Buying Things On The Internet Is Becoming More And More Popular | Band 9 IELTS Essay Sample

Buying things on the Internet, such as books, air tickets and groceries, is becoming more and more popular. Do the advantages of shopping in this way outweigh the disadvantages? Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Here is a band 9 IELTS essay on this topic. Need help with IELTS writing? Get your IELTS essays, letters and reports corrected by me.

Band 9 IELTS essay sample

Online shopping has become exceedingly popular over the years. For many people, the internet has become a one stop shop where they can buy everything from books to travel tickets. In my opinion, this method of buying has both advantages and disadvantages and it is hard to say whether advantages outweigh disadvantages.

On the bright side, online shopping is extremely convenient. Most people these days have hectic schedules and as such they get hardly any time to buy things in store. Online shopping is a boon for them. It eliminates the need to physically visit the stores to place the order. You can buy whatever you need by simply tapping a few buttons on the screen. This facility saves both time and money. Also, most online stores offer huge discounts on their products. They have comparatively low overhead costs and this enables them to sell their products at lower prices than regular brick and mortar stores. There are also many platforms where buyers can compare prices in different stores before hitting the Buy button. Most online stores also have a review section where people can post their opinion about the products they bought. These reviews allow potential customers to know beforehand what they can expect if they buy a particular product.

On the other hand, online shopping does have many limitations. To start with, reviews can be fake and you cannot buy a product on the basis of reviews alone. Another downside is that you cannot touch or feel the product before you buy it. You have to make the purchase decision based on the picture shown on the screen. This can be problematic when you buy clothes because without actually feeling the fabric it is hard to ascertain its quality. Online shopping is not suitable for last minute purchases because it may take days or weeks before the shipment arrives. Now in case you are not happy with the product, you have to return it and wait many more days for the replacement to arrive.

In conclusion, the main advantage of online shopping is the convenience. However, it does have many downsides which cannot be overlooked. Hence, in my opinion, it is hard to say whether advantages of online shopping outweigh the disadvantages.

Manjusha Nambiar

Hi, I'm Manjusha. This is my blog where I give IELTS preparation tips.

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