From...

October 18, 1999
Web posted at: 11:23 a.m. EDT (1523 GMT)

by Eileen Smith

(IDG) -- Whether you're searching for a potted Asiatic lily, the new Stevie Ray Vaughn CD, or a DVD player, you'd better shop around.

But you don't have to hit zillions of sites with notebook in hand; the online comparison-shopping hub mySimon has expanded its virtual welcome mat to help you be a smart e-shopper.

The Web site, which boasts more than 1700 merchants, just added some new features in time for the holidays. Yes, the Simon caricature on the site bears an uncanny resemblance to Howdy Doody, but if you can look past that, you're in for some smoother shopping.

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First, mySimon now offers an e-mail alert to registered users when a specific product comes in or gets marked down. It's like your own (virtual) personal shopper. If you don't want to spend more than $100 on an electric toothbrush, mySimon will notify you when the price is right. Or the service can let you know that the hummingbird wind sculpture you covet just arrived.

"We want to get users familiar with thinking about shopping, and thinking of mySimon when they shop," says Brian Rolfe, a mySimon representative. "We're looking out for them even when they're not thinking about it."

Want to know the best time to buy those arctic fleece boots for your schnauzer from Pets.com? A new price-chart icon appears next to mySimon's search results, so you can view a product's price history at a particular merchant. The charts are very basic, but if there's a huge dip or climb in price, you'll see it.

The site also publishes merchant profiles containing information on return policies as well as payment and delivery methods.

Shoppers can narrow their searches and have more control over the results thanks to a refined search engine. For instance, you might want to restrict your search to merchants who accept American Express or offer overnight delivery.

"There are so many merchants," Rolfe says. "We're trying to replicate the physical shopping world by giving as many options as we can so the shopper can make the most informed buying decision."

And you don't have to spend your weekends cruising the mall. Unless you like that sort of thing.