10 Questions You Must Ask Before Buying a Mattress-in-a-Box Online
With so many mattresses-in-a-box to choose from these days, finding the right mattress can feel confusing and overwhelming
This guide will clarify some misconceptions, highlight the dubious ways some of these brands attempt to get a sale, and show you exactly how to determine whether a mattress will be right for you.
Q.01 “Who came up with the mattress-in-a-box concept?”
Contrary to popular belief the mattress-in-a-box concept is not new. Ergoflex was the first to bring the mattress-in-a-box concept to Australia in 2010, some 5 years before brands like C, K, SD and E even entered the market.
None of these other brands would even exist today without Ergoflex’s unique vision, expertise and experience. As the pioneers of this industry in Australia we’ve delivered Ergoflex mattresses the length and breadth of Australia, providing over 10 million nights of great sleep and counting.
Our mattresses have been thoroughly tried and tested in the market and that’s why we promise quality and performance and we deliver on our promises. And that means our customers trust us.
We’re proud of these achievements and think they’re important for our customers to be aware of. By pioneering concepts that went on to form a fast-growth sector, and successfully navigating over a decade of growth ourselves, we’ve proven that Ergoflex is a credible, knowledgeable and trustworthy brand. A brand that customers can absolutely rely on.
None of these other brands would even exist today without Ergoflex’s unique vision, expertise and experience. As the pioneers of this industry in Australia we’ve delivered Ergoflex mattresses the length and breadth of Australia, providing over 10 million nights of great sleep and counting.
Our mattresses have been thoroughly tried and tested in the market and that’s why we promise quality and performance and we deliver on our promises. And that means our customers trust us.
We’re proud of these achievements and think they’re important for our customers to be aware of. By pioneering concepts that went on to form a fast-growth sector, and successfully navigating over a decade of growth ourselves, we’ve proven that Ergoflex is a credible, knowledgeable and trustworthy brand. A brand that customers can absolutely rely on.
Q.02 “They all look the same. What’s the difference?”
We are sometimes asked how our mattresses compare to other brands like K or E. The simple fact is they don’t.
The Ergoflex 5G has the highest quality memory foam on the market - streets ahead of our closest competitor - and is only comparable to a prestigious brand like Tempur’s much more expensive equivalent model.
That’s the main difference between mattresses: the quality of the memory foam. At the top end of the market, Ergoflex and other brands like Tempur use vastly superior high-density visco-elastic memory foam.
Cost cutting at the lower ends of the market by some other well-known brands is achieved with poor quality, low-performance memory foam that degrades much faster. These brands use “off the shelf” memory foam provided by a select number of foam manufacturers used by almost everyone in the industry. In contrast, at Ergoflex we not only engineer our memory foam mattresses but then manufacture them to our exacting specifications.
That’s why our mattresses deliver an absolutely unmatched level of support, comfort and longevity.
Q.03 “What about these revolutionary materials other brands keep talking about?”
Don’t be fooled by simple marketing spin!
Despite the grand claims and seemingly-technical language used by other brands to describe their mattresses, there’s actually nothing unique or special about them. Their foam is sourced “off the shelf” from a few known foam manufacturers.
Instead, marketing gurus have just been coming up with new ways to re-sell the same thing over and over for years.
At Ergoflex we don’t need the marketing spin. We simply produce an outstanding product that we don’t need to make outlandish claims about. We just give you the facts and let our mattresses speak for themselves.
Now that’s revolutionary!
Q.04 “Why do mattress specifications matter?”
They matter because without them customers are unable to ascertain exactly what they are buying and can easily be misled by exaggerated claims.
Of course we all want to present our products in the best light. But we’ve all seen “the most comfortable mattress in the world” claims. It can really pay to check the specifications of these mattresses. You may find that the specifications have changed, sometimes multiple times, possibly to something inferior and yet the same, exaggerated claims are still being attached to it.
In contrast, at Ergoflex we have used our specially engineered high-density memory foam from day one. And we’re delighted to be transparent about the specifications of our mattresses.
We designed the best there is for pressure-reliving performance and have had no need to deviate from it. This is backed up by testimonies from customers some of whom have been sleeping on their mattresses for over 12 years (15 years in the UK!). No other mattress-in-a-box brand can make that claim.
Q.05 "Why do some online mattress brands also sell in-store?”
It’s purely a marketing tactic designed to attract more sales and increase brand exposure. Ergoflex is online only and will always remain that way.
In reality, many online mattress retailers that have diversified into bricks and mortar stores have not been able to successfully sustain them.
The main thing to remember is that adding this traditional style of sales always has a financial cost. And that cost is ultimately borne by the consumer; whether by way of increased prices or in the use of inferior product to maintain profit margins.
As the pioneer of the online-only mattress-in-a-box concept, Ergoflex has understood the benefits of the online model from the start, that is, the ability to pour all our costs into producing the highest possible quality product.
Q.06 “But this other mattress also has a 10 year warranty. What’s the risk?”
You have question the value of warranty offered by a company that hasn’t been around very long or, worse, leaves the market after a short time. Ergoflex has been operating for longer than our warranty period. That makes us truly risk-free.
With the explosive growth of our industry over the last 5 years alone, we’ve seen our fair share of brands that have failed or are reliant on business models that are not conducive to long-term stability. In turn the integrity of the warranty is greatly reduced.
Ergoflex is the only mattress-in-a-box brand that has been trading for longer than it’s 10 year warranty period. This means not only can you trust in our warranty - and the quality of our product - but it is also indicative of our the responsible and sustainable way our business is operated.
That means true peace of mind for our customers.
Q.07 “Thousands of independent reviews can’t be wrong. Can they?"
Reviews are an established part of the online buying experience but sometimes 5 star reviews are not all they seem. It’s important to understand what to look for in mattress reviews to ensure you’re not misled.
At Ergoflex, we don’t think someone who has only slept on their mattress for a few days or a week is in a position to provide a truly useful review. However, if you seek out older reviews of brands that do seek reviews after just a few days you will often find a litany of complaints about support failures and warranty issues. We would suggest it’s these reviews that tell the real story about the quality and longevity of their product.
At Ergoflex, we have glowing reviews from happy customers who have had their mattresses for years. We think that speaks volumes.
Q.08 "What about mattress comparison sites? Can they be trusted?”
The mattress-in-a-box revolution has sparked an explosion of comparison websites, Top 10 lists and other rating “guides”. Certain of these can actually be helpful. But here’s what you should know.
All mattress comparison websites use affiliate marketing, a system by which they receive a commission payment - sometimes up to 20% - whenever a sale is achieved. So it shouldn’t surprise you to learn that the brand that pays the highest commission often sees its product with the highest rating.
There are also a number of comparison sites that are owned and operated by the brands
themselves, which explains the glowing reviews and ratings of their own product.
At Ergoflex we do participate in a carefully selected number of credible mattress comparison websites. On average we pay between 4-7% commission which represents an industry low.
We believe the true test of any mattress is not how it arbitrarily ranks on an affiliate website, but how it performs in the real world. That’s why we don’t need to pay more to artificially boost our coverage and standing on such websites.
So by all means do use compassion sites to get a better sense of what it is claimed differentiates each mattress. But remember to take the actual ratings with a grain of salt.
Q.09 "What about customer service in the mattress-in-a-box industry”?
Customer service is vital in an industry where you’re being asked to buy a big-ticket item like a mattress. We’re famous for ours. The other brands? Not so much.
Since day one of launching in the UK back in 2006, Ergoflex has placed customer service at the core of our business. This means that before, during and after a purchase we are readily available to answer questions and listen to concerns. We’re proud of the fact that along with praise for the sleep-enhancing performance of our mattress, our outstanding customer service is regularly mentioned in customer reviews.
Unfortunately, we are the exception in this industry rather than the rule. From minimal contact details or email-only contact to automated chat-bots the only give the impression of help being present, many mattress-in-a-box brands are not truly committed to even basic customer service.
These brands focus their efforts on marketing their products to new customers rather than looking after their existing ones.
Ask a few pre-sale questions or scan reviews for mentions of positive customer service interactions and you should quickly get a sense of the level of customer service the brand is willing to provide.
At Ergoflex you can talk to a real person here in Australia 7 days a week, 365 days a year. In fact, our owner often answers the phone himself! We respond to our customers - whether by phone or email - quickly because we truly care about each and every one of our customers and we want them to have a great experience.
But don’t take our word for it. Give us a call or send us an email - we’re always happy to chat anything mattress-related.
Q. 10 “What’s up with super long risk-free trials?”
We know that buying a mattress online can seem like a leap of faith. That’s why we introduced our 30 day risk-free trial period. To give you enough time to really ascertain if our mattress is right for you. Longer trial periods are often not all they’re cracked up to be.
At Ergoflex we know from experience that the transition to a high-density memory foam mattress generally takes from one or two nights to around two weeks. This is especially the case for customers who are used to traditional pocket-sprung mattresses. That’s why we introduced a thirty night trial period which has served our customers well for over a decade.
You might see some brands offering seemingly unbelievably extensive trial periods of 100 days or even up to 365 days. While that might seem like an amazing way to remove any risk in purchase, it’s less about the brand standing behind the quality of its product and more about marketing and a high rate of returns being built into the business model.
Ergoflex offers you a mattress of the highest quality and comfort that lasts for years. In the unlikely event an Ergoflex mattress is not right for you, you’ll know well within a month and we will happily take it back.
