In terms of shopping, the internet is a wonderful place. It creates instant access to all your favorite stores and boutiques, meaning that getting a few new wardrobe pieces or an upgrade in technology is super simple. However, the internet does have a dark side and it’s this dark side that’s trying to get you to pay over the odds for some of your goods, turning what should be a luxury into a hard to navigate minefield.
So many people find themselves spending a lot of money online, too much in fact, but thankfully, there are techniques and tricks you can implement yourself so that you can avoid paying full price and save a boatload of money online. Here are some of the best ways to do that.
Earn Cashback
It may sound too good to be true, but yes, there are websites out there that give you a small amount of cash each time to spend money online at certain retailers. So, before you checkout, be sure to see if there are any cashback websites offering money back from the site you’re shopping with.
Websites such as Topcashback will pay you money back on stores that can range from tech to food and usually the money you earn can be converted into free gift cards for stores of your choice. Some banks also offer cashback with certain debit or credit card accounts, so be sure you’re with the right provider to get these perks.
Buy on the Right Days
Prices of goods online are not as fixed as some people may think; in fact, some prices will change up to three times a week, depending on what day it is. Prices will drop ever so slightly on stores when there is less traffic to entice the fewer amount of people on there to make a purchase.
Therefore it’s best to search for these days and avoid peak times. The best days for different products vary, but on average, the days you want to shop are either Monday or Tuesday, as they are the start of the week and people have less time on these days to online shop. Some of the average savings is substantial too, with products such as video games, physical games and even sunglasses dropping by 15% or more.
Use Online Coupons
Online coupons are one of the internet’s best kept secret and they can really help reduce the cost of your purchase if you manage to find the right coupon for you. There are plenty of great websites that store and archive all the active promo codes available on the web, making it easier to browse for the most useful ones. Another great thing about coupons is that they change weekly, meaning there’s always something fresh, giving you more avenues to save money while online.
Sign up to Email Newsletters
If you’re happy having a lot of email marketing campaigns end up in your spam and inbox folder, then signing up to retailers’ newsletters could be a good way to save money on future shops. This is because the retailers are desperate to get you on their mailing list as they’ll offer incentives and deals just for signing up.
Some places offer 20% off your entire basket, others offer free shipping, while some get you money off your next purchase, meaning they are all great ways to save money online.
A useful trick to avoid spamming is to sign up with another email address and check every now and again when you fancy getting some deals.