While it may sound like a decadent luxury to some, the new personal grocery shopping services are both surprisingly affordable and even invaluable to those who are pressed for time or whose physical limitations make shopping difficult
How Online Grocery Shopping Works
Grocery chains that offer the service, such as Harris Teeter, Safeway and Albertson’s, require consumers to register on their website to participate.
After registration, online shoppers can browse for food items by category at any time of the day or night. A search function makes it easy to find specific items or brands quickly and a single ‘click’ adds each item to a virtual shopping cart.
When all desired items are in the cart, the buyer may be asked to enter payment information (some chains take payment when the groceries are picked up at the store) and will choose what time and at which store location the items will be picked up.
A designated shopper at the store will collect and bag the items and have them ready for pickup at the appointed time. Some stores, such as Harris Teeter, offer a drive up call button that allows for grocery pickup without ever leaving the car.
Online Grocery Shopping Saves Time
Most grocery chains that offer online shopping either require a minimum order or charge a small fee for the service. For busy families that routinely spend $100 to $150 in groceries weekly, equating to at least an hour in the store at each visit, the time savings alone is probably worth the fee.
And, because online grocery shopping can be done at any time, and can be started and stopped multiple times before checkout, the service makes it easier to fit needed shopping into the nooks and crannies of a busy life. Consumers can add items to the cart when they’re thinking of them, making it less likely that they’ll forget a crucial ingredient.
Online Grocery Shopping Saves Money
Even allowing for a fee, which is typically under ten dollars, online grocery shopping can help consumers save money in the long run by making it easier and faster than ever to comparison shop and find sale items.
As an example, with a single click, an online grocery shopper can compare, side-by-side, the price and cost by weight of every single type of green bean available for purchase. That makes it possible to compare fresh, frozen and canned products – which are located in different physical sections of the retail store – to decide which makes the most economic sense.
Drawbacks to Online Grocery Shopping
The primary drawback to online grocery shopping is the fact that it is not yet available at all chains and in all cities. In addition, some stores that do offer it, limit what items are available for purchase this way.
Although some stores make it possible for consumers to include ‘notes’ for their personal shopper (i.e., ‘Get the greenest bananas available’), online shopping does mean no feeling or smelling items to pick the most desirable one. That’s where trust and a relationship with one’s personal shopper come in handy.
When considering online shopping, visit the websites of several area stores to understand the policies and procedures and be sure to read the fine print.
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