The world wide web is vast and ever-expanding. In fact, The Telegraph recently reported that Royal Mail is set to deliver bumper profits on the back of online shopping, “the state-owned delivery company will unveil earnings of between £300m and £400m in its full-year results this week, up from £211m last year, according to analysts.” Telegraph reporter Judith Woods isn’t so convinced that online retail is as simple as it used to be, she complains that “the internet retail revolution is so advanced that there’s nothing anonymous about cyberspace. Your Windows-shopping is being minutely observed, fed into an algorithm and then spat out again – straight at you, via your in-box.”
And clever cookies aren’t the only problem, The Guardian reporter Hilary Osborne bought to light the increasing frustration shoppers have in finding alternatives to online giant Amazon. According to independent retailers it’s getting harder to rank high in Google these days, “now that big firms have got better at optimising their pages for search and Google has started charging them to appear in Google Shopping results.” It seems that all you need to get on page one is a big enough marketing budget.
cc licensed ( BY ) flickr photo shared by Pete
With cookies getting cleverer and online choices getting smaller, it’s becoming harder to get a genuine deal online these days. Indie retailer Kate Bendix says, “the likes of John Lewis, the revamped Jessops and Debenhams have SEO experts and marketing budgets the likes of which I can only dream of. It begs the question, will independent online shops go the way of the high street.”
Comparison sites
Online comparison sites allow you to search for the items or services you’re looking to price up, collating all the latest available prices on a single platform to enable you to compare and contrast. The ever-reliable Money-saving expert MegaShopBot.com goes even further, bringing together all the data from all those available comparison sites
For the most effective searches, keep the terms narrow and specify as much detail as you can – for example, with a mobile deal, whether you want a contract of PAYG, your preferred network provider, and what your ideal bundle should include.
Shop odd hours
Websites like to keep traffic coming 24 hours a day, leading providers like airlines and travel agents often host mega-sales at ‘off-peak’ hours. Quiet periods like Monday mornings, where few people are likely to be shopping online, are prime times to go online bargain-hunting. Don’t feel you need to shop with the seasons – winter woollies or sticky festive tipples shift for silly prices in the summer.
Keep an eye out for advertisements on crazy price crashes like flash sales on £1 flights, but don’t get too swept up in the excitement of a perceived bargain. If you know when a sale’s coming up, do some prior research and ensure you’re fully aware of terms, conditions and hidden charges to avoid any nasty surprises.
Sign up for savings
Signing up for email alerts and newsletters from your favourite brands and retailers can bring big bargains – but providing your details will lead to a clogged inbox. Set up filters on your email account or, better yet, set up a dedicated ‘bargain hunting’ account where you can have all the information on deals re-routed. Brands know that special offers and guerrilla marketing are the best ways to increase consumer engagement. Cover all the communications channels to make sure you don’t miss out on any promotional activity – ‘liking’ companies’ pages on Facebook and following on Twitter.
Cash-saving codes
You’ll often find when entering payment details for goods or services that you’re prompted to enter a discount code. Keep an eye out when flicking through magazines and newspapers, Google ‘discount code’ plus the company name, or use one of the regularly-updated monitoring sites online like Currentcodes and RetailMeNot.
Crunch your cookies
Not the edible sort, but the ‘cookies’ that websites use to store your details and online activity. The information contained is used by online retailers and merchants to monitor your likes and dislikes, previous purchases in order to predict your future behaviour and target their offers accordingly – and to their own advantage. Although you’ll often be presented with offers on items of interest, they might not be quite as bargainous as those netted by individuals who’ve never shopped with that company before who are the people they need to seduce with deeper discounts. Clear your cookies, reclaim your shopper anonymity, and benefit from a better deal!
Share the savings
Sign up to group discount sites for huge savings on all sorts of leisure pursuits and activities at a fraction of the usual price. You’ll typically receive a daily offer and if it appeals, you express your interest and, when a certain number of people have subscribed to the deal, it becomes available to all and you can cash in. These sites are able to negotiate deep discounts with local merchants by guaranteeing the provider with large volumes of new customers.
Shop the world
Don’t restrict your bargain-hunting to UK-based retailers, but do tread carefully, only using trusted retailers. Ensure you’re fully aware of all the associated delivery charges, which can add up to 30% to the face price and monitor site security, and binding terms and conditions.
Look to countries where the pound is strong, especially when seeking out higher value goods. When working out whether it’s worth it, keep in mind considerations like customs duty and VAT. Products also need to pass muster when you open the box, particularly when it comes to electrical items like DVD players and anything with a plug.
With the sheer volume of information at your fingertips, it can be hard to cut through the noise and ferret out the finest offers. Saying this, this article enabled you to discover the best bargains… they really are just a click away. With some savvy, online shopping can become the ultimate oracle when it comes to netting you the best deal for services, provisions and luxuries.
Author Bio: A journalist from London, Kitty Hastings enjoys writing about personal finances and how in these tough economic times, readers can get the best deals and find more ways to make end meet. In her quest to improve the bank balances of Britain she specialised in helping people with debt. Kitty’s work has appeared in many different publications and is widely considered as being both easy to understand and deep.