Snowboarding Rants

Here are 7 things to look out for if you're going to use online snowboard shops:

1. Do the online snowboard shops you're checking out have privacy policies clearly visible, and do they make sense (yes, that means you'd need to read them!)?

2. Online snowboard shops should be reachable, not just via email, but with a 1-800 number or other accessible customer service phone line. Ideally, there should even be a physical address somewhere on the website for where the business is located (even if they don't have a retail outlet there).

3. What are the payment options? Can you pay by cash, cheque, money order, PayPal, and/or credit cards? The more options that are available to you, the better -- and the more credibility the online snowboard shops have.

4. Check out the shipping policies. You might get an amazing deal on a board or boots or bindings, for example, and then discover that online snowboard shops charge you half a month's salary to ship the things!

5. Compare return or refund policies among various online snowboard shops, too - each one is different, but you need to make sure you're comfortable with the refund policy of the online snowboard shop that YOU'LL order from.

6. Is there a search function, and can you sign up to be on a mailing list for news? These are added benefits that, generally speaking, the most reputable online snowboard shops will have included on their websites.

7. Do the online snowboard shops you're checking out sell a wide range of gear from various companies, or do they seem to simply be an outlet for one particular manufacturer? Well-rounded online snowboard shops will have a wide variety of goods available for you to choose from, from more than one manufacturer.

If you follow these guidelines, your experience with online snowboard shops will be a more positive one!