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Online shopping is more popular than ever before.
Indeed, experts in the industry expect that only 5% of shopping will be done in brick and mortar stores by 2040! In other words, a whopping 95% of all goods will be purchased via the internet.
It is no surprise.
After all, in our hectic world, the convenience of online shopping and speedy home deliveries is a mighty advantage! You can now do it all at home in your pajamas, without the stress of busy shopping malls and never-ending checkout lines.
Even better, with the help of some online shopping hacks, you can cut down your monthly outgoings too! Sound good?
Read on for 7 awesome ways to save money on your online shopping.
1. Shop Incognito
Have you ever noticed how prices fluctuate online?
Buying flight tickets provides a perfect example.
Let’s imagine that you are planning a vacation and go online to check the price of flights. Not feeling ready to commit, you click back and get on with your day. Later on, you check the same flight again and it is twice as expensive!
This so-called ‘dynamic pricing’ is a classic means by which online vendors make more money out of you. Everything from your location and the particular day of the week to the very fact you are returning for a second look can impact the price.
Avoid the frustrating by shopping in an incognito tab of your browser each time. You could also consider deleting your cookies and utilizing a VPN.
Take these precautions and you are far less likely to suffer at the hands of dynamic pricing.
2. Collect Your Points
As you probably know, most credit cards offer points rewards for particular purchases.
Collect them over time and you can enjoy serious savings on future online shopping. With enough points, you can purchase all sorts of sought-after items for next to nothing.
It is literally like getting free money!
The same goes for the loyalty cards you can get from certain stores.
Places like Amazon, for example, provide significant returns on your purchases. Buy enough stuff and you will end up getting your next items for free.
You would be surprised by how few people take advantage of these offers though. If you do a lot of online shopping, then it makes total sense to look into the points and cashback offers at your disposal.
3. Compare Listing Prices
The internet can make no sense sometimes.
Two sites can be selling the same product for totally different prices.
As such, it pays to go about your online shopping in the same way as you purchase insurance.
You would never settle for the first insurance quote you are offered, right? Instead, you would shop around, or use a price-comparison site, to reveal the prices of multiple policies. From there, you would pick the cheapest and most comprehensive of the lot.
The same goes for buying anything online!
Never assume the first price for a product is the best you can get. Shop around on various e-commerce sites to find the cheapest.
4. Sign up for Newsletters
Everybody hates spam.
Going through all the emails from random sites and stores is never fun. They clog up your inbox and distract you from messages of actual importance.
However, they can, on occasion, provide an absolute gem that saves you oodles of cash.
Signing up to newsletters is one of the only ways to access these exclusive offers. Pop in your email address and you will be the first to hear about all sales and promotions from your favorite stores.
Pay attention to the emails and you will enjoy prized products and services for an absolute steal. Not bad for the sake of an email address!
5. Follow Stores on Social Media
Social media is another great source of online deals and discounts.
All sorts of stores release codes and promotions to their followers. Whether it is on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, you will be first to hear about money-saving offers they have available.
The same is true about influencers.
As you know, companies commonly solicit the help of influencers to promote their products. Follow these guys on social, then, and you will often benefit from the promotions they deliver.
6. Buy at the Right Time
Not all days are equal in terms of online shopping.
Here is the basic rule of thumb to follow:
Buy on Tuesdays and Fridays for top discounts, and avoid weekends at all costs! Stick to this heuristic and you will find yourself saving money over time.
Be sure to skip peak-season shopping as well. In busy times of year (such as the holiday season and back-to-school periods), demand is higher, which allows stores to increase their prices.
7. Play Hard-to-Get
You have more leverage in the buying process than you might think.
Without you (aka the consumer), companies have no means of making money. As such, they will do whatever it takes to convince you to buy something from them!
You can use that power to your advantage when online shopping. Here is how:
Rather than buying something straight away, try leaving it in your basket. Give it a few days and you will miraculously start receiving emails from the company. They might start by reminding you that the product remains unpurchased.
From there, though, they will sometimes send promo codes through in a last-ditch effort to make a sale. Being patient essentially twists their arm into delivering a discount.
Try These Online Shopping Hacks
More people are buying things online than ever before.
After all, it is quick, convenient and easy compared to going to brick and mortar stores. You can now buy almost anything you need via the internet and get it delivered in record time.
Better still, with the right shopping hacks in mind, you can save significant sums of money in the process. Hopefully, the post has highlighted 7 such strategies! Keep them in mind and you will cut your online shopping costs with ease.
Looking for more ways to save? Sign up for RebateKey today to shop a host of products available for 25%-99% off retail price!
