What a time to be alive hey?

The world doesn’t seem real right now, but a bad movie you’ve started watching on Netflix, thinking it would have good parts, but it turns out shit, so you turn it off. But we cant turn this off right?
We’re adapting.

Adapting to home schooling our babes, and living in an online world. And oh holy Oprah are we grateful for the world wide web & technology right now. It’s helping us stay in contact with friends & loved ones (I miss my mum so much & am not sure when I’ll get to see her again, but I am so grateful for Facetime!) and it helps having afternoon drinks with your best friend while you cook dinner.
And for businesses! It’s SO important right now – I said to Emma the other day how lucky we are that we started our website 6 years ago, and now here we are smarter, a bit more tech savvy (well not Emma, but that’s ok – she needs to do accounts & I can’t add or subtract sooooo…)

 

We have had so many of you AMAZING humans continue to support Eggplant & Poppy since we had to temporarily close our shop (Big FU to Corona)

And we get are flooded with messages & comments & likes! It’s truly amazing how you guys have embraced the change too & aren’t afraid to shop on the .com

 

BUT, we have had a couple of messages with different questions in regards to ordering online so we thought it may be a good time to answer some questions about these things in a blog – and the importance of “SOP” Safe Online Purchasing & "SMS" Social Media Shopping.

The best thing about a lot of social media accounts you follow is that they will have a website to purchase from, but also an Instagram + Facebook shop too!

Let’s run through some of the icons first & what they mean.

 

Instagram:

Good news is when you see the little Bag icon on an Instagram account, it means they have a store you can shop direct from! Easy peesy!

 

When you tap on that, it will take you to a page that looks like this, where you can browse without leaving Instagram. Then, if you see something that you might like to purchase, it’s super easy to click on it & it will take you direct to the website!

 

 

Now, another great thing about Instagram shopping is direct links on actual feed photos that businesses post!
So, when you see a pic come up in your feed, and it has this little icon, it means it’s for sale by this business, and you are able to buy direct from the photo also!

 

Tap on the little suitcase icon & the prices will come up instantly on the image.

    

 

Facebook:

Now this works in pretty much the same principal as Instagram (because they are owned by the same people!)

 

 

    

      

 

Social Media Etiquette:

Remember, read captions on social media before you ask questions, while we know sometimes, we write something cross eyed (or pissed!) you will 9 times out of 10 find the information you need in the caption. If not, then by all means send the business your question.

 

“oh hun, you can get this on amazon
or thisotheronlinestore….”

 

Don’t be this person…. tagging other businesses in photos who sell the same, or similar products in the comments, or tagging another person’s business suggesting to stock the same product in their own store…. its disrespectful to all involved & makes you look like a douche canoe. Just screen shot it & send it privately like the rest of us stalkers do.

 

 

 

"It’s a Click to Cart Kind of Day!"

Now we’ve covered social media stores, lets head to actual online stores…. I ALWAYS go by this rule when online shopping: if I don’t see a pad lock in the address bar (like below) then I will probably run for the hills.
This pad lock means that the website is secure, it is safe to buy from & your payment information will not be stored or used for anything. No one can actually see it

We have two methods of payment on our website; PayPal & Afterpay. Both are 100% safe, secure & accredited.

 

 

“I don’t have a PayPal account or Afterpay – how do I pay for my order?
Can I send you a bank cheque or pay in jellybeans?” 

You don’t need a PayPal account to shop – it is just the payment platform we use, because it protects both you, the buyer & us, the seller.

You just continue on entering your information & then instead of signing into PayPal, click on “Pay with a card”

We do not see any of your information & it is processed safely & securely. Awesome!

 

 

Online shopping is LOADS of fun! We take great pride in sending out our online orders, making sure that you aren’t just opening up a satchel with your product wrapped in bubble wrap! You get surprises & gift-wrapped goodies every. Single. Time.
We pride ourselves on making that online shopping experience as if you had walked into our store.
Doesn’t matter if its for yourself or a gift.

  

“where’s my order? My order is broken. Your store sucks”

We’re always here to answer any questions, which brings me to another point – if you ever have a query or complaint with ANY business you deal with, ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS contact them directly first! Give that company a chance to help solve your problem or work with you to come to a solution you are both happy with.

Sometimes things are out of our hands, like shipping times for example! So, make sure you ALWAYS read the businesses terms & conditions & returns policies before purchasing & before contacting them with a complaint.

 

So there you have it folks! My tips for online shopping & social media shopping - it's so much fun! Make sure you stay safe, spend savvy, be kind, courteous & go forth & shop!!!