A Standard for On-Line Shopping

From all accounts, more and more of our shopping is done on-line from the comfort of our homes. Retailers, and even commercial distributors, recognize the value of the Internet and keep making improvements to their web sites to enhance our on-line shopping experience.

Very few companies, however, can meet the standards set by electronics distributor Digi-Key Corporation. Digi-Key carries over 1.3 million parts from over 430 manufacturers – electronic components that range from integrated circuits to electronic test equipment, to power cords. Electrical engineers, corporate purchasing agents, and electronic hobbyists all buy from Digi-Key.

I’ve had the pleasure of purdhasing from Digi-Key on many occasions over the past ten years. Here are some of the things that sets Digi-Key appart from other on-line businesses:

1. With over 1.3 million parts an well-designed web-site makes it is very easy and fast to drill down to the exact component you want to purchase.

2. An accurate computerized inventory control system always shows the available quantity of any selected item, and the lead-time needed to replenish the stock.

3. All orders are acknowledged within a few minutes of being placed by e-mail.

4. Any order placed before 8:00PM central time (Digi-Key is in Minnesota) will ship the same day! (I once placed an order that, for some rare reason did not ship the same day, but Digi-Key, at their own expense, shipped it via express).

5. Shipment is quickly acknowledged with UPS tracking number. I once placed an order and received shipping notification twenty minutes later! Wow – what an efficient warehouse.

6. Returning a product for full credit is no problem – regardless of whether you ordered the wrong item or they (rarely) shipped the wrong stuff.

From time-to-time I purchase from a competitor, as even with a huge inventory, Digi-Key can’t possible stock every conceivable electronic component. Yet, due to a great shopping experience, I will always start with Digi-Key. This company has set the on-line shopping bar very high!

Will Limkemann
www.siqualtd.com