Five Socially Conscious Online Shopping Sites
Online consumers are becoming more aware of where their purchases originate. They want personalized shopping experiences, unique products they can’t find anywhere else, and they prefer to shop on sites that are environmentally-friendly.
Thankfully, there are many choices to choose from when shopping online. This article will discuss some of our most-loved non-Amazon sites that offer a curated selection and eco-friendly, fair trade practices.
Rakuten
Rakuten is the largest online marketplace in Japan. In 2019, its total merchandise sales exceeded $37 billion. It’s a huge online marketplace in the international sense. The majority of Americans are familiar with Rakuten through its Ebates brand, a shopping rewards platform that offers cash back at more than 250 stores and brands. However, most of the other brands and services offered by the company aren’t as well-known in North America.
Rakuten provides a variety of features and products that can help businesses draw and keep customers. Free shipping returns, high speed Steel drill bit return policies, and a mobile-friendly site are among the features. Rakuten also offers a range of advertising options to reach potential customers. These advertising options are available to both local and national retail stores.
Rakuten’s extensive inventory is another feature that makes it a fantastic option for small and medium-sized businesses. Its catalog has a vast variety of items, including food, clothing and toys. This can help companies increase their revenues and build loyalty. Additionally, it offers an array of payment methods that include PayPal.
To make use of Rakuten users must first create a free Rakuten account and connect their credit card. They can then earn cash by shopping via the affiliate link on the platform. Additionally, users can install a browser extension that alerts users to cash back opportunities while they browse the web. The company also picks a daily to offer double cashback for 24 hours. Cash back is earned over a period of three months before being paid out quarterly through PayPal. You can also earn referral bonuses by referring friends to the site. These bonuses are a great incentive to shop through the site.
Etsy
Etsy is an online marketplace that connects small-scale artisans as well as artists and designers with buyers looking to purchase unique, hand-crafted or vintage products. The site offers a variety of products including jewelry, clothes, and home decor. It also offers a variety of shipping options and accepts a variety of payment methods, including credit cards and Etsy gift cards.
It has a significant customer base and provides a variety of tools that help vendors promote their products. Its focus on vintage and handmade goods attracts a niche of dedicated customers. The site’s secure platform as well as its policies for protecting buyers ensure that buyers can trust it. Sellers also have access to a community of sellers who can offer support and guidance.
The platform also provides an array of tools for shopping and searching to help shoppers find the perfect product. The search function lets users sort items based on price, material, and location. Users can save searches, items and shops to revisit in the future. Etsy also offers a variety of educational resources to help its sellers grow their businesses.
Scammers utilize the Etsy platform to steal customer data and money. They may create fake shop names or listings, and advertise their products with faulty or incomplete descriptions. They also try to deceive customers by using fake shipping addresses or offering non-reversible payment options.
While Etsy is a great choice for small-scale, independent sellers, there are a few disadvantages. The complicated algorithm of the platform can have a significant impact on search results and sales, and changes to the algorithm are usually made without notice. Some sellers may also find the limited customization and layout options to be restrictive.
Made Trade
Made Trade is an online store that has a range of eco-friendly and sustainable home goods and fashion items. Made Trade offers high-quality, ethically made products and explains why each item is sustainable. They have a variety of vegan and heritage clothes Grey Water Shoes Size 6, accessories, and home décor pieces.
Cayley Pater, a sustainability enthusiast, and Andy Ives founded Made Trade in 2018. Both entrepreneurs are passionate about fair trade and sustainability. Their goal was to establish an online store that offers the best created, ethically and sustainably produced products.
The company’s goal is to make shopping mindfully simple. Their well-curated online store lets customers find the most sustainable home products, wardrobe essentials, and accessories that match their lifestyles. All of their products are made with earth-friendly materials, and they make every effort to ensure that their designers earn a decent wage and have safe working conditions.
Made Trade supports social enterprises and women-owned businesses, in addition to ethical and sustainable products. In fact the majority of their suppliers are women-owned. The company is also certified as climate neutral, which demonstrates its commitment to environmental sustainability.
Made Trade only sells products manufactured in the USA, which means that they adhere to the highest ethical standards and adhere to responsible sourcing practices. They are committed to ensuring that their makers receive a living wage and work under safe healthy and safe conditions. They also place a high value on sustainable growth. They also use recycled and upcycled materials along with mineral and plant dyes that are more beneficial to the environment than chemical dyes. In addition to these environmentally friendly practices, Made Trade is dedicated to protecting animals by not selling products that are tested on animals.
Better World Books
Better World Books, a socially-conscious online bookseller collects used books from bookstores, libraries, and from other community members and sells them to raise money for literacy programs. The company donates books it is unable to sell to literacy initiatives or other causes. Better World Books is a for-profit, Certified B Corporation business that generates economic, social, and environmental value for its customers.
The company has an international presence, and offers many shipping options and payment methods. Customers can select from millions of new and used titles, and the company often offers special promotions on its website. These are posted on the Deals & Offers page of the website, and sent to customers via email and text.
In addition to being a socially conscious book seller, Better World Books also supports sustainability and literacy initiatives. Better World Books has partnerships with nonprofit organizations, including the Internet Archive, to digitise and preserve books that could otherwise be lost or destroyed. It is also one of the few online bookstores that offer a large collection of ebooks and audiobooks.
Better World Books has several programs to help students and libraries locate and purchase the most appropriate books for their requirements. The library collection program offers free shipping and returns, and its textbook collection program allows students to rent or purchase textbooks at a low cost. In addition, it offers numerous other educational resources available for students, including its student guide to studying. Better World Books is an excellent alternative to Amazon especially for students and librarians seeking high-quality titles at a reasonable cost. It also has a wide collection of international titles to attract readers from all over the world.
Overstock
Overstock is an online retailer of closeout furniture, home decor and other items. Its inventory comes from big-box retailers who cannot continue to sell their products, or from suppliers looking to clear their excess inventory. It also buys directly from manufacturers. Customers of the company can enjoy top-quality products at affordable prices.
Overstock provides a variety of ways to shop. One of it is a mobile application that lets shoppers visualize the furniture they will find in their home. Additionally, it has an augmented reality feature that lets shoppers see 3D renderings of thousands of items including sectional couches and memory foam mattresses. This way, customers can be confident they’ve chosen the best product for their needs and avoid the hassle of returning.
Inventory management is crucial to the success of an ecommerce business. A low inventory level could lead to lost sales. On the other the other hand, a high inventory level can stifle innovation and hamper market access. Tyco Retail Solutions conducted a recent study that found excessive stocking can cost retailers billions in lost revenue each year.
Overstocks are commonplace however, there are ways to avoid them. A warehouse management system lets you manage inventory and 20′ Welding Cable Kit order at the right time. Another option is to invest in the ship-to-customer model. This can cut down on storage and warehouse space costs, while also giving you speedier delivery and return options.
A listing tool that can automatically sync inventory across multiple channels is a different way to avoid having an overstock. Shopping Cart Elite’s multichannel listing tool, for instance, lets you manage listings across Overstock and other marketplaces on one dashboard. This tool will also save you time by avoiding the need to manually make each listing option one at a.
