Newsweek: Q&A: Shop Talk

In this interview with Thomas Hine, author of I Want That: How We All Became Shoppers, there are a few good tidbits about the internet and how it is useful today, and what we might see in the future. Hine explains that the internet is great for specific item purchases but horrible for browsing as we do in a store. Also, that online sales will never match offline sales completely, but that our habits are changing; and, that the line between advertising and content is constantly getting more blurry and will continue to do so.

Click the "More…" link to read the pertinent online specific quotes from the article.

It seems everyone complains about the crowds, irritable salespeople and the amount of time it takes to do your holiday shopping in stores, and yet only a smallóthough growingópercentage shop online. Why is that?

Internet shopping is way up this year. There is nothing better than the Internet for finding a specific thing and getting the best price for it. But it is very difficult to browse the Internet in the way you do at stores, looking around at hundreds of choices and seeing something that appeals to you in a visceral way. I donít like to buy things I canít touch. The great mistakes people made with Internet initially was assuming that people would change their personalities to shop online. I think we have now learned that is not the case.

Do you think Internet sales will ever match in-store sales?

No, but they are obviously going to continue to increase. For example, nobody needs a computer store anymore. There are some things like that which are migrating entirely to Internet.

What do you see as the next major trend in shopping?

I donít see any kind of major technology as important as the Internet coming along. But I think within the next few years, we will be watching a TV show and be able to purchase the dress that the woman playing the lead is wearing. Content and advertising are increasingly indistinguishable. That is where were going next. It's not a place I want to go, but weíre already almost there.

Good stuff really.