Click-to-Buy: The New Anthropology

Husband was distraught the other day, when he discovered that our grocery store no longer carries his favorite salad dressing from Kozlawski Farms.  In the old days (when we had to walk eleven miles to school, in the snow), we’d have searched all stores then given up.  Now?  Turn on the laptop, find the website, and click-to-order.  Not only did we get our dressing, but three new flavors to boot, along with apple butter and strawberry preserves.

It got me to thinking about how many times I click-to-order each day, and how I find it hard to imagine life without the Internet.  I jotted down some of my recent purchases:

Most Recent Purchase:
Sass it Up! Salsa chips from Revival Soy

Most Expensive Purchase in 2007 (so far):
Quad-core MacPro workstation with cinema display

Favorite Purchase in 2007 (so far):
Nike Imara heart rate monitor

Funkiest Purchase:
Amazing Live Sea Monkeys

The Where-Have-These-People-Been-All-My-Life Purchase:
One case of Stokes Seeds Dri-Water Gel Pacs

Purchase That Cost More to Ship Than Buy:
Speedo nose plug

The You-Think-You-Can-Actually-Fix-That Purchase:
Water/Ice Dispenser Parts Kit for KitchenAid subzero fridge

The What’s-Wrong-With-the-FDA? Purchase:
L’Oreal’s Ombrelle sunscreen

Oddest Search Term Used in Recent Memory:
botox shot gluteal muscle

Studying the click and purchase patterns of humans is the new anthropology.  What strange and wonderful searches and purchases have YOU made?  I’d love to hear about them!

Comments

[Mary Schmidt]

Yep, as much as we complain about web marketing - what would we do without it?

That's how:

- I found a supply of Valomilks
- I ordered St. Ives hand lotion in bulk for my Mom (she lives in tiny town, Oklahoma)
- I ordered Morton's Hot Salt for Mom.
- I replenish my supply of Bill Blass perfume.

It's also how I feed my jones for cookbooks, classic TV shows and...comics - ur, graphic novels that I can't find anywhere else, unless I want to spend my time trolling dark little stores, which may or may not have the titles. Next planned purchase: Marvel's Zombie World. Maybe some Red Sonja and the Fable World series next collection.

[Tim Miles]

Ha!

Following your lead:

Stuff I always thought I'd buy in the store but found something cool online purchase: Mints, Gum, and Toothpaste from Epic Dental

Not as easy to find (legally)as you might think purchase: To Kill a Mockingbird in iPod Video format from LikeTelevision

Wow my transactional shopping bargain hunting wife saved almost 50% by searching purchase: Ecco Golf Shoes from Zappos

Most recent God Bless Amazon Prime nerd purchase: 20ft DVI-D cable to hook my Mac Book Pro up to my big screen from Amazon.

Strangest I didn't know you could buy that online purchase: the sound effect of a woman gasping from Sounddogs.

These exclude iTunes purchases and countless airline, hotel, rental car, and design app and plugin purchases (I haven't bought software in a box in years.)

[Marriage-101]

I've become addicted to ordering pictures online. I can upload them to Shutterfly in moments, click a few times, and have them delivered to my doorstep - all without stepping foot in a Walgreens. Shipping may take a couple of days, but honestly, it's probably faster than if I would take the time to save my photos to a CD or Flash drive and actually drive to a Walgreens to order them or pick them up.

[Bob Browning]

Hey - get a bottle, add olive oil (good stuff) good balsamic vinegar, wholegrain mustard, and sugar (or honey). Give it a good shake.

Less tme than ordering online and it will taste great. If it doesn't add more vinegar.