How to Find the Best Deals When Shopping Online

I do a lot of online shopping because it is very convenient and I can do it at any time of day. The items get shipped right to my door and I don’t need to fight crowds or drive from store to store looking for the best deals. There are even many resources online to make sure you get the best deal. Do you know what they are? Here are some of them:

• Visit “Deal” websites. Such websites like slickdeals.net and fatwallet.com are updated by users with deals and coupons that they have found. They even have a search feature so you can search for a particular item or store. The front page of both websites has the best deals, but you can search thru the posts for deals that interest you.
• Use Promotional codes. Almost every online store has a spot at checkout for “promotional”, “promo”, or “coupon” codes. By visiting a deal website, you can find what codes are out there and save some money. You can also google “store name promo code” to find a code. You could potentially get free shipping or save 10 to 20% off your order total.
• Subscribe to the online stores email. If you shop at certain stores a lot, sign up to get on their email list. This way you will know, before the general public, about sales/specials that are coming up. Also, most websites will give you a money off promo code to use just for signing up.
• Sign up for “Rebate” website. Sites like Ebates.com and Fatwallet.com will offer money back your total purchase for using them. You sign up on the website and go thru them first before going to the online store. For example, if you want to shop at OldNavy.com, sign onto Ebates.com, find Old Navy in the list of stores, click on the store’s link and it will bring you to that store and track your spending in that purchase (for your rebate). Each store offers a different percentage that they will give you back. They go from 1% all the way up to 20%. Quarterly, you will get your “cashback” from these websites. You can have a check mailed to you or have it deposited right into your Paypal account.
• Google the item. You might find that your favorite store doesn’t have the cheapest prices. If you are looking for a specific item, try googling the item. Google has a shopping tab on the upper part of the screen that will bring up all the stores that carry that item with its price.
• Visit mass item websites. Sites like Amazon.com and Overstock.com (just to name a few) offer a HUGE variety of items. Sometimes they have comparable prices, but a lot of times you can get a great deal from them. Check these websites out to see if an item is cheaper here. Plus, Amazon offers free shipping if your total is over $25 and is shipped directly from Amazon (and not a third party). Also, unlike some other online stores (who will remain nameless) they offer a 30 day price guarantee. If the price goes down, you send them an email and they will refund you the difference.
• eBay. As a last resort, you can always check eBay. You have to be careful when going this route to make sure you are buying from a reputable seller and the item is authentic, but there’s the potential to save a good amount of money by going this route. Also, if you’re looking for a brand name, try miss-spelling the name. You’d be surprised how many people will have a typo in the item’s Title meaning it will get little traffic looking at it. I was able to find a Diane Von Furstenberg train case at less than half of what the other sellers had it listed for because of a typo (just make sure you know a brand if you do this because there are A LOT of fakes on eBay).

I hope these few tools will help you get the most bang for your buck online. Happy Shopping!