“Shopping Savings Advice & Tips On How To Spend Less & Get More”
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Finding Online Shopping Sites (continued)
f. If you are looking for something unusual or at a very low price, try classified ad sites like CraigsList.org, and the web sites of your local papers. Often, these sellers are local and you can go see the item before you buy and negotiate and handle the transaction in person, rather than over the Internet. CraigsList.org even lists notifications of garage sales in various local areas.
Finding The Right Product & Best Price
Finding an online shopping site that carries your product of interest is one way to shop online. A different approach is to use the Internet to actually help you decide what product and features you want, what products work the best and are most reliable, and where you can find the best deal.
1. If you are not that familiar with the general product category you are considering purchasing, try looking up some product buying guides for general information about the product type. These guides can tell you all about products and various features you may want to consider. For instance, if you are trying to decide what features you may need in a laptop computer, these product guides may be very helpful. General product information will be available on most every product imaginable. For starters, try going to ShopWiki.com for many types of products, or CNET.com for technology products. Or just type into your search engine “product information” or “buying advice” for the product of choice and browse. There are many sources.
2. You can also look up product reviews for a product category’s makes and models, as well as a specific product. Reading these reviews to help you understand the pros and cons of a type of product (for instance LCD versus Plasma HDTV’’s) or a specific product (a Panasonic 50” Plasma HDTV) is smart whether you are buying the product online or at a local retailer. Reviews can be found all over the Internet. Just type in the product category or specific product name and the word “reviews.” Or try starting at a site called ConsumerSearch.com for reviews of many products. Other popular sites with reviews include ShopWiki.com, Epinions.com, CNET.com and ConsumerReports.org (which is a subscription service).
3. Once you have decided on the product you want, finding the right deal can require some effort since, for many products, there will be potentially hundreds of online retailers. Fortunately, there are web sites that specialize in keeping track of current pricing for a myriad of products, and can lead you to the online retailer with the best pricing. It is now easier than ever to compare pricing on the Internet. Consider the following ways to identify good deals, but also make sure you understand all costs involved before you make a purchase.
a. Many sites provide price comparisons for all types of products on the Internet. Just type in “price comparisons” in your search engine and you will find plenty. These sites will provide you the current prices, as well as the online retailer that is offering the price. Some of the more popular price comparison sites include: PriceGrabber.com, Shopzilla.com, BizRate.com, Google.com/products, Nextag.com, and MySimon.com. PriceGrabber.com and some other sites also have a price alert service. This service will alert you by email if the price of an item you have registered declines below your target price. For our Canadian readers, try BestCanadianDeals.ca, a new web site that monitors discounts offered on online stores, and offers a weekly email newsletter with coupons and deals for the week.
b. Make sure you understand the full price for the product, including shipping, handling, sales taxes, and any other fees. Most of the time this is straight forward and will be displayed no later then when they request your payment. If you are not happy, stop the transaction.
c. Make sure you understand the return and cancellation policy and any costs like restocking fees, return shipping, how damaged products are handled and who is responsible, etc. These terms are almost always available somewhere on the retailer’s web site. Since you cannot actually see in person exactly what the article looks like and what condition it is in, it is not unusual that you will want to return the item. Most legitimate online retailers have a reasonable return policy. But remember, it’s not as easy as taking it back to your local store, except if the online retailer also has regular stores that accept returns.
You can save by shopping online in another manner. Many Internet sites offer coupons that can be used at your local store for shopping savings. Internet sites also offer “coupon codes” that can be used on some online shopping sites for additional savings over and above the quoted price. Some sites just specialize in listing bargains. Consider the following:
1. If you are looking for coupons and coupon codes there are a many sites to consider. Just type “coupons,” “coupon codes” or “promotion codes” into your search engine and you will find plenty. Among the most popular are: CouponBug.com, FatWallet.com, CouponCabin.com, CouponMountain.com, CouponsCraze.com, CoolSavings.com and DealCatcher.com. Other sites gaining popularity are CurrentCodes.com, RetailMeNot.com and BradsDeals.com. If you are a Canadian customer you may want to visit BestCanadianDeals.ca for coupons and other deals. You can also enter the retailer’s name and the words “coupon code” or “promotion code” to see if a specific retailer has any coupon discounts. At CellFire.com, you can even have coupons downloaded directly to your cell phone. Just show the coupon code to the cashier.
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