How does the internet affect your spending? A poll.

[Amy loves Bud]

I'm wondering if having the internet makes me spend more because I know about so many great things (like curricula) that I otherwise wouldn't, or if I spend less because I can find the best deals, or if it's a wash. What do you think?

[E_Edgerton]

More options equal more choices. I definitely spend more when I have more access...however, the internet does provide better prices, so maybe it evens out.:glare:

[Amy in Orlando]

I spend less, definitely! I could never find locally the used cirriculum or comparison shop like I do on line. In person, I tend to be an impulse buyer. Online, I think things through.

[Denise in IN]

Now, I'm quite certain that I don't spend more because of all the wonderful enablers on the WTM Boards. Definitely not. Just sayin'. ;)

 

I'm guessing I spend more on hs materials because of the internet. But with other items, it's probably a wash. If I didn't buy online, I'd definitely spend more time and gas money shopping for things we need.

 

I can't imagine homeschooling without the internet, though. I'd either be terribly frustrated, or completely freed from "finding the best curriculum". I'd rather not find out which....

[*anj*]

I used to spend more because there were just so many choices at my fingertips. And I knew my credit card number by heart, and well, it was a bad, bad thing.

So now I'm really thrifty and while I still shop online, my purchases are carefully thought out and compared and so on.

[RoughCollie]

I save money by shopping online, and I save wear and tear on my nerves because I hate going shopping.

 

The one thing I don't save is time. I spend a lot of time researching products, making price comparisons, and following rabbit trails.

 

One good thing about the rabbit trails is that the "save for later" portion of my shopping cart at Amazon is filled with books I plan to check out at the library. That saves money. So does sticking things there that I can't decide whether to buy. Sometimes they languish there until I don't want them any more.

[Sandra314]

I would say that I spend less. I would have never found our local homeschooling support group had it not been for the internet. Our group holds two book/curriculum swaps a year.

 

I sell my old homeschooling curriculum materials online and use the money from the sales for our homeschooling curriculum.

[Andie]

I save a ton day-to-day, by being able to research, preview, buy used. We have NO conferences here, no sales, no stores, so I could go broke if I ordered everything from catalogs to "see" and possibly need to return. Yikes.

 

But then, that savings is wiped away by the discovery of things that I'd never have known I could spend my money on, too. Like a Zo. :D But, I suppose, that saves us in the long run, too.

 

Amazon One Click is a dangerous tool, though, ain't it?!:lol:

[Mad Jenny Flint]

When I shop on the internet, it is with purpose. When I shop in the real world it is much easier for something to catch my eye, and harder to resist the impulse buy. Internet streamlines things for me, which results in less money leaving my pocket.

[Plaid Dad]

My "other": While the Internet makes me aware of far more wonderful things, I'm also able to get opinions from others that help me decide whether or not those things that seem so wonderful really are. I'm thinking books and curriculum primarily, since that's what I spend money on. So it's not so much good deals that help me save money as good people who share their expertise, often telling me that I don't really need that wonderful thing after all!

[crazycoffeechic]

The internet helps me spend less. I am buying an electric guitar for my son for his birthday. At the music store down the street, the whole set cost $299, my hubby found the same set(plus more to it) on the internet for $249 and it is a name brand guitar.

[elegantlion]

It would be hard for us to homeschool without the internet. We have no hoomeschool stores nearby and the internet is my only area of research. In all other areas I tend to pre-shop the internet before I spend a dime. It has saved me countless hours of driving around town.

[BamaTanya]

I save money by shopping online, and I save wear and tear on my nerves because I hate going shopping.

 

The one thing I don't save is time. I spend a lot of time researching products, making price comparisons, and following rabbit trails.

 

One good thing about the rabbit trails is that the "save for later" portion of my shopping cart at Amazon is filled with books I plan to check out at the library. That saves money. So does sticking things there that I can't decide whether to buy. Sometimes they languish there until I don't want them any more.

 

I *do* look for items at the library or on ebay or used boards, but a few times per year I work up a real order and whittle away all the stuff that was just a passing fancy.

[BamaTanya]

things than I would know about otherwise. I mean, how much shopping would I do if I had to take 5 kiddos with me everywhere? (Yes, I have actually tried on clothing with kids crawling around the dressing room floor - and I didn't buy many clothes in those years!)

These (and other) boards have exposed me to far more choices. So I've definitely spent more money. On the other hand, I've probably been able to make *wiser* decisions by reading reviews instead of just guessing how something works or if it will fit our family. And I've been able to sell some items that we no longer needed instead of just having to toss them, that helps to recoup *some* of the extra I've spent.

[Susie in CA]

I chose other!

 

I think I spend a lot less. In stores I almost never find what I need and end up buying things I think we need. In the end we never use them and I still buy what I was looking for to begin with.

 

Susie

[GailV]

Well, before I joined this board a couple of months ago I never realized how desperately I needed (okay, desired) to buy FLL3, Artistic Pursuits, PH Science Explorers, AG, Lightning Lit ... and probably something else I'm forgetting. So that's several hundred dollars right there, much of which I didn't even know existed back in February.

 

OTOH, I can buy gluten-free casein-free food to be shipped directly to my house cheaper than at the local stores (plus I don't have to drive!), look up library books and manage my library accounts (save overdue fees, and don't have to drive!), order fabric and yarn (don't have to drive! plus I can find good sales). I've also discovered paperbackswap.com, which has opened up a source of books for us -- we got most of the stuff for Lightning Lit there, as well as some Science Explorers, plus I got rid of some really weird books that were cluttering up our shelves (the type of thing you hate to give to Goodwill because probably only 15 people in the entire US want it).

 

So, it's a wash. Right? Please say it's true. I so want to believe it's true.

[BethInNH]

I can't even imagine shopping without the internet. I live in a very small town with next to no stores. I would have to drive to the city (about 30 minutes) every time I needed something. As far as curriculum goes, there is no place even remotely near me where I could buy curriculum- I can't even imagine what I'd be using for curriculum if not for the internet. Probably just library books from our meager offerings in town. Which, now that I think about it, would probably work just as well.

I almost want to try this next year just as an experiment- only using books found locally- from the library and the second-hand store in town. I'll pack up all our fancy-schmancy stuff in boxes so we won't be tempted to use it, and block Amazon from the computer lol. Tell the kids we're going to homeschool like they did in the times before the internet. It might be fun! Anyone else want to try? hehe.

Too bad- I'd feel like I was missing out on all kinds of good stuff though.

[LibraryLover]

I do most of my buying from thrift stores (yeah, Savers!). When I buy books, as gifts, for instance, I use my local indie bookstore. I buy my chickens and my food and my feed locally.

 

I rarely shop on the interent. Sometimes I buy used books online or from others. If I want something like diapers or babycarriers for new babies as gifts, I buy from wahms etc.

 

I am not much of a shopper, and I do not enjoy shopping much, irl or online.

 

So the internet does not cause me to shop or spend more, but it does allow me to support wahms and buy direct from artisans etc. I don't have to roam Walmart of Target looking for something I don't really want to give a new baby etc. I can go straight to the high quality, green source, and give my money to the person who benefits most from my purchase. I get a superior product in return, with the bonus that I am not supporting child labor in developing countries etc.

[nukeswife]

I chose other because I spend the same as I would if I didn't have the internet but I can just get more because of the deals I can find.

 

So for me having the internet to buy things give me "More bang for my buck"

[jail warden]

I would say I spend less because I fill my shopping cart with what I think I want and what I need. I see the price and then I scrutinize, knowing things need to go. Make a list of what I have to have and then I start narrowing it down! I rarely impulse. I tend to put something in my cart and forget about it, then later when I look at the site again I remember I wanted that, but by then I realize I don't really need it!

 

Of course the argument about not being able to get homeschool curricula is true, we'd just have to make do. But then if we just had to make do, would we really homeschool? I don't know! Of course I might be more creative then. Hmmm...

[Krista in LA]

I have these boards to thank for making me aware that not only did these things exist, but that I needed them. So yesterday, my ds was happily drinking his water from a Kleen Kanteen while working on Computer Science Pure and Simple. Both purchased on Monday thanks to you wonderful, knowledgeable people. I wouldn't have spent the money if not for the internet.

[Colleen]

I put "other" because the Internet really doesn't affect my spending habits. I am not one who enjoys shopping. Pretty much the only time I shop is when there's something specific I'm planning to buy, and my favorite way to do that is by patronizing local, independently-owned businesses. I will also at times read reviews online about some items, so the Internet is helpful in that respect. But I can't say my spending is any different with or without the Internet.

[Rich with Kids]

I'm a curriculum junkie! I'd spend way less w/o the internet.

[CookieMonster]

I didn't feel any of the choices applied to me. My spending is determined by my budget. Quite frankly, buying on the Internet is not necessarily cheaper at all. And, honestly, I guess I don't buy the kinds of things that would make it a bargain for me to buy through the Net.

 

I actually find myself shying away from buying things on the Internet because of shipping. Buying used curriculum from several different sellers racks up the shipping cost! Every time I've gone to do so, I compare the total cost of all the items, compared with buying new, and, when you add in shipping, I'm usually paying 80% of the new price - for used stuff. No thank you.

 

When I first found ebay many moons ago, I impulse bought a couple of things that I couldn't believe I had found, and definitely stretched my budget. But, that went by the wayside fast. The budget rules. No matter how wonderful something is, or how cheap I might be able to snag it, if I can't afford it, I don't get it. But this is my rule with physical shopping as well.

 

To echo Plaid Dad and Colleen though, I find the Internet a treasure trove of information on products. I learn a lot and I am exposed to a lot that I wouldn't otherwise know about. So, it makes me a more informed buyer for sure.

 

So there's my mixed-up, backward answer. ;)

[kpupg]

What do you think?

 

Definitely less.

 

Firstly, I can survey various forums to find the materials with the best reputation and track record. It's very rare that I am not satisfied with the materials I buy. Then I can check several sources for price at one time, and at the same time I'm doing that, I can check the local library's catalog to see whether I really need to own that particular book outright. And I can do this plenty in advance of need so I can wait for sales or used sales or suchlike ...

 

How did they ever home school BEFORE the internet? :laugh:

 

Karen

[Tammyla]

I save after browsing on-line for the best deal. I'm almost able to compare on-line deals to my local retailers and looking on-line save me, time, gas and money. I also appreciate all the reviews.

[Tutor]

I think the biggest savings comes from being able to research so easily. I can find the best quality and most reliability for my money. (Plus, I hate shopping, so it's nice to be able to shop from my own house or limit my time out shopping because I have done all the "leg work" online.)

[Alenee]

I spend less, definitely! I could never find locally the used cirriculum or comparison shop like I do on line. In person, I tend to be an impulse buyer. Online, I think things through.

 

:iagree:At home I can spend as much time browsing as I feel like. The only time I might over spend is when something gets listed on ebay or homeschoolclassifieds.com that I've wanted for a long time so I rush to grab it. This doesn't happen very often though. I can usually tell if I should or shouldn't based on the feeling I get in my gut.:001_smile: