Online shopping keeps getting more and more convenient. These days, you don’t need to leave Instagram to buy a nice pair of shoes. You can view a company’s products and even make an order through some social media sites.
Although convenience is great, saving money is better. In this article, we’ll share with you some tips and tricks you can use to save money while shopping online. Let’s get started.
1. Compare Products and Prices
Many shopping experts agree on one thing. You should never shop online before you compare prices. The explanation is that different stores tend to sell the same product at different prices.
Let’s say you’re trying to buy a pair of wireless earbuds. You’ve set your eyes on Bose’s Quiet Comfort 2. One store might be selling the earbuds at $300. A different site could be selling the same buds for $270. By comparing prices, you could save $30.
Another reason for doing product comparison is that it could help you find better items. Maybe Apple is selling equally quality products as Bose. But it could be cheaper. Perhaps Beats’ earbuds have better noise-canceling technology.
Use a product comparison platform like bestreviews.guide before you buy anything online. Comparing brands and products can be eye-opening. It can also help you save money.
2. Install a Tool for Bargain Hunting
There’s an online tool for just about anything. Some browser extensions and apps help you hunt shopping discounts. Others find coupon codes and add them to your shopping cart.
Find a tool designed to help you save money on a particular item. RetailMeNot is a good example. This app helps you find coupon codes for all the major online and retail stores in the world. Honey and Coupon Cabin are excellent alternatives.
Considering most bargain-hunting apps and browser extensions are free, there’s no reason not to use them. They do the heavy lifting in the background so that you can save money every time you shop online.
3. Time Your Shopping
Sometimes saving money is all about good timing. Holidays like Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Martin Luther King Jr. Day come with great discounts. However, it all depends on what you’re buying.
Valentine’s Day and Christmas offer the best time to save money on gifts. Black Friday can help you save money on electronics. On the other hand, stores throughout the country offer deals on just about anything on Independence Day.
If you don’t want to wait for a major holiday to buy something, learn the best time to buy specific products. Most companies offer the best tech deals during the summer. One of the reasons is that tech brands usually unveil newer products in the fall.
4. Subscribe to Receive Loyalty Deals
Make your money work for you by subscribing to a company’s loyalty program. Perhaps your favorite store gives out shopping points you can later redeem. Accumulate these points and redeem them to save on future purchases.
Some stores use cashback deals to reward your loyalty. They may refund 5% of your monthly expenses. But you can’t withdraw this money. You can only use it to save money while shopping with them later.
Another reason to subscribe to loyalty programs is that they might treat you like a VIP customer. They could notify you about shopping discounts before making them available to everyone else.
5. Use a VPN
Virtual Private Networks help you encrypt your data and browse the web safely. More than that, they can help you save money while shopping online. How does this work?
Many stores use dynamic prices to target different customers. Picture this scenario. Brazil is hosting a major soccer tournament. Local hotels may want to maximize their profits by increasing accommodation fees for fans flying from the USA and Europe.
However, these same flight companies could keep their prices low for people flying from Argentina, Canada, and Asia. You could use a VPN to switch your IP address from the US to Canada. Then you could check if you can find cheaper accommodation rates.
Your Turn
Shopping online might be straightforward and convenient. But it’s not always cheap. Use the tips shared above to save money. More importantly, shop around to find the best quality products within your budget.
