23 online shopping hacks that will save you a small fortune
28 September 2016
Internet shopping hacks
The internet is full of exciting deals and offers, from coupon codes to massive discounts, if you know where to look. We take a look at some of the biggest hacks that will help you to save a fortune when you’re shopping online.
Sign up to newsletters for exclusive deals
Online retailers are keen to get you on their mailing list, so many offer an incentive for signing up to their newsletters. At H&M for example you can get money off one item and free standard delivery on your next purchase. Even if a retailer doesn’t offer an incentive, newsletters are a good way to stay in the loop about sales, store events and other offers that could benefit you.
Add items to your shopping cart… and then leave
One savvy trick you could try when shopping online is to ditch your basket. This involves signing in to a website, adding items to your basket, but then leaving the site without making a purchase. Often retailers, keen for a sale, will send you an email offering you money off to come back and complete the transaction.
Haggle with retailers on live chat for discounts
More and more retailers now offer a live chat service with someone on hand to help you out when shopping online. So rather than dismissing the pop-up you could use it to haggle for a better deal on something you want to buy. The online helpers for retailers like Nike, Dell and Dyson have been known to offer discounts of 10% or more, just because people asked.
Hunt for voucher codes
As well as checking out whether you can earn cashback you should also check if you can score some money off with a voucher code. You can see the latest codes on websites like vouchercodes.co.uk in the UK or coupon.com in the US.
Beat delivery charges
Delivery charges can be a real shock when you come to the online checkout for your shop. But there are ways to avoid this cost. Some retailers like Amazon offer the choice of picking up your order from a store or locker rather than getting it delivered to your home. Most offer this service for free or for a much smaller fee and it’s often more convenient as you don’t have to get someone to wait in for a delivery or run the chance of missing it.
Check out free shipping websites
Alternatively, there are sites out there such as FreeShipping.com that allows you to get complete price protection and double warranty on anything you buy for 90 days. After its trial period, however, it’ll cost you $5.99 (£4.62) a month, but it could still be worth it long term.
See if your favorite retailers offer schemes to save you cash
If you shop regularly with a retailer, there may be a scheme that can offer you a way to save. ASOS, for example, has ASOS Premier, which offers unlimited next day delivery ($9.59/normally £5.95) for a year. It costs $19/£9.95 for 12 months but if you’re planning to shop with the retailer more than twice a year it’s definitely worth investing in.
Find the cheapest prices on price comparison sites
Price comparison sites, such as PriceGrabber or Froogle, are a great way of saving money, as they will analyze your searches across a number of difference retailers to find the best prices available.
Use social networking to be the first to know about sales
One of the best ways of saving money online is to get savvy with social media. “Like” your favorite retailers on Facebook, or follow them on Twitter. You’ll soon find that many merchants, such as Gap, post special coupons or announce sales first on their Facebook pages.
Google the product name to get a better deal
It may sound simple, but merely Googling a product’s name can save you hundreds. Why just settle for one product price when there is likely to be a huge amount of competition online? Just by Googling a show you want to see, you can save some big bucks on ticket prices. Never settle for what’s in front of you.
Avoid ticket booths – the internet will always have better offers
On that note, always look online before booking anything directly through a ticket office on the phone. Bus, train, theater, movie and flight tickets are likely to be noticeably cheaper online than they would be if you were to contact the merchant directly.
Join membership clubs for designer brand flash sales
A range of branded and designer goods run ‘membership clubs’, whereby you can register for free and get sent alerts for online flash sales. Doing this can get you discounts on some of the major designer brands such as Louis Vuitton and Chanel.
Subscribe to Amazon for discounts on your regular purchases
If you shop on Amazon regularly, it’s worthwhile subscribing. Not for Amazon Prime (we know that is pricey), but for the ‘subscribe’ feature, which automates the repurchasing process for you. Not only does it save time, but it also saves money by shaving a bit of cash off the original price for you.
Accumulate more coupons with multiple email addresses
You’ll often find that some retailers like to send single use coupons out to a select number of customers. To get the most out of these, sign up using multiple email addresses so you can receive the same coupon multiple times. It’s a bit sneaky, but well worth it if you can receive multiple 50% discount codes to use in your favorite store.
Always try to consolidate your purchases
This is one of the best ways to make sure you save online. Make sure you make a shopping list of the things you want to buy and use a search engine that will allow you to search for your entire list for the lowest total price.
Shop online from Wednesday through Friday
Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays are the most popular days for retailers to offer sales and discount codes, so try to do your browsing then. Avoid weekends though as you’ll find that’s when most people tend to do their shopping and so prices are most likely to be hiked.
Use the Amazon filler item finder to avoid shipping costs
Don’t want to pay the fees for Amazon Prime? All you need to do is try and spend $35 (£20) to get free shipping. You don’t want to spend for the sake of it though, so you can use the Amazon filler item finder to reach the fee without over-spending.
Use gift cards on your purchases for big savings
Using gift cards to buy things online can give you some pretty great savings. To make the most of it, fill up your cart online, then once you have a total, buy a gift card from the likes of Raise.com (US) or Zeek.me (UK) that amounts to your purchase. In many shops you can buy a gift card worth 5-15% more than its price.
Stack coupon codes
Don’t be afraid to stack coupon codes. Many online retailers including Macy’s and Kohl’s will allow you to stack up a bunch of different coupon codes at checkout so you can apply a number of different discounts to the same purchase.
Clear your browsing history and cookies to get a less biased price
When searching for coupon codes, or just online shopping generally, always remember to clear your browsing history and cookies, or use an in-private browser window. If a website can see you have already been looking at certain products (flights in particular), prices are likely to be increased.
Include your birthday when you sign up to retailers and get a birthday discount
Signing up to newsletters has lots of perks, but don’t forget to fill in your birthday when registering. Some companies, coffee shops and restaurants will offer you a discount on your birthday, or in some cases a free gift such as a free coffee when you go in store.
Buy out of season
It’s a classic hack, but buying out of season can save you a lot of money. When the demand for a certain product dips, so do the prices. For example, the price of swimwear during the peak of summer will always be at its most expensive; buy during the peak of winter instead for the best bargains.
Before you buy, check to see if you can get it for free
The joy of the internet is that anything is possible. And that means getting things for free too. Before you buy something, double check you can’t get the same or similar item for free. Sites like Freecycle will bring up second-hand goods that are available in your area and there are some serious bargains to be had.
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