The results are in: A record for most online purchases worth a whopping $733 million was made the Monday after Thanksgiving, or "Cyber Monday." Cyber Monday represents the start of the Christmas shopping season, and is much awaited by internet businesses as they rake in the profits year after year.

Each year, more and more people are trusting online shopping, as Internet businesses prove that these transactions are reliable in deliveries and trustworthy in collections. Moreover, the time and effort it takes for the shopper is definitely saved while getting the same results. Buying presents for everybody during the hectic holiday season has never been so easy!

How about you, do you think online shopping's for you?

If you've never shopped online before, here are some basics to making hassle-free virtual purchases:

1. Pick a reputable internet marketplace or e-commerce site to visit. Try the official Internet sites of brands you love. If you have no idea where to go, check your favorite search. Pick sites with long standing histories and reliability. If the site is associated with a local retailer, you can even visit their location for peace of mind, choose one within your area so that you can drop by their office or warehouse personally. You can also ask friends what online stores they find reliable.

2. Before the actual shopping, check site details that make your life easier. Check out the payment methods they accept. Find out the speed of delivery, and how much deliveries are (and if these can be free of charge). Also look for the different forms of customer service the site may offer just in case you experience problems with your order. Check how secure the site is with handling your identity, payments and the like.

3. Just like during shopping, go around the online store by surfing around. Look at the features, check out the sizes available. Look for items on sale. All these are very similar to your shopping experience in the mall. Enjoy.

4. Put the items you will purchase in your shopping cart. Look for the buttons that that read "shopping cart". Be sure to select the correct total quantity of the item that you want.

5. When you're done, pay for your items by clicking "check out" or "purchase". You will be asked to provide your personal details such as credit card and shipping information.

6. Wait for the confirmation that they received your order.

7. Note the transaction number or ID of your purchase. Keep these for ready reference to receive the delivery, or in case of technical or shipping issues to your order, and for referencing your credit card bill for the current cycle.

Of course, caution in online shopping is encouraged. There are numerous scams that occur; you should be aware of these to protect your personal information (see budgeting-help.com for more information). Although you should take some caution in online shopping, most online businesses, e-commerce sites, and marketplaces are legitimate and seek to serve consumer needs.

Just like real time shopping, you can enjoy the online shopping experience. While you don't get to touch the items or talk to salespeople in person, there are other benefits to the experience--- no long lines, no travel, being able to balance time at home with children while making purchases. And just like in real time shopping, you can shop 'til you drop— but this time from the comforts of your living room or home office.

References:
Agence France Presse. US Online Holiday Shopping Rocketing. http://www.mywire.com/pubs/AFP/2007/11/27/5050235

Tesco. Six Easy Steps to Shopping Online.
http://www.tesco.ie/easySteps.htm