With the festive season around the corner, direct research of KayWeb clients has shown increased activity in ecommerce websites, particularly those offering gift options like digital goods, fragrances, clothes and hardware.

This may seem only logical with Christmas around the corner, however a deeper analysis shows that the economic doom and gloom has made people realise that online is the best place to find a bargain.

Shopping in malls and shopping centres is very time consuming and tiring. The thought of going to your nearest Westfield includes:

• Driving to the shopping centre
  
• Trying to find parking
• Walking a distance to get into the shopping centre
• Walking a distance from the shopping centre entrance to the shop you seek
• Seeing people you do not want to see
• Looking for the exact product that may or may not be on the shelf
• Looking for your make and size
• Walking to the next shop to compare prices
• Walking back to negotiate a better price from store 1
• Purchasing your product, knowing it may be cheaper in a shopping centre in another suburb
• Repeating the buying process for each individual product
  
• Repeating the walks, 'hopefully' with heavy bags in hand
  
• Being offered a new credit card by some exchange student
• Finding your car
• Loading your car
• Driving home

Putting these steps into text is hard enough... performing them, as most would know, is infinitely tougher.

Enter the convenience of online shopping.

• Jump on the web
• Google for your desired product, being as specific as model number if you wish
• Click the first few options to compare prices
• Pay securely
• Have it delivered

While Google is no doubt great, there is now even better options when browsing online. Websites such as shopping.com and Get Price do the hard work for you.

• eBusinesses list their products and prices on these websites
• You jump on this website and search for a brand of digital camera or fragrance
• It lists for you the prices from cheapest to most expensive
• You click on the cheapest; it takes you directly to that product on the said website
• You pay securely
• Have it delivered

The online option of shopping is no doubt the best option for today's time-poor class of human. This was proven with the advent of ecommerce.

But now, with the economy treading such uncertain waters, the online option of shopping has proven itself as the best option for those seeking a bargain!