Bluefly: a goldmine of bargains in the digital age

Last time, we talked about the media's negative impact on the spending habits of teens when it comes to fashion. But what most people do not realize are the hidden, positive effects of the media on teen spending. Even in the simple act of having an online website, clothing stores have used the internet to give shoppers an easier way to compare prices and find out how much things cost- with everything presented in front of you, its easier to make smart decisions on spending, whereas just going to a store can cause shoppers to buy clothes they could have found cheaper somewhere else- once you get into the store, its more convenient to just buy what they have there, so you are limited to their prices. The popularity of online shopping has been drastically increased by the media- we are so much more inclined to use the internet to shop when we are constantly connected to our computers. This has not gone unnoticed by clothing companies. This is especially apparent in the creation of Bluefly.com, an online-only website that sells a plethora of designer apparel and more for a fraction of the original price.

This website is like a department store, and makes it easy to browse hundreds of different categories to find the cheapest yet cutest items. Plus, their discounts make designer brands like Versace and Chanel a possibility for real students to wear. They even have a huge sale selection, with huge discounts on top of the already discounted designer items.

Bluefly's double discount on a designer blazer: ETAIL VALUE: $350.00

BLUEFLY: $210.00

SALE: $95.24

YOU SAVE 73%

As you can see, Bluefly really makes an effort to show shoppers the value of their website by showing them the exact percent they saved from an original price.

But how did I discover this amazing website? I can thank a 22 year old medical student from Illinois for letting me know it existed. No, she's not my friend- in fact I don't even know her. She was, however, interviewed by Seventeen magazine in an article about prom dresses, where she told the magazine how it was her favorite place to find cheap designer dresses. While magazines already help teens with fashion budgeting, this was the first time a magazine actually introduced me to a store I had never heard of. Thanks to that article, millions of teen shoppers will visit bluefly and find deals. This is just one example of how the media can collect information from many different sources and present it to us in a manageable form. Thanks to the media's influence on shopping, teen shoppers no longer have to deal with the frenzied shoppers and persistent sales people when they need to focus on finding great clothes as cheap as possible- they can just visit bluefly!

http://www.bluefly.com/

L.D.

A