It worked great for me recently buying running shoes.

I knew what shoes I wanted, there are plenty of no-name merchants selling them, competing on price (last year's model, so not being sold in big name stores). Click through each of them, find one with the right size, colour, delivery prices. Very painless. If some of the merchants are scams, I wouldn't know, my shoes arrived anyway.

Instead of "all ads, so it's all garbage" this is exactly what I wish all advertising could be.