Good Buys ... But Step Carefully at Footsmart
Written: Mar 04 '08
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I was gift shopping online for Crocs and remembered a catalog I had received from Footsmart.com. So I cruised over to their website to do some shopping.
Description
The website URL is: www.Footsmart.com.
As you can probably tell from the name, this website features footwear. They sell shoes, slippers, shoe aids (such as heel cups), accessories, socks, and more. The website is devoted to clothing the foot as well as health care for feet.
Along the Top
The top of the website offers the usual links of Shopping Cart, My Account, Order Status, a link for Canadian Pricing, Help and their toll-free telephone number. An interesting feature is that the words “Hacker Safe” is at the top center of the page with the words “tested daily” and the date. You can also sign up to receive their newsletter.
Beneath these are these links to explore the site: Home, Clearance, Shop Gifts, Shop by Brand, Shop by Condition, E-Newsletter, Catalog Request, Customer Service
There is also a Search box where you can type in a keyword or item number. Since I was looking for Crocs, I typed in “crocs”. Ten results appeared on the screen with photographs, a link and the price. It’s interesting that one of the results was Crocs Rx Men’s/Women’s Orthocloud Socks. I had no idea that Crocs put out socks.
At the Left
The left side of the screen is filled with four categories and corresponding links. The categories include: Shoes, Socks/Hosiery, Foot Health and Lower Body Health.
Searching the site using the Foot Health and Lower Body Health links is an ideal way to find products to target problem areas. For instance, under Foot Health are subcategories like Heel Pain, Bunions, Corns, Foot Odor, Diabetes. Lover Body Health offers subcategories like Circulation Therapy (support socks, leg cushions, cold feet relief). Another subcategory is Back Care (braces/supports, back cushions, seat cushions, traction).
In the Middle & At the Right
The middle of the page offers a display of select items from the various categories.
At the right of the page is the Shoe Finder. Here you can customize your search from six selections. Choose: Women’s or Men’s shoes, select a size from 4.5 to 15, select a width from narrow to extra-extra wide. Also sort by price, category and brand. You can also shop by health condition. There is a notice that says 𣺰 Day 100% Satisfaction Guarantee – You must be pleased!”
At the Bottom
The bottom of the page contains these links: Home, About Us, Career, Contact Us, Help, Privacy Policy & Security, Top Searches, Affiliate Programs, FootSmart Health, Terms of Use. Other links include: Foot Products, Diabetic Shoes, Orthopedic Shoes, Propet Shoes & Sandals, Spenco, Site Map.
Let’s Go Shopping!
I was curious what else the website offered beside the Crocs I wanted to purchase as a gift. This website offers 80 brands of shoes! I found several shoe brands that I had been eyeing at a local store: Clarks, Daniel Green, Easy Spirit (some of them were on sale for $20 off), Etonic, Hush Puppies, Naturalizer, New Balance, Propet.
Loving a sale, I also checked out the Clearance area. The clearance area also has a Shoe Finder to help narrow the search. There is a lot to choose from here. Typically the sale prices run about half off, but some items are about $20 less and others are more than 50% off. It’s a case of searching around to see what they have and if you like the bargain being offered.
Eventually I found my way back to the Crocs I wanted to purchase. This website really lets you view all angles of a shoe! I’m impressed with how this website presents its product. Each product page features a product photo with the color selection in swatches. Click a swatch to change the color of the shoe photo featured. Sometimes there are additional views of the shoes (top, sides, bottom) so that a full picture of the shoe is available. Other options are to view the shoe on a foot, and to enlarge and zoom in and out to see detailing in the product. My one gripe is that these wonderful features don’t always work. I found they worked about half the time I clicked on them. Changing the color shoe on the product page always worked for me, but the other options were definitely hit or miss.
Along with the photograph is a description of the item. Some of the descriptions offer much more detail than other descriptions. In most cases, the care of the shoe is mentioned (ex: Buff with a leather cleaner or polish. Or, machine wash.) You can also select the color, size, and quantity. The page also tells you if the item is in stock. The price is and item number are together along with the “Add to Cart Link”.
Just click the link to add items to the shopping cart. On the shopping cart page, you can view what you’ve added to the cart. You can also change quantity, update and remove items. The order total is displayed along with a box where you can enter a promotion code for a discount. From the shopping cart page you can click “Continue Shopping” or “Checkout”.
Checking Out & Payment
If you haven’t spent enough to qualify for free shipping, a pop-up window will appear announcing how much you have to spend to obtain free shipping. When I visited the site, the free shipping offer was spend over $75.00 for free shipping. My cart total was $39.99 for the Crocs, and I knew my mother wanted some heel cups … so I added a couple pairs of heel cups to the order at $19.99 each set. Ta da! Free shipping achieved.
Registered customers can provide their email address and password to proceed with ordering. Or, you can click the Continue Checkout button to bypass this step.
Next you are prompted for the usual information: name, address, phone number, email address. If you are shopping from a print catalog, you can type in the Mail Code.
Payment options include: American Express, MasterCard, Novus (Discover), Visa, PayPal, and there is a Bill Me Later option. Canadian customers can pay using: American Express, Diner’s Club, MasterCard or Visa.
Sales tax is charged for those living in Georgia and Tennessee. Canadian duty is charged for Canadian orders.
Shipping Charges & Returns
Footsmart offers Standard Delivery (Postal Service / 6-10 business days), Rush Delivery (3-5 business days), Express Delivery (2-3 business days), Overnight Delivery (next business day).
Here are the shipping charges for orders shipped within the Continental United States via Standard Delivery.
$0 - $12.99 -- $4.99
$13.00 - $24.99 -- $6.99
$25.00 - $39.99 -- $7.99
$40.00 - $49.99 -- $9.99
$50.00 – $59.99 -- $10.99
$60.00 - $79.99 -- $11.99
$80.00 - $99.99 -- $12.99
$100.00 - $149.99 -- $14.99
$150.00 - $199.99 -- $16.99
$200.00 -- $299.99 -- $19.95
$300.00 and up -- $19.99
Return Policy
This is where you have to be careful. Footsmart offers a 120-day 100% satisfaction guarantee policy. However, they will not refund the shipping and order processing fees. The item must be returned in original, unworn condition, and shoes in their original boxes.
The packing slip in the box contains a Prepaid Return Shipping Label should you wish to return product. The website says: “Upon receipt of your return shipment, we will process the credit refund less the return shipping fee.” The return shipping fee is based on package weight! As an example, the least amount is a $6.99 return fee for a package weighing up to two pounds. A package weighing over five pounds has a $10.99 return fee.
Receiving the Order
Footsmart sent two emails to me. One was an order confirmation that listed my purchases in detail. It included a special thank you of 15% off the next purchase of regularly priced stock, but I would have to spend $50.00. Three days later, a second email arrived to notify me that the order had shipped. This email included another 15% offer with a different promotion code. I was disappointed that the email did not include a tracking number for the shipment.
The package arrived in a timely fashion and was in good condition. The Crocs arrived in their original packaging, and everything was inside a sturdy cardboard box. However, there was no packing material inside the box. Unless you count the wad of advertising material stuffed inside the carton.
Summary
Would I shop at Footsmart.com again? It depends. I happened to know the Croc size I needed to purchase, so the likelihood of returning the merchandise was slim. I felt safe buying the Crocs from Footsmart. However, would I blindly buy shoes from them not knowing if they would fit? No way. I would not enjoy paying the return fees.
I hope you found this review useful.
Enjoy your day,
Dawn
http://dlstewart.com
Please read my other reviews:
Crocs Cayman Shoe
Easy Spirit “Motion” Casual Shoe
Container Store Clear Shoe Drawer
Large Tint Stacking Drawer – my shoe storage solution
Coach.com Online Store
Copyright 2008 Dawn L. Stewart
Recommended:
Yes
What product did you purchase or try to purchase? Crocs and Heel Cups
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About the Author
Location: Massachusetts -- USA
Reviews written: 1573
Trusted by: 353 members
About Me: Always looking for quality at bargain prices. Author of: Mist-Seer and Harriet's Horrible Hair Day.
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