Sports Authority

- Star Review

Last Updated: 3/4/2009

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Sports Authority Star Rating

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Do you love sports? Do you live for the game? If so, you probably shop for more than your fair share of sporting goods. Fortunately, the Web offers resources for all of your sporting goods needs. The Star Reviews team set out to find the best websites for this purpose. As we began to compare sporting goods websites, it became apparent that some outperformed the others in service, selection and value. Wondering where SportsAuthority.com fell in the spectrum? Here's the scoop...

What's New?

10% off first order with mailing list sign-up.
Free shipping plus free return shipping on footwear.
Weekly deals and specials.

Our Favorite Feature:

We really liked the fact that the site offered free shipping (and return shipping) on footwear. Buying shoes online is always risky. If the shoes don't fit right, you're out the shipping and return shipping expenses – unless you shop at SportsAuthority.com! They offer free shipping to you, and if the shoes don't fit you can ship them back on their dime.

The Sports Authority Experience:

SportsAuthority.com provides thousands of sporting good products to choose from, all well-organized in a structured search system. Items are categorized, then sub-categorized to ensure a user-friendly and hassle-free shopping experience. You can also search for products by name or by brand, finding what you need in seconds flat.

In addition to the wide selection of merchandise, we really liked the deals and specials offered by the site. You can get 10 percent off your first order when you join the mailing list and there are weekly deals that offer great savings. When you add that to the free footwear shipping (and return shipping) it's definitely the place for bargain hunters to be.

Sports Authority also offers a unique return policy. With most Internet retailers, returning merchandise can be a bit of an arduous process, to say the least. Sport Authority eliminates this issue by providing a pre-paid return label with most orders – just in case. If you decide to keep your item, simply throw the return label away. However, if you need to submit it for a refund, the company will simply deduct $6.50 from your refund amount. It couldn't be easier.

Sports Authority’s Features:

Excellent return policy.
Save 10% with mailing list sign-up.
Nicely structured product classifications.
Thousands of products to choose from.
Free economy shipping on orders of $99+.
Convenient order tracking.

Sports Authority’s Pricing:

	BassPro.com	Dicks Sporting Goods	EMS.com	Modell's	REI.com	SportsAuthority.com
Garmin GPSMAP 60CSX	$399.99	$359.99	$399.99	$429.99	$399.95	$429.99
Coleman InstaStart Tabletop Grill	$99.99	$89.99	N/A	$89.99	$64.95	$89.99

Sports Authority’s Customer Service:

Our team was very impressed with the customer service available on the Sports Authority web site. Although the product layout and website design is so simple that we think you probably won't need help, it’s nice to know that a supportive team is standing by if you do.

Several options are available to you in the form of customer service. The ‘Frequently Asked Questions’ page is uniquely fused together with the ‘Contact Us’ page in such a way that the website first walks you through your question to see if they can help you find a solution online. This proactive approach seems to work well, but you’re also given a toll free number and an e-mail form, just in case. We found all methods to be extremely efficient, with response times being prompt and service representatives being friendly and knowledgeable.

Upside:

Great customer service, regular deals and discounts, good selection.

Downside:

Somewhat pricey on the regular-priced items we checked out.

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