Contemporary American Culture: Internet Shopping - Essay Example

Module Contemporary American Culture: Internet Shopping INTRODUCTION America is one of the societies that has gained fame and achieved significant developments due to its earlier embracement of technology. The economy of nations encircled within this society has remarkably grown due to the application of advanced and updated technological methods in operations and businesses. The American Popular Culture that gained dominance in the twentieth century has been significantly driven by media and technology. The wave of technology has had considerable impacts in various sectors within the American economy from commerce, agriculture, tourism to manufacturing among others. People have, over time, shifted from the traditional systems and methods to a more sophisticated ways and means of operations that involve use of modernized systems in the daily operations (Griswold 67). As a matter of fact, the contemporary American culture has had a fair share of technological impact and what is observed today as a set of behaviors of the Americans is extensively a product of modernization. Culture is defined as a way of behavior of a particular group. The current American way of life revolves around technology. The way people speak, how they think, the perception, economic interactions among others are all influenced by the surge of technology. Internet or electronic media is one of the key rudiments of technology that has brought great change in the way of life of the American citizens. The word ‘online’ is not anything new to a typical American in the contemporary society. Business dealings have radically shifted from the face-to-face transactions to ‘behind the keyboard’ operations. People do not need to present themselves physically so as to purchase or sell their products. Thesis statement: Internet Shopping is an active part of contemporary American Culture. Description of Internet Shopping With so many words to refer to it such as ‘online shopping’, e-commerce, ‘electronic shopping’’ ‘e-tail’ among others, internet shopping is a form of business transaction that enables consumers to purchases and acquire products from sellers on an electronic platform without physically meeting probably until delivery. It involves two entities; buyer and seller interacting, negotiating and arranging for the purchase or sale of the product over the internet via the web. For example, a student who needs some article journal or academic book can visit a website such as Amazon and E-bay, search if the item they need is available and click on it. Once they pay for the item through the existing online money transfer systems such as PayPal, the book will certainly be availed to the customer in the next moment (Molenaar 39). Internet Shopping and Contemporary American Culture Statistics and Facts about Internet Shopping There are evidential statistics to prove that indeed Americans have shifted to using internet to process their shopping. The amount generated from online shopping as at 2012 in the US was about $231 Billion. The figure is projected to rise to $370 in two years from now. In the US, people of over 50 years form 67% of online shoppers .Over 75% of the American today use the internet to purchase items that they require. Statistics further indicate that approximately 72% first inquire about an item they seek to buy on an online platform before they get to the physical stores to grab it. Electronic items are some of the products that are highly traded on internet especially mobile phones and other telecommunication gadgets. Strangely, over half of the internet users have reported to have researched on products they do not intend to purchase on the electronic space. In the recent past, online shipping has seen high growth rate with so many buyers resorting to this system and it has been predicted that the in the few years to come, almost everyone will be involved in online shopping (Crother 113). Implications of the Statistics on American Culture Culture is a collective behavior that a group of individuals exhibit. A group that is culturally integrated share norms, values, traditions, beliefs as well as behavior patterns that are similar. The same way, the American culture is dominated with internet and computer use. As shown in the statistics, over three quarter of the Americans purchase goods online. This large group clearly indicates the internet cultural assimilation or absorption that the American society has been plunged into. The majority of the people are involved in online shopping. This is a manifesto of shared cultural behavior. The electronic economic system currently defines what the American culture is. Children are born and socialized into embracing technology and reading online books. Not many people nowadays walk into the streets and purchase dusty books that are prone to wear and tear. Generally, the above presented statistics and facts indicate that a huge population are involved in online purchasing; a fact that is true to the culture definition (McKeown 165). Further Justification of Internet Shopping as a Contemporary American Culture As it stands today, the American society has gone modernized and every sector has been shaken by the upsurge of high-tech thinking. The social life has as well changed and in the contemporary American environment, the physical relationship and interaction has greatly fallen. People have many ‘unknown’ friends as well as enemies; people who they have never met (Kooijman 137). It is a culture that has cropped so drastically that children born in 2000s barely know what it means to walk from one store to another looking for an item. With the search engine that exists on the web, people just type what they want o the search space and there they have it. Companies can be contacted via email or chat forum to order or arrange for the delivery of that item. Online Payment The main drive for online shopping is the existence of electronic payment system. Technology has further provided for a convenient way in which buyers are able to make payments for items that they require. Companies such as PayPal, Dwolla, Heartland Payment System and Bitpay among others have since facilitated the growth and development of online shopping. Buyers just need to load some money on their account and ask the company to transfer certain amount to the organization they are buying a product from. All these are processed and done over the internet (McKeown 155). Reasons Why Buyers are attracted to Internet Shopping There are several reasons why a person would choose to engage in an online shopping rather that walking into the streets physically and purchase the commodity. Top of the list is its convenience as people find the method a time-saver. With the busy American economic and social system where people have tight schedules spending most of their time at work, school among others, online shopping minimizes the time that would otherwise be spent walking from one store to the other searching for a commodity. It is so convenient to just order for some goods or services at one’s office desk and arrange for their delivery (Molenaar 98). Similarly, consumers can shop at any time of the day unlike in the stores that close after certain hours. For example, a person can buy a book online whenever the need arises whether it is on a weekend or late at night unlike in the bookstores where they have to wait until the shop opens. Many people, therefore, find this method of shopping a great advantage. Consequently, the fact that a buyer can compare various prices from different companies just by a click of a mouse has attracted several people into embracing online shopping. It provides for a way in which a person intending to buy a particular product may search for other companies’ rates for the same product so that they may choose the cheapest. Another reason is the infinite choice that online shopping gives. Unlike the restricted choice of items within one’s locality, internet shops are so many that a potential buyer gets the power to choose the items that have the best quality. Items can even be ordered from other countries as long as they suit the customer’s demand. It is beneficial to have consumer review on the internet and this seeks to safeguard potential buyers from purchasing inferior commodities. Besides the many advantages that online shopping has, one profound disadvantage is the risk of fraud and theft. Due to its nature of pay first before the item is delivered, so many people have fallen to fraud in which people masquerading as genuine sellers receive the buyer’s money but fail to deliver the required item or if they do, the give out products with very inferior qualities (Molenaar 102). However, in the US, strategies and policies that help protect online shoppers from this exist. Online shopping has therefore broadcasted and proliferated across America and it is part and parcel of the contemporary culture simply because of the myriad advantages it has over the physical shopping. Mitigated and supported by the advanced technologies that the American society enjoys, internet shopping has been deep entrenched into the overall culture of America. Online purchasing does not only satisfy a customer based on the fact that the acquired what they needed conveniently but it also serves to promote social identification of the American popular culture group. People feel they are ‘modernized’ or enlightened if they buy items from online stores. The 20th century has seen substantial growth in technology ad buy engaging in online activities, it brings the sense of belong to the elite class. Young men and women are mostly observed with this characteristic as most of them would want to brag to their peers how ‘internet/online guru’ they are find high quality items online at affordable prices. Producers and manufacturers have also been not been left out. They spend long hours online designing their internet stores so that they may attract more buyers. Online advertisements and business promotions have surfaced all over the web. OLX is one of the companies that has pierced through many countries including Brazil and Argentina. Internet shopping is indubitably a reality in the American society (Griswold 144). CONCLUSION As factually demonstrated, internet shopping is a reality that has engulfed the American society. The American popular culture that is characterized by modernization and Western way of life is constituted by online shopping. The socio-economic shift that has occurred with the intensive use of internet has brought rendered the physical store almost inappropriate especially when purchase of certain commodities are needed. The contemporary American popular society has actively embraced online/ internet shopping as a culture. This is so because of the cushioning it receives from the escalated application of technology and mass media. The many benefits that buyers get when they purchase on online shops such as convenience, variety, price comparison as well as consumer review are reasons enough to sustain this method in the culture. It is beyond doubt as shown in the statistics that quite a good number are using internet shopping. It is, therefore, accurate to say based on the evidence that internet shopping is an active part of the contemporary American popular culture. Works Cited Crothers, Lane. Globalization and American Popular Culture. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2013. Griswold, Wendy. Cultures and Societies in a Changing World. Los Angeles: Pine Forge Press, 2008. Kooijman, Jaap. Fabricating the Absolute Fake: America in Contemporary Pop Culture. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press, 2008. McKeown, Lawrence. Internet Shopping In Canada. Ottawa: Statistics Canada, Business Special Surveys and Technology Statistics Division, 2009. Molenaar, Cor. Shopping 3.0: Shopping, the Internet or Both? Farnham, Surrey, England: Ashgate Pub, 2010. Read More