Stats from the financial comparison site Finder.com say that 88.6 percent of American adults have succumbed to impulsive online shopping. That leads to an average of $81.75 spent per shopping session. As a whole, we spend a total of $17.78 billion every year.
Pause.
Short of therapy for impulsive shopping, is there any other solution? A wise shift to better online habits is one. This fine money-saving browser extension from Finder.com could be another.
How to Overcome Your Impulse Spending Habit
What if there was a browser tool that could work as a friendly "intervention" for curbing your urge to buy things online? Icebox is a Chrome extension that stops you from instantly clicking the "Buy" button on all shopping sites. Here's how it works:
- Icebox for Chrome replaces the buy button on most popular online shopping sites like Amazon and eBay.
- The item you want to buy is placed in a virtual "icebox" where it holds your purchase for as much as 30 days.
- You can set the cooling period for as long as you'd like -- even a few days can help you make a better decision.
You cannot remove any item from the icebox until the cooling period is over. Note that any deals and discounts will change according to the time of your final purchase.
Icebox supports most of the popular e-commerce sites: Amazon.com, Etsy, eBay, Asos, Zappos, Sephora, Rent The Runway, Bestbuy, Target, Groupon, Forever, Macy's, Nordstrom, Kohls, Gap, Overstock, Boohoo, Shopbop, Missguided, and Urban Outfitters.
But what if you want to buy something right away? Just click the cube in your Chrome toolbar, select Let me buy this, and follow the instructions.
Impulse buying is usually followed by buyer's remorse or buyer's regret. And it's magnitude is directly proportional to the cost of the item purchased. The Chrome extension is free, so it's a great way to avoid regret and cost at the same time.
Do you consider yourself to be an impulse buyer? Has your willpower stood up to the challenge of an instant unplanned purchase?