Wide variety of crafts, fair prices. Search engine could be refined even further.
Written: Jun 28 '08
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Do you love crafts? I do! I do a variety of crafts, and have been in charge of crafts for our church summer camp for several years. There are very few good crafts stores in our town, mainly Michael's and JoAnn Crafts, and they are both 25 miles away.
With the rising costs of fuel (gas is now $4.39 here!), I find it is often cheaper to order from JoAnn.com than it is to travel 50 miles round trip to the store.
Navigating The Website
Although I have found some items in their brick and mortar store that I haven't found online, they still have a great selection of crafts and fabrics at the joann.com website.
I get the Joann's sale flyers in my mailbox once a month, and they always have coupons on the front of the flyer, one is good for 40% off an item in their retail store, and the other is for a 40% discount at their website. If you don't happen to be on their mailing list, there is also a link on the home page that gives you the 40% discount, or a coupon for free shipping on an order of $35 or more. You can even sign up to get special savings via email.
Navigating the site is pretty easy, as it's nicely laid out. The top of the page has a search engine, which actually produces pretty relevant results, I'm happy to say. Their are tabs along the top of the home page as well, that help you break down what you are shopping for. The areas are: fabric, sewing & quilting, scrapbooking, crafts, knit & crochet, home & holidays.
The menu on the left side of the page is broken down into: new products, best sellers, on sale now, clearance, store sales flyer, sweepstakes, and free knit patterns. There is a drop down menu that also helps you to find items by shopping for a particular brand, and the brand names are listed alphabetically.
The home page also offers teasers, showing what is on sale at the moment, with a "learn more" link to click.
My Experience
I have purchased many different crafts items, as well as fabric from the Joann.com website. Items I have ordered have been yarn, beads, craft lamps, kids craft kits, knitting supplies and sundries, purse making items, craft books, cross stitch and more.
I love how easy it is to find your items! When I click on the crafts link on the home page, it takes me to a well laid out page that has crafts broken down into 19 different categories. Jewelry and Beading, Kids Crafts, Cross Stitch, and Craft Clearance are my most often visited sections of the store.
If the items are on sale in the retail store, they are also found at those same prices online. What I don't care for is that once I choose a section to look in, for example beads, there is very little information about the types of beads that they offer. I'd love another page that has a list or a drop down menu of the kinds of beads available. The Fire Mountain Gems website has Joann.com beat when it comes to this kind of service! Still, if you know what kind of beads you want to buy, and do a search on that kind, the search engine works well.
I have always been impressed by the quality and selection of yarns that Joann.com sells, and I absolutely love their own brand of yarns, called Jo-Ann Sensations! They are soft and beautiful, and no other brand has quite been able to duplicate these yarns yet. I always get a ton of compliments when I knit with their Sensations yarns.
In summary, if you know what you want to shop for, the search engine finds it quickly for you. However, if you are just browsing to see what's available, the site is less helpful. I do like that they have full color photographs of each item, but the descriptions can be a little sparse.
Shipping and Promotional Coupons
They have a page that has shipping tables, for both standard and expedited. Unfortunately, Alaska and Hawaii are excluded from the expedited service, as they are not able to provide 1 and 2 business day service.
Standard shipping rates take from 5-10 business days, but I have received my orders in less than 5 days many times. I think the rates are a little high, but if you are buying something heavy, it's a bargain! Rates are not calculated by weight, but by total cost. If I buy spend up to $19.99, the standard rate is $6.95, over 1/3 my total cost! The more you spend, however, the cheaper it is. Spending $20-$39.99 the rates only increase one dollar. And of course, if you are lucky enough to be shopping when they have their free shipping offer, it's a great deal. I sometimes go in with a friend on an order to get the free shipping, as there's not always $35 worth of items I need.
Another beef I have with the company is that they used to let you use your 40% coupon on ANY item they sold. But now it's only good on the regular price of one item. That makes it difficult to use, because many of their items are already on sale, even if it's only a 10% discount. So the coupons aren't nearly as valuable to me as they used to be, and I find I actually shop the store less than I used to. The coupon also excludes certain items, such as sewing machines, cabinets, sergers, etc.
To Close
Joann.com is a good craft website, with a large variety of items for crafters of every kind. You can use the site to purchase gift certificates for the crafter in your life, or buy those specific items that are not sold in most retail stores.
With the high fuel costs, I will be shopping more and more online. Even if I don't buy enough to qualify for their free shipping offer, it's still almost cheaper to pay the shipping fees and not spend the gas!
If I know what I want, the website is a great option for me. Their customer service is good as well, I've never had any problems getting inconsistencies with my orders, and they have always been very helpful via their toll free number, if I have a question that is not answered at the site.
I rate Joann.com 4 stars.
Recommended:
Yes
What product did you purchase or try to purchase? Yarn, beads
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