5 reasons to (almost) NEVER buy a mattress online
You can buy just about anything online nowadays – books, dinner, shoes. Shopping online can be done within the comfort of our homes, regardless of the weather or time of day. It’s easy to do your pre-buying research, there’s no sales pressure and return policies are (mostly) simple.
But buying a mattress online can be a slippery slope of dissatisfaction.
We believe buying a mattress should take longer than it takes to order a pizza. You might suffer indigestion one night if you order the wrong pizza but a wrong-for-you mattress has a bigger impact on your life.
We’ve been making mattresses for more than 75 years and we know a thing or two about selling AND buying them. But because you only buy a new mattress once every 10 years or so, your learning curve is understandably steep.
We’d love to sell you a mattress but we also want to support your dreams for healthier, happier mornings. Feel free to use our list of reasons to (almost) never buy a mattress online as your mattress shopping cheat sheet.
You need to lie down on a variety of mattresses
My mother uses a flip, pay-as-you-go cell phone and would flush my smartphone down the toilet if she was forced to switch. Mattress buying is just as intimate because we all have different sleep needs and preferences. There’s no better way to learn yours than by lying on different mattresses – a whole lot of different mattresses. You’ll learn very quickly which ones you don’t like and be able to narrow in on the one that’s best for your body’s needs.
Hint: When mattress shopping, lie on each mattress the same way, using the same pillow if possible. And if you suffer pain during your sleep, pay close attention to how each mattress feels against the tender area.
It’s a big purchase
When you add up all the things you do in 24 hours, no other piece of furniture gets as much use as your bed. And when you’re replacing something that important, you need to collect information from a wide variety of sources: your friends, online reviews and your salesperson. When you find a good salesperson, hone in on her knowledge and ask the questions you can’t find answers to online. S/he does this every day and knows as much about beds as your mechanic does about your car.
Do your research, ask questions and place your trust in the collaboration of ALL your collected data.
What’s the true cost of a good mattress? If you spent $2,000 on a new mattress and slept comfortably on that mattress for 7 years, the cost of healthy sleep would be $1.27 per night – less than the cost of Starbucks coffee in the morning…
Showrooms help you visualize the mattress in your home
Goldilocks knew all mattresses weren’t made equally, which is why she tested each one. If you live in a small home, space will be an issue – a king mattress may simply be too big to get up the stairs. Maybe the look and feel of the ticking on the mattress is important to you. Maybe you like the deeply quilted look – or perhaps you prefer sleek sophistication. How will you know unless you see and touch the mattresses and box springs?
Online research can help you ask better questions
Until your bed becomes a battle zone, you probably have no idea how much a mattress can affect your sleep – or lack of sleep. Reading through expert advice on mattress shopping and then polling your Facebook friends will show you that your problems aren’t all that unique. Lots of people suffer through their nights with on terrible mattresses and there are valuable lessons to learn online.
But most of us still like to connect with a real human being, to ask our questions and discuss all the possible solutions. And you just can’t do that online.
When/If there’s a problem, you have a real person to talk to…
Sometimes things go wrong. When that happens, it’s comforting to call or stop by the store and talk to the person who sold you the mattress. Don’t get us wrong, we love our communities on social media, but we believe nothing replaces a handshake. And while Internet companies come and go like the seasons, we’ve been around for more than 75 years. Longevity says something.
If you’re ready for a new mattress, we’d love to help you find the right one for you. Visit our Find a Retailer page and we’ll locate a store close by where you can lie on our mattresses and talk to a trained sales professional. Some of our retailers do sell their mattresses online, which helps you buy from the comfort of your home – after you’ve been in the store.
