Comparing the price of similar products is a habit of consumers from time immemorial. This was done even when the digital portals were not even thought of as commerce developer platforms. When a store did have two or more brands of the same product most people made the buying choice based on the comparison. And always low price was not the winner. People gave importance to good value for money. If a product was priced higher and was of better quality it fared on its counterpart although it was low priced. Here the deciding factor was quality. In the long run, good quality products had a longer life and hence the choice.

Online vs offline

The same theory also works in online purchase now but on a larger scale. The brick and mortar stores may not be able to stock all the brands and would stock only a couple. The comparison a buyer could then make was between the available products. If not satisfied he or she would move to another store where also the same story would repeat albeit the choices may be between some other brands. But the crux of the matter is the choice was limited to a few.

A changed scenario for the better

Now the scenario has changed. An online store can offer a dozen or more brands of the same products. And they do not have to have a huge stock of all these in their inventory. Just displaying the virtual images will bring clicks in their favor. All they need to do is put it across the manufacturer and request them to ship the goods to the customers. So, when there are a large number of products to choose the buyer can just look for all the products the buyer just resorts to compare store prices. He or she may log in to another site to buy the product but there too the different products displayed will be compared onsite.

Reviews good and bad helpful in making buying decisions

Then the site displays reviews of other buyers. Some of them vent out their ire on a bad product vehemently while others are all praise for the products they bought. All these are first-hand experiences of the users. These are treated as authentic evaluations by the potential buyers. They have a significant impact on their assessment of the products. This also helps them make a learned and firm decision against or for the product.

Good for consumer to have choices

Then the consumer also has a choice of price comparison sites. Here there may be more options on display and make the task of cherry picking a little more difficult. Yes, when there is a huge assortment and you want to make an informed decision on buying a quality product then it may involve a lot of effort and time. But it will be really worth it. The consumer will get to buy quality products of his or her choice and that too at a lower rate. This gives a huge boost to use the habit of comparison.

By and large, this good habit is beneficial for all.