The Online Insider Tries Buydig.com - I'm a BuyDig Believer Now!
Written: Oct 20 '06 (Updated Oct 20 '06)
| Ease of Ordering: |
 |
|
| Customer Service: |
|
|
| Selection: |
 |
|
| On-Time Delivery: |
 |
|
|
| Full Review |
I thought that I was going to write the next great epinions expose here. In the past, I've found stores with tons of sparkling reviews that I just didn't believe. Some stores were obviously badly constructed sites and some had other problems that even the most casual visitor could pick up. I came to believe that these sites were reviewed heavily because they all shared a common trait... they were ranked high alphabetically in epinions, so tons of people were exposed to them, and thus wrote about them on the site. BuyDig seemed like it was in kind of the same boat.
I'd never met anyone that had used this company.
Outside of epinions, I'd never heard of it. Never seen an ad anywhere on Google, etc.
The site had a very plain layout and claimed outrageous savings.
So I set about planning to use the site, and I looked for a product that I needed so I could test it. I decided to upgrade my 4 year old dinosaur of a digital camera, and went straight to buydig.com to test it out. As you'll see below, this piece isn't an expose. The site performed well and is the real deal, folks!
I arrived at the site and was decidedly not excited by the design. As I've told you, it's very boring. It's a catalog transferred directly to the web. It has a ton of product pictures on the homepage, and most of the space is devoted to cameras and digital camera equipment. I wasn't feeling any different when I paged around at first. I still thought that buydig was going to be a major bust.
However, I started feeling better when I saw all the credentials and affiliations exposed on the front page. Buydig belongs to Verified by Visa, MasterCard SecureCode, and have been reviewed at BizRate and Cnet.com. They also invite customers to review the store right on their front page.
Also conspicuous (which is a good thing) is their link to customer service. They list their hours of operation and their 800 number. Here is that information, if you're interested.
To Check On Order / Questions Regarding Prior Purchases
Call 800-617-4686 dial 2, 732-623-4678 dial 2.
Customer Service Hours
Sunday: 10AM - 6:00PM EST
Monday: 10AM - 7:00PM EST
Tuesday: 10AM - 7:00PM EST
Wednesday: 10AM - 7:00PM EST
Thursday: 10AM - 7:00PM EST
Friday: 9:30AM - 2:00PM EST
Saturday: CLOSED
There was also full disclosure about the company in the FAQ section.
I still wasn't convinced though. There are so many epinions about customers ordering digital cameras that don't come with memory cards or other necessary stuff that I felt a little uneasy as I shopped.
I found a deal that looked great:
Casio, Inc. Exilim EX-Z850 8MP Digital Camera with 2.5" LCD
512MB Secure Digital {SD} Memory Card
DigPro Ultra-Compact Digital Camera Deluxe Carrying Case
Sakar 3pc. Lens Cleaning Kit
All included for - $353.99
All for under 360.00? Couldn't be. I found that the camera itself retailed for 350.00 on Amazon.
I decided to take a chance. The buying process was easy. One click to the shopping basket. I had to create a profile, but it wasn't an onerous process. It took only 4 more screens to check out.
I was pleased that I qualified for free shipping! Here's the URL for shipping and customer service policies: http://buydig.com/shop/usertpl.aspx?fle=policies.htm. The plain truth is that if you order more than $50.00 of qualifying items, Buydig ships your stuff for free.
I immediately got an email confirming my purchase, and another when the product shipped. I received it 3 days after I used the website. Absolutely no problems at all.
The camera takes great pictures, too.
I'm glad that there's no problems with buydig.com. They sell under retail price, and they don't engage in any monkey business with consumers. I recommend them.
Recommended:
Yes
What product did you purchase or try to purchase? Exilim EX-Z850 8MP Digital Camera
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
bhweb22
|
 - Top 500 |
|
Member: Brian H
Location: Northeast
Reviews written: 297
Trusted by: 110 members
About Me:
I'm an Internet GEEK.
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.