How I “suss out” an item when online shopping to reduce returns & regret

My sister texted me asking if I ever wrote about how to “suss out an item when online shopping?” I don’t think so. I have shared things like retail bracketing and how I shop the Nordstrom sales, but especially considering my article on worthy replacements for my protest/travel/festival bag, I thought I’d share how I gather information to determine what is worthy of buying online.

The Pros and Cons of Shopping Online

Online shopping is so convenient. You can be in your car, your bed, the line at the grocery store, Thanksgiving dinner with your entire family and can buy essentially anything you desire. The thing is, you’re spending your precious funds on something sight unseen.

When you shop in person, selection is drastically reduced, especially if you are not a typical size person with typical abilities, typical needs, and typical income. It can literally be impossible to exist the way you do without the accessibility of shopping online.

But when you shop in person, you interact with a business employee who has interacted with other customers who have also been shopping for the same thing. That employee’s knowledge, care, and comfort are a direct reflect of the business’ management and ethics. The cleanliness of the store, how the items are merchandised, even the music playing provide a vibe that can’t really be replicated online, even with TikToks and a curated Instagram feed.

Most importantly, you can touch, smell, try on, and experience items before you buy them. You can tell if it’s a warm red or a cool red, if the fabric is itchy, if the size is correct, and if it is worth the price.

I Consider Myself an Expert in Online Shopping

I live in the suburbs of a major U.S. city. Over a dozen shopping districts and malls are within an hour of my home. From Walmart to Saks, I can be there in half an hour, and I can walk to a strip mall that contains stores that sell enough variety to cover my body, my home, my car, my pet, and my dining table. Yet, I do the majority of my shopping online. And, technically, online shopping is my job.

I have always been a good employee, going above and beyond and doing my own homework to learn more about the company, what we are selling, and what our clients both need and want. From managing a fraternity and sorority merchandise store in college to managing projects and a team at a health policy think tank until I quit to blog full-time, I do the research to find out how I can do it better, and our clients will be happier.

Since online shopping is literally my job, and I have had this job for 20 years, I’ve done a lot of research and have had a lot of experience in the topic. I am highly skilled in online shopping and have a very low return rate because of how I “suss out” an item when online shopping.

How I “suss out” an item when online shopping: 8 Tips

After 20 years of window and actual shopping online, about 30 hours a week, these are my tactics for figuring out the reality of a product before clicking “buy.” It may seem like a lot, but the more you do it, the easier it is. And don't you want the best return on your financial investment? A little homework will, in the long run, save you a lot of money and time and save your style, too.

For these 8 tips for shopping online, I will use the same product example: the Dagne Dover “Dakota” backpack. It's a product I own and love, paid for with my own money, and I know is popular, sold at a variety of retailers, has been sold for many years, and the style did change a few years ago, potentially affecting reviews.

Tip 1: Analyze photos and videos.

Look at every photo and video of the product, not just in the color you desire but every color. Zoom in on the photos to see how the print lines up at the seams, what color the stitching is, and whether the pockets show through on the model. Different photos have different angles, and different colors can better show details like zippers, stitching, and linings.

Tip 2: Read every word.

Where is it made, what are the dimensions, what is the fabric composition, and how does the retailer describe it? Even if you don’t know what Tencel is nor can find the Mariana Islands on a map, read it. The more often you read these things, the more you become familiar with the terms. The more often you buy something that is Tencel, or fluid, or gamine, or crisp or made in the Mariana Islands, the more you will experience what those terms mean and can better gauge how a future purchase using these terms will look, feel, and perform.

Tip 3: Read the reviews.

These days, most review sections have an AI summary, which can be contradictory or not focus on what matters to you. Read the summary, then use the comment filters. Some websites let you narrow down by age, size, or skin type. Others only let you filter by rating or publish date.

• If you can, find reviewers similar to you. If that isn’t available, filter by most recent (patterns, fabric composition, and yes even countries of manufacturing may change over time and drastically affect the result).
• Then filter to lowest first. One-star reviews can be extremely telling. Sometimes they are from disgruntled customers who missed a return window, or the order was delayed, or a personal issue like not realizing it was ecru instead of white, cropped instead of full length, linen blend instead of 100% linen. Other times, there is a running theme of complaints that can be a big red flag.

Tip 4: Search for MORE images.

When I feature a product on Wardrobe Oxygen, I often can’t find a usable image on the retail site. I type in the entire product name (ex. Large Dagne Dakota Backpack) and then go to the “Images” tab of my search engine. Here, I will find the images from the retailer site, but also images of bloggers and social media influencers wearing or featuring the product, eBay and Poshmark listings with this product, news articles that mention the product, and occasionally other retailers that also sell this exact product.

The images tab gets rid of most of the AI, the Reddit, the Quora, the sales sites and the ads and now you can see two different bodies wearing the product, a different store showing the product in different lighting, and even where to buy it gently used for a lower price. Click on the links, and you may find more reviews, more angles to see detail, clearer size charts and fabric composition and product description as well as a lower price.

Tip 5: Search for MORE reviews.

This may not work for that dress or those pants, but this does work for products that are sold season after season and have some sort of special value. Is it a popular item for travel or running or camping or toddlers or car enthusiasts or visiting the beach? Is it a product designed for people with bunions or short torsos or sensory issues or mobility issues? Is there a cult-like following for the brand or designer? Is it from one of many retailers that carry a similar product?

There’s a good chance if you type “[product name] review” in a search engine, you will find more reviews, and those reviews may be more valuable since they are from others with similar needs or interests. The first page likely will be retail sites carrying the product, possibly an AI summary that may or may not be accurate, and community sites like Quora and Reddit.

Quora isn’t worth your time, but consider clicking on Reddit as that is a place for niche communities like car enthusiasts with bunions and sensory issues who like to travel to beaches for camping with their toddlers. You do not need an account or the Reddit app to peruse most of the platform. Scrolling past all of this, you will come to other types of websites that have detailed reviews.

If you saw a red flag in the initial reviews, say many folks said the item ran narrow, search for that kind of review. Enter, “[product name] review narrow” into the search engine and see if this is a theme beyond the retailer site.

Tip 6: Put it in your virtual cart.

Remember when you would go into a store, put an item on “hold,” and mull over it while having lunch or shopping at other stores? We who worked retail would put a tag with your name on the hanger and place it in the back room. If you didn’t come back by a certain period of time, we’d place it back on the sales floor. When you put an item in a virtual shopping cart, you are doing the same kind of “hold.” And now you need to go have a sandwich or get back to work or go to sleep and mull it over.

Not only does this give you time to be sure you actually need the item, but it also gives the retailer time to tempt you back. There’s a very good chance the retailer will email or even text you, reminding you of your “hold.” Some retailers even include a discount code to tempt you back.

Tip 7: See It IVL (in virtual life).

In 2025, it is hard to see items IRL (in real life) before buying them. But it is easier to see them IVL (in virtual life) through social media platforms.

Use the search feature on TikTok, Instagram, or YouTube to enter the product name and see what results.

Visit the brand’s account on Facebook, TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram, and seek content featuring the product you are considering. Check the “tagged” content and see more non-models who may be featuring the product.

Use relevant Facebook groups and, when appropriate, your Threads, Facebook, or Instagram accounts to ask others if they have used the product and their thoughts. For example, in my protest/festival/travel bag article, I shared a bag from Lo & Sons. In the comments, several who own the same bag shared their experiences with it, which is super helpful.

Tip 8: Ask for help.

Even though we’re not interacting with salespeople when shopping online, it doesn’t mean there isn’t customer service available. Wondering if that strap is detachable? What is the lining made of? Would it fit your Samsung phone? How large is the seam allowance? You can often get answers from real people:

• DM on Instagram. Or, if you’re feeling cheeky, mention/@ them on the social media platform of your choice. This doesn’t always work, but when it does, it is extremely effective, as the person replying is the person responsible for the brand's appearance online.
• Scroll to the bottom of the page. On any reputable retail site, in the footer, you should find the ability to email, live chat, or message customer support and/or find a link to a FAQ/Customer Support page. Then, on that page, there should be a way to email, live chat, or call for assistance.
  • A perk of reaching out to the live chat, is you can often get a working promo code. If your current code is expired, you can ask if there's a currently working one and they often provide one.

The best way to get good customer service from a retailer is to expect it. If folks use these tools, they will be more likely to keep and fund them.

Does this sound like a lot? Hell, yes, it is a lot, but so is that money you’re spending on retail regret and returns. Folks, things aren’t going to get cheaper or easier any time soon. Spending as much time researching a coat or pair of sneakers as you would a refrigerator or car makes sense. Wouldn’t it be nice to have your coat or sneakers last as well and perform as well as that appliance in the corner of your kitchen or vehicle in your driveway?

Treat your wardrobe purchases with care and respect, and with experience, you will find you shop less, shop smarter, and have far fewer retail regrets.