listening to there was no mention of discounts offered or given at a later time - although it wouldn't be in the store's best interests to say so would it ......

It does happen to me I got £100 of a Hobbs coat like that. I look for a discount with on line shopping so I take a chance put something in my basket and see if a discount pops up - it often does.

Well played Teetime . Unfortunately that never happens on Ebay, which is where I like to do most of my clothes shopping ........

I will abandon a basket if the questions at checkout are too invasive, date of birth etc.
I prefer to use PayPal to pay for security yet for some reason payment options are only shown at checkout. I wish they were on the main page.

Online....Wonderful. much easier to look at several products at one time. Love it....

How are stores ‘losing millions’ in this way? They don’t talk like this of people who wander round their shops without buying anything.
And it’s not just invasive questions. It’s often impossible to avoiding creating an account, signing up (in the small print) to the receipt of newsletters and ‘promotional offers’ and so on. I’ve abandoned shopping in these circs.
Some companies have a Guest checkout which sidesteps all this and I’ve never heard of anyone’s security being compromised. I heave a sigh of relief when I see it.

I think that on the ‘purchase’ page with online products, the total amount including delivery charges is evident for the first time. This means the customer then compares total prices elsewhere and leads to baskets not being emptied. I remember watching Dragons’Den a while ago and a couple of guys had produced software to overcome this by comparing prices at an earlier stage. I dont believe the Dragons bought into it ....

I get intrusive ads for blouses or dresses or trainers when I am looking at other pages. Presumably I have looked at something similar. I sometimes like the look of them and go and see the page, I might put something in a basket and carry on looking, and then see prices and delivery costs. I quite like the item but really don't need it. I have a dress I've only worn once in 5 years since I got it and a blouse never worn, so I decide to think about it, go and so something else and forget it and decide I don't need it when I remember.

And don't forget the times when the site freezes before you get to the point of paying!

I wonder if the stores really lose out. For example, I recently was looking at a pair of earrings online, I put them in my basket but then felt guilty, questioning if I really needed them and couldn't quite bring myself to enter my c/c details until I'd convinced myself I really should get them. Came back to my online shopping basket an hour or so later and they'd sold out!. Seems like the items only are taken off their inventory once the sale is completed. Perhaps there are more steps to the process, but don't understand how they lose out.

I became a Surf and Turfer by accident !

I live out in the sticks and power cuts are a way of life. On one occasion, I was halfway through the buying process when the village conked out.

Hours later... reconnected... I discovered that the company I was ordering from were offering me a 10% discount to complete my purchase.

Stores may have lost but think how much we have saved.

I thought 'surf and turf' meant fish and meat in the same meal! ?

No surf n turf for me.... I’ve got loads of patience. Been married 46 years so must have!

Cotton Traders usually send an email a few days after you've left something in your basket to remind you. I have received discount offers & free P & P from some companies. M & S delete your basket after a day or two if you have left things in it.

sue01 I have had same problem, also sometimes broadband fails part way through

I have on the odd occasion, usually when I get through to the checkout and they lob an unexpected high p&p charge! I think "I'm not paying that!" and log out.

I don't understand how stores lose money because of this either. I must admit to doing this quite often on line. Like Hooty I don't want to pay excessive charges and sometimes annoyingly the transaction fails at the last minute.

Me too Hooty. I live 'off shore' but we get mail and parcel deliveries just the same as anywhere on the mainland, usually transported as 'bulk deliveries to the island'. So it really annoys me when I get to the checkout stage and the cost of P&P suddenly rockets when I put my postcode in, especially when the items I'm buying are small or lightweight. So sometimes I am guilty of abandoning my shopping cart at that point and going elsewhere. It says something about our postal system and charges that I can often buy from overseas (especially China) cheaper than I can from mainland UK !

Often postage doesn't come up until you're about to pay and sometimes it makes the item too expensive. Also, like Missfoodlove I used to prefer paying by PayPal, but when my DD didn't receive an item she went to her credit card company who said as it was through PayPal she had to take it up with them, even though it still uses her credit card. You have much more protection using your credit card.

I’ve just had the experience of Lakeland expiring my basket of £70 worth of goods because I didn’t complete the purchase immediately but left it for an hour or so.

I’ve often left a basket for an hour or two before checking out as I like to be sure I don’t want to remove anything or add anything first. Plus sometimes, I want to watch something on tv, or make a cuppa, or have otherwise been interrupted.

This has never happened to me before with any other company and I do quite a lot of online shopping. It’s a blooming nuisance as I’ve to do it all again or forget it. (Sigh).