Online Retail 1 High Street Retail 0

Advantages: Some like it hot - Hot deal that is
Disadvantages: Bad for your credit card

...'Online Retail 1 High Street Retail 0 It is getting very clear now that since the downturn last year the recession has dug up some unwanted statistics concerning identity theft ; it has soured since the last count over 14 months ago, to heights of a 36% rise compared to 2008. - The increase is due to the evolving digital revolution that has hit the High Street into touch regarding to deals and offers that will change the way people shop for a generation. The statistic estimates 4.3 Million people have suffered this crime through the hands of criminal gang cartels because of the downturn, as many individuals are naïve to internet protocols and criminal systems in gaining access to bank details via the ISP Internet Server Provider. Online deals serve as a 'honey-trap' to the victims who then divulge their credit card information...

1st2thebar 12.10.2009 · Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Review of Member Advice on Shopping Online

Amazon - Best online retailer

Advantages: Quick, easy to use, fast delivery, loads to choose from,cheap
Disadvantages: None

...Well ever since I can remember using online shopping it has always been with Amazon, most of the time I'd have to go through my brother to get what I needed but with age comes power and since I've had my own debit card I've been buying loads more online rather than visiting shops. Cardiff is a fairly busy place with a population of around 300,000 but then you have to remember the rest of Wales is less sophisticated so a lot more come to the City Centre to shop. Nowadays if you wanted to go shopping it takes from my house (2 miles form the Centre of Town) 30minutes to walk or 10 minutes to bus and by the time you've gone and got what you've wanted and come back it might have taken you a good 2 hours and time really feels wasted, the centre is constantly busy and shops are consistently crowded, I'm sure those who live in busy cities...

Jemzoid 04.01.2009 · Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Review of Amazon.co.uk

Try a little online retail therapy

Advantages: Bargain prices
Disadvantages: Some slow websites

...address for added peace of mind. *Prices This is the real advantage of online shopping. You can really pick up a few bargains online and save a fortune on high street prices. One example i wil give you is when i ordered a Sanyo 66" widescreen television which was prices at £579.00 in one electrical retailer. I went to Bedirect.com and it was (and still is) an amazing £389.00!! That's a huge saving. And P&P was free, it was delivered THE NEXT DAY and i also earned ipoints and double cashback with my egg card by using this site. So money savings opportunities are there and not that difficult to find either. It takes just a few weeks or maybe months to start finding all the best value online stores but you'll get there. Before you start your online shopping experience it may be worth looking at opinions written by Ciao users before you...

java 14.09.2001 · Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Review of Member Advice on Shopping Online

Retailing To The Max

Advantages: Paid to shop
Disadvantages: Have to know your own schedule and work out if you can fit jobs in quickly

...After reading review upon review about mystery shopping I decided to take the plunge and apply to a few companies myself. I always wondered whether I?d be convincing enough as a mystery shopper ? I?m not very good at lying and thought I?d go bright red and get flustered. But it appears I?m a better liar than I thought and mystery shopping is my new, paid hobby. I enquired and applied to 8 companies but Retail Maxim stand head and shoulders above the competition for me. Since I was accepted in August I?ve had 10 jobs sent my way which I am very impressed with. At the moment I?m in almost weekly contact with them. ~ ~ ~ Applying ~ ~ ~ From the very beginning Retail Maxim struck me as being a professional outfit. The first stage of the application process is straightforward and can be done online at www.retail...

AnitaM 10.10.2004 · Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Review of Retail Maxim

Retail Maxim - Mystery Shopping !

Advantages: Fun way to earn some extra money, get paid for expenses such as petrol and parking etc
Disadvantages: Work is not guaranteed and you have to have the money to hand and will be reimbursed later.

...OK, for those of you who read my recent review about Retail Eyes - Mystery Shopping, this review is going to be very similar except with different aspects as I believe this company to be slightly better! Again I'll start by telling you what exactly Mystery Shopping entails: What is Mystery Shopping? Being a mystery shopper is all about being paid to eat out/shop/purchase items/evaluate a service very discreetly without the selected company realising what you are doing. For example, you could be paid to go to a shop and evaluate the service you receive and the cleanliness of the store and maybe even purchase something. Then after the visit you have to fill in a questionnaire all about your experience and submit it to the shopper company (in this case retail maxim). How do I register? Registration is dealt with via...

ellebee 02.08.2006 · Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Review of Retail Maxim

Retail Eyes - Mystery Shopping ?

Advantages: Fun, easy way to earn some extra pocket money
Disadvantages: Assignments are not guaranteed and expenses such as petrol not accounted for.

...you have to read which lets you know the basics of mystery shopping other than that its down to you and good old common sense. I didn't find this to be too much of a problem as the questionnaires you have to fill in are pretty self explanatory and are available for you to read before you do the assignment. Disadvantages ? Like I have already mentioned, work is not always available depending on your area. Also, unlike some companies, Retail Eyes does not pay you for expenses such as petrol and parking fees which I think limits you to the work you can accept as you don't want to travel too far or it will not be worth doing the assignment as what you earn will be spent in expenses anyway. Also you have to have the money available to you to carry out an assignment and then they reimburse you for it later on. This I find can be a downfall...

ellebee 01.08.2006 (02.08.2006) · Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Review of Retail Eyes

GALLOPING ONLINE WITH THE BLACK HORSE

Advantages: Track account movements and transfer instantly between accounts. Apply for e-savngs account.
Disadvantages: Access code device doesn't work overseas

... GALLOPING ONLINE WITH THE BLACK HORSE I have been banking with Lloyds Bank (now LloydsTSB) for a long time. For the last eight or nine years, most of my transactions have been online. I had a few worries when Lloyds Bank and the TSB (Trustee Savings Bank) merged, but it didn?t seem to affect customer service as much as I had expected, and my loyalty seemed to be still appreciated. In 1999 I was introduced to the internet, and I had my first e-mail address. I'm not quite sure when LloydsTSB started offering internet banking, but I was quick to take advantage of it. I was sent a user ID number in the post, and I chose my own password. I had to choose a memorable phrase of which three characters would be selected at random (such as the fifth, ninth and eleventh). Drop-down menus of letters and numbers ensured...

jesi 31.07.2009 (03.08.2009) · Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Review of Lloyds TSB Online Banking

Retail Eyes Mystery Shopping

Advantages: Friendly staff, interesting assignments
Disadvantages: Work spasmodic, no travel expenses paid

...I have been signed up with Retail Eyes for a couple of months now, one of the many Mystery Shooping agencies I work for. I certainly wouldn't say it's the best one and the work is very spasmodic. The reviewer who said work was available on an almost daily basis obviously doesn't live anywhere near me - I look at the website daily and there were three whole weeks when there was nothing available at all, except, interestingly, in Jerusalem! But the assignments I've done so far have been interesting ones. The fees paid are not very high - £5 for a pub visit, with a varying amount of money allocated for either a drink or a meal, sometimes both, but the maximum amount allowed isn't great and it usually only just covers food/drink for one person. I have done an optician visit though which is better remuneration, £15 for the visit...

anneh1957 30.05.2007 · Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Review of Retail Eyes

Dabs the online retailer

Advantages: Big range
Disadvantages: Poor customer service

...To start with, I want to say that my past experience of Dabs has been positive in that the information provided has been correct, the despatch has been prompt and problems dealt with adequately. Unfortunately, this is not how many companies operate and, therefore, Dabs has seemed to stand out from the crowd. However, my latest experience with Dabs is the worst I have had with any company ever, online or not. Pre-purchase information, either in the sense of responding to e-mail enquiries or giving adequate stock availability is of a dire quality. I sent two e-mails regarding product compatibility but I received neither confirmation of receipt nor any reply to my actual enquiry and subsequently ended up buying the product from a more helpful company. When I placed an order on 23 March 2001, it was on the basis that almost all...

Guru 06.06.2001 · Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Review of dabs.com

I can't recommend Retail Maxim.

Advantages: Money! Potential to be useful to include on CV.
Disadvantages: Assignment briefs not sent; having to chase them up each time; unfriendly people on the end of the phone; told me they could not communicate via email instead of mobile (?); not a lot of jobs to do.

...I was looking for a small job that I could do alongside my own shopping and that would earn me a few pounds, legally! I am on Incapacity Benefit and going stir crazy with wanting to be fit enough to work full-time, but also do not have the health to consider anything more than e.g. one or maybe two mystery shopping jobs a week. I felt it would help me feel more productive, and be something positive to put on my CV for when my health is recovered, as well as being an interesting experience and something I could do that would be useful. It was easy to sign up on the site, and after about a week the acceptance email arrived, and also details for the (unpaid) test trip. These details include the sign-in details for when you have completed the assignment, so you can access the relevant section online. At first I was a little...

mossgreen 10.02.2006 (13.02.2006) · Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Review of Retail Maxim