10 Sneaky Online Shopping Tricks For Scoring Major Discounts

202°
Deal Cadet
balajireddy....

1. Escape the dynamic pricing trap

Dynamic pricing is a strategy online retailers use to offer different prices to different customers based on demand, market factors and each user’s browsing and spending patterns. This technique has become more sophisticated now that websites can track your internet surfing and gain an intimate knowledge of your online behavior. Retailers use this data to determine your price point, which means when you go to purchase a product, you may see a higher price than someone with different spending habits using a different computer.

The best way to avoid getting charged a higher price is to erase your browser’s cookies and log out of your account. You can also try using your browser’s version of a “private” or “incognito” window, so cookies aren’t saved during your search.

2. Leave items in your cart

Log in to your account, place your desired items in the cart and then just let it sit. Retailers want to close the deal, so they’ll find ways to draw you back. In a few days you may get an email with a coupon or an offer for a better price. According to Rather-Be-Shopping.com, you need to have an account with the retailer’s site and be logged in when you leave your cart. It won’t work for every website, but they tested this “coupon trick” and found 17 online stores that offer coupon codes days later to entice you to complete your purchase. That list includes the websites of Bed Bath & Beyond, Dick’s Sporting Goods, JC Penney, Macy’s, Office Max, Williams-Sonoma and more.

3. Search for coupons

If you’re not getting coupon codes from the abandoned-cart strategy, check out popular coupon sites like retailmenot.com, couponcraze.com and couponmom.com.

4. Connect over social media

Follow retailers on Twitter. Friend them on Facebook. Why? Because they often reward their social media followers with exclusive coupons or early access to major sales.

5. Sign up for email alerts

Companies often send coupons to those on their email list. Some of these offers are single-use offers. If you sign up with multiple email addresses, you can rack up multiple unique coupon codes. Also, many stores such as Kohl’s or West Elm offer you a coupon for 10% off just for joining their mailing list.

Don’t just sign up with your favorite stores – do so with their competitors too. That way you can compare deals and ask for price matching.

To keep your inbox organized, set up a filter that sends all promotional emails to a separate folder. The advantages are one, you’ve got all of your coupons in one place allowing you to compare deals between stores and two, you can quickly spot sale trends over time. I’ve done this and have noticed that stores like to send out screaming subject lines about “one-time-only deals,” but when I scroll down in the folder, I see that they’ve announced identical deals every other month. Suddenly, that one-time deal doesn’t feel so urgent anymore.

6. Call customer service – they can sometimes extend expired coupons

Sometimes you don’t need to buy anything when that coupon code lands in your email. But then weeks later, once that coupon has expired, you realize that you’re in need of that expensive gadget and that coupon code would have save you a fortune. Fret not! Companies want you to buy, and if you call their customer service line, they may just honor that coupon code. I’ve tried this multiple times. It’s not sure thing, but about one out of three times this strategy has worked.

7. Compare in-store prices with online prices

Prices in the store and online don’t always match. Now that we’re all armed with smart phones, it’s easy to compare the product in your hand with its online price. And if you’re shopping online, sometimes it’s as easy as a phone call to your local retailer to find out the store price.

8. Compare online prices between retailers

Sites like bizrate.com, mysimon.com and Google Shopping allow you to compare prices between stores with a few taps of your keyboard.

9. Use multiple coupon codes strategically

If an online retailer lets you to use multiple coupon codes at checkout, use the codes in the right order to get the most savings. For example, if you have one coupon code for 20% off your purchase and another for $15 off your purchase, use the 20% off code first. That will apply the 20% discount to the full price of the product earning you a deeper discount.

10. Check to see if you can get price-drop refunds

Say you make a purchase and then notice days later that the price has dropped. Some stores will issue you a refund for the price difference if you contact them within a certain number of days. For items sold and shipped by Amazon, contact the company within seven calendar days of the delivery date and they will refund you the price difference, reports Business Insider. You can monitor Amazon price changes at Camelcamelcamel.com. Certain credit cards also offer price protection. That is, if the price dips within a certain amount of time from your purchase, they’ll refund the difference.

8 Comments  |  
8 Dimers
  • Sort By
Budding Star Budding Star
Link Copied

We actually discussed the same thing in one thread! remember? @DealSeeker @cm4444 https://cdn1.desidime.com/assets/textile-editor/icon_smile.gif

Deal Subedar Deal Subedar
Link Copied

Amazon india doesnt price match unless its a small amount (100-200). Anything more and you’re out of luck.

Btw. Wrong forum. Should have been posted in Dost and Dimes section instead

Deal Captain Deal Captain
Link Copied

Just follow dd https://cdn1.desidime.com/assets/textile-editor/icon_biggrin.gif

It’s enough rather than doing all above things

Deal Lieutenant Deal Lieutenant
Link Copied

voted up..

plz move it to correct section

Deal Cadet Deal Cadet
Link Copied

generic stuff that has been posted for umpteen times already
Op do keep in mind that you are currently on dd ; the stronghold of biggest and baddest looters in India https://cdn2.desidime.com/assets/textile-editor/icon_toungueout.gif that can walk any mile to get that extra “discount”

These things don’t even matter to them https://cdn3.desidime.com/assets/textile-editor/icon_lol.gif

Deal Captain Deal Captain
Link Copied

3rd Point Rival Global Sites https://cdn0.desidime.com/smileys/cowboy.gifhttps://cdn0.desidime.com/smileys/cowboy.gifhttps://cdn0.desidime.com/smileys/cowboy.gifhttps://cdn0.desidime.com/smileys/cool.gif
Where are admins/ mod now https://cdn0.desidime.com/smileys/RzYq6.gif

Shopping Friend Shopping Friend
Link Copied

@Plato

Could you recall similar thread , where you responded too ?

Shopping Friend Shopping Friend
Link Copied

Online shopping has come a long way in the past years, and has
become something very simple and common. People go on the internet to
buy anything from clothes to electronics, and even food. It’s important to
remember that when you are buying something online, there are many more
options for saving money than there are when you are shopping in a store.
With these advanced shopping strategies you are guaranteed to
save money and get the best deals online:
Leave items in your shopping cart.

If you find an item you want, there is a nice trick you can use to get it for
an even cheaper price. Put the item in your online “shopping cart” but don’t
proceed to the “checkout” area and just leave the site. There is a good chance
you will get an Email from that site (if you are registered and they have your mail)
reminding you about the product, and offering you a discount to
encourage you to go back and finish your purchase.
Look for discount codes.
While it’s clear for anyone that if they have a code there is no reason not to use it,
a lot of people don’t know that you can go “hunting for codes” on the internet.
Simple try Googling the online store or the name of the product, and the words
“coupon code”. Because these codes constantly cycle in and out of activation, don’t worry
if you find one that doesn’t work. Instead, be sure to try a couple of codes until you
find one that works and also gives you the best deal.
Stack smart!
Some retailers and online stores allow you to “stack” coupon codes (use more than one)
on a single purchase. Use this option wisely and enter the codes in the proper order to
get the most value of each. Let’s say you have two coupon codes, one for 10$ off your
purchase and another for 15% off. Enter the 15% code first, then the 10$ code.
That way, you’ll get 15% off the full price of the item and a much better deal.
Use the right credit card.

This is a great tip if you have more than one credit card, or if the item you want to
buy is sold for the same price from multiple retailers. You can save about 5% of the
price just by using a credit card that has a partnership with the retailer.
Some credit cards are even co-branded ( the Target REDcard or Amazon Rewards Visa)
and offer great deals and also free shipping.
Don’t be afraid to buy “open” products.
Big online retailers Amazon.com offer discounts on refurbished and open-box items.
They are mostly still covered by return policy so if your item doesn’t work, you can send
it back and get your money. A lot of items that don’t meet Amazon’s rigorous standards for
‘new’ are available all the time and you can find some great cheap items there.

Subscribe your order.
Many online stores offer between 5% and 15% off a purchase if you subscribe to
ordering it regularly. If you remember to cancel your subscription when you no longer
need the regular order, you’ll end up saving a good bit of cash. This is a very useful tip
if you want to buy the same item a number of times, but you don’t
need to have the whole amount right away.
If you regularly buy an item use the Subscribe & Save program.
Let’s say that you really do need to regularly buy an item, such as food products,
toilet paper or vitamin supplements. Amazon and other such online shops will give
you a 5% discount and most ly ship it for free if you schedule a certain number of
purchases. If you schedule five or more subscriptions per month,
you’ll even get 15% off on each of your deals.
Never hang on to gift cards!
alt
According to data taken in 2013, 1 billion dollars’ worth of gift cards were never
redeemed, which means stores basically got money for nothing. Some gift cards get
lost, others expire, and oftentimes stores even go bust before you get a chance to
shop. The moral of this is simple: If you get an online gift card,
use it to get what you need right away.
“” your favorite retailers.
Many merchants post special coupons or announce sales on their Facebook pages.
If you "" that page you will get the notification on the sale on your Facebook news
feed and be able to capitalize quickly on flash sales. This is true for
both online and offline stores and retailers.
Group deals.
Keep an eye open for group deals on the products you want to buy. Just Google
the product name and “group deal” or “group sale”. You can find discounts up to 70%
but you need to be lucky in order to find a deal for the item you want. Most group deals
tend to expire in a few days or untill the stocks ran out, so be quick
about taking advantage of them.
Read Product Reviews.
Before making a purchase, especially a big one, it is a good idea to research
the product and the retailer. It takes just a few minutes to read about the product
and it’s time well spent. You will often learn a lot from what other people have to
say not only about the product itself, but also on better deals on
the same product people have found elsewhere.
Be Patient.

There is a continuous cycle of online bargains as old deals expire and new ones
come out. If you can’t find what you’re looking for right away, be patient and check back later.
With consistent effort, it won’t be long before you find what you’re looking for at a
discounted price. It’s also a good idea to add items you want to buy to your “Wishlist”,
if the site has such a feature. You will get notifications when the item goes on sale and
you won’t have to keep track on it all the time yourself.

replyuser
Click here to reply
Reply