【热点话题】 随着人们消费观念的更新，网购队伍日益壮大。利用方便快捷的互联网进行购物成为了许多网民的“开门第八件事”。平时如何购物？网上购物去哪儿买？买什么？网上购物的亮点和雷区分别在何处？如何操作网上购物？等等这一系列的问题都是如今备受关注的焦点，也是雅思口语考试频频出现的话题。
【时事聚焦】
Top 10 online shopping sites in China
For many Chinese netizens, frequenting online shopping sites, especially group-buying sites, has become a part of their daily routine. China.org.cn compiles a list of the top 10 online shopping sites in the country based on their popularity.
In April 2008, Taobao, China''s biggest online shopping site published a B2C (Business-to-Consumer) platform called Taobao Mall to complement its C2C (Consumer-to-Consumer) marketplace. In November 2010, Taobao Mall launched an independent web domain. The site includes products from more than 30,000 major multinational and Chinese brands.
Launched on September 12, 2005, paipai is an e-commerce business platform owned by Tencent Inc., China''s largest and most used internet service portal. Thanks to a large number of users in Tencent QQ (Tencent''s free instant massaging program), paipai has rapidly grown into one of the most popular C2C platforms in China.
Tuan800 is branded as the largest group-buying navigation site in China. Founded in June 2010, the site now has collected more than 1,000 different group-buying networks and updates millions of online shopping information every day. Consumers can download discount coupons on the site and also receive various online services, like expiration reminders. Users can also communicate their group-buying experience with other consumers.
Since October 2007, VANCL has started to sell its own brand of clothes on line. Set up by Chen Nian, former founder of Amazon and his team, Vancl currently has become one of the most highest-earning online shopping sites in China. It sells t-shirts, polo shirts, casual wear and shoes.
Established in 1996, M18 is considered to be China''s largest online clothing retailer. It features its own brands Euromoda and Rampage as well as hundreds of other homemade and international brands. The site covers clothes, shoes, makeup, maternal and children’s products, as well was home appliances and other personal care items.
（由于篇幅关系，我们只选取了其中的一部分。）
【背景常识】 网络的每一个细胞不仅仅渗透在我们的日常生活中，网络购物也是雅思考试乐此不疲的考点，继2012年9月出现网购话题后，2013年一次的雅思口语考试中又再次出现：
Part 3: Online shopping
1. What should be attributed to as to soaring online shopping?
2. Give me some examples that are suitable for online shopping.
3. What should companies notice when they plan to sell their products online?
4. Do you think people will by unnecessary goods online?
5. If people buy non-essential goods, will it be harmful to the environment?
【背景拓展】
每年雅思口语都会涉及到shopping相关的考题，考官一般会要求你Describe a place where you often go shopping等等。所以考生可以借鉴一些雅思口语范文里面的短语、句子或思路，给自己的口语找一些思路和灵感。以下是朗阁海外考试研究中心的老师为大家搜集整理的有关雅思口语shopping相关的常见问题，以及近期频频出现的online shopping这类话题的参考答案，考生可以提前看一下，再根据自己的实际情况来组织新的回答内容和思路。
Shopping
Do you like (going) shopping? (Why?/Why not?)
Who do you go shopping with?
Who does the shopping in your family?
What (kinds of things) do you usually buy when you go shopping?
What are the most fashionable things to buy?
Is there anything you don''t like about going shopping?
What kind of shops do you most like?
What places for shopping in your hometown would you recommend to foreigners (or, recommend to visitors to your hometown)?
How has shopping in China changed in the past few years (e.g., 20 - 30 years)?
(Similar to above) In your hometown, what has been the biggest change in shopping in the past few years?
Have any (new) shops recently opened near where you live? (If yes, what?)
Do you think that some people spend too much time or money on shopping?
Why do you think they do that?
Why do you think young people like shopping so much?
What do you think of online shopping?
Online shopping
Benefits of Online Shopping
When it comes to shopping, more and more of us are letting our fingers (and our mice) do the walking.
Online sales are expected to hit $211 billion this year. That is a rise of 20 percent over last year and comes just three years after the industry hit the $100 billion milestone, according to the 2006 State of Retailing Online report from Shop.org and Forrester Research.
Here are seven reasons it makes sense to shop online:
1. Lower prices. Online shopping can reduce overhead costs in a variety of ways, which can translate to lower prices for you. In fact, one 2004 study found online prices to be 6 to 16 percent lower than offline prices.
2. More savings with online coupons. Many times, shoppers can save even further with an online coupon or coupon code. According to a 2005 Bizrate/Shopzilla report, 71 percent of online shoppers said they were able to find better discount offers and sales online, as compared to shopping through a catalog or traditional retail merchant. Online retailers may issue a button or text link that will apply an automatic savings to your order, or they may issue a specific coupon code to be entered at checkout.
3. Research capabilities. The Internet allows you to easily compare products and prices, so you can be sure that the item you purchase is the exact item you want. Online merchants can publish much more information about their product on a website than they could affordably publish in a print catalog. And online stores give you the ability to share information and reviews with other shoppers who have firsthand experience with a product or retailer. As Internet connection speeds continue to increase for larger segments of the population, these types of interactive features will become even more important. Zappos.com, a leading shoe retailer, for example, allows you to view most shoes from as many as eight different angles, including a close up.
4. Increased selection. Warehousing logistics can be much simpler for an online retailer, and many of the online superstores have a staggering inventory to choose from. Plus, as a consumer, you can avoid the inconvenience of physically traveling among online stores to comparison shop. A simple online search can lead you to the right product at t
