cyber monday

Best Money Tips: 5 Things You're Better Off Buying on Cyber Monday

Amy Lu — Mon, 21 Nov 2016 11:00:13 +0000

Welcome to Wise Bread's Best Money Tips Roundup! Today we found articles on things you should buy on Cyber Monday, over 20 super cozy holiday gifts, and dozens of free ways to entertain yourself at home.

6 Genius Ways to Save on Cyber Monday

Kyle James — Wed, 25 Nov 2015 16:01:00 +0000

Cyber Monday (November 30th this year) is the day when online shopping deals take center stage. Last year, Cyber Monday garnered over $2 billion in sales — and this year it's projected to do even more. While there will be a plethora of deals available, you can easily maximize your savings by following these tips.

1. Know the Best Products to Buy

Historically, some items provide the most bang for your buck on Cyber Monday, even more than Black Friday in many cases. Here are the best products to watch.

Apparel and Shoes

Aside from Free Shipping Day on December 18th, Cyber Monday is the single best day to shop online for new clothing and shoes. Retailers like Gap, Old Navy, Ann Taylor, American Eagle, and Lands' End always offer online coupon codes in the 25%–40% off range, with free shipping. Always be aware of return policies so you don't get stuck paying to return clothing that doesn't fit.

Brand Name TVs

If you fail to score a Black Friday deal on a new TV, don't fret — Cyber Monday is actually a better day to save on a quality brand. Black Friday is all about deals on third tier manufacturers, many of which you've never heard of. But Cyber Monday regularly sees discounts from online consumer electronics sites in the 30%–40% range on brands like Samsung, Panasonic, LG, Sony, and Vizio.

Gaming System Bundles

If you're in the market for an Xbox One or PlayStation 4, you stand a good chance of saving money on Cyber Monday. Your best bet for savings is a bundle which typically includes the actual system along with a game and an additional controller. Online retailers like Gamestop, Target, Costco, and Walmart offered discounts in the 20%–30% range last year on Cyber Monday.

Beauty Products

If you need to stock up on beauty products, Cyber Monday would be a wise day to do it. Last year we saw online deals like 25% off at Macys, 30% off at Avon, 25% off at Smashbox, 20% off at Lancome, and 40% off at Ulta. Look for more of the same this year.

Quality Laptops

If you need a budget laptop, shop on Black Friday. But if you need a laptop with specs that'll have you video editing, gaming, and running several large programs at once, shop on Cyber Monday. Historically, it's one of the best days of the year to shop online at Best Buy, Fry's, and NewEgg and save money on a quality laptop from brands like Dell, Lenovo, Toshiba, and Apple.

2. Stack Coupons

There will undoubtedly be a large number of Cyber Monday coupons available for those willing to seek them out. Did you know that some sites actually let you stack more than one coupon, which leads to huge savings?

Kohl's

Kohl's will have a ton of Cyber Monday coupons available, so do a Google search for "Kohls Coupons" and start stacking. They'll let you combine a percent off coupon with a dollar off coupon, but note that you can't stack two "percent off" coupons during one transaction. But the good news is that you can stack two "dollar off" coupons when making an online purchase.

Target

Target's website lets you stack one manufacturer coupon, one Target coupon (must have online promo code printed on it), and one Cartwheel offer.

NewEgg

They'll let you stack an unlimited number of online coupons on your transaction. The catch is that you can only use a single coupon code on each item in your virtual cart.

3. Free Shipping Is Great, But...

If you plan to cross a few names off your Christmas list on Cyber Monday, it's smart to start with a website that offers free shipping. But be warned that free shipping is not always what it's cracked up to be. Many sites will actually jack up their prices just before releasing a Cyber Monday coupon for free shipping or a percent off your purchase. This is why I recommend using a site like PriceGrabber or Google Shopping to quickly find the cheapest price online, then go look for a Cyber Monday coupon code to make that price even cheaper.

4. Abandon Your Shopping Cart to Trigger a Deal

If you're considering a big Cyber Monday purchase like a new appliance or HDTV, I have a passive aggressive way to score a special discount at many online retailers. In the days leading up to Cyber Monday, visit the website you want to shop, login to your account, and add the item to your shopping cart. Then, log out right before you enter your credit card information. Sit back and wait for your coupon to show up in your email inbox. It could be a coupon for free shipping, or it could be coupon code good for up to 20% off your purchase.

Websites where this technique works include Toys R Us, Bass Pro Shops, Bed Bath & Beyond, Macy's, and Williams-Sonoma. Retailers know you're very close to completing the transaction and are willing to entice you back to the their site with an exclusive coupon. Try it this Cyber Monday and you stand a great chance of scoring an extra discount that you might not otherwise get.

5. Use Social Media to Score a Deal

The past couple Cyber Mondays, retailers have been littering their Facebook and Twitter feeds with exclusive deals and coupons. So before you do any online shopping, be sure to check the retailer's social media accounts for extra savings. Last year we saw exclusive discounts from Banana Republic, Crate & Barrel, Best Buy, JCPenney, and Lands' End to name a few. Most are limited time offers so be ready to pounce when you find the deal.

6. If a Deal Looks Too Good to Be True…

...It probably is. Cyber Monday emails are already floating around, and with that comes the added threat of scam sites designed to steal your money. Be suspicious of any email that claims savings significantly lower than the competition. When using price comparison tools, be cautious of any website that you're not familiar with, especially if they're offering an item at an unusually low price. Always do a quick Google search of the company's name, followed by "reviews" or "complaints," and see if you can find out a little bit more about them. Trust your gut.

Also, when you reach the checkout page that is asking for your credit card information, take note of the browser url — does it change from "http://" to "https://"? If the all-important "s" shows up, that means the website has taken the proper steps to keep your credit card and personal information secure. If the site doesn't have the letter "s" showing, do not enter your credit card information. It could be compromised by a third party.

Are you planning on checking out Cyber Monday deals? If so, do you have any websites or deals in mind?

This article is from Kyle James of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

7 Best Discount Shopping Days of the Year

Damian Davila — Mon, 09 Nov 2015 15:15:51 +0000

With just a few weeks left before Black Friday, you may be gearing up to start your Christmas shopping. However, it may surprise you that 32 million Americans started their Christmas shopping during the summer, according to a survey by creditcards.com.

Even more shocking, 4.6 million ultra early-bird shoppers are already done!

If you're wondering why people aren't starting their holiday shopping on Black Friday, the reason is that there are plenty of other major days for deals. Here is your ultimate calendar of shopping days that provide major savings.

1. Amazon Prime Day (Sometime in July)

While some people posted several funny responses to Amazon's well-publicized Prime Day earlier this year, many Americans surely took advantage of it, rocketing sales by 93%.

Here is a sample of the savings last July 15, 2015:

28% off GoPro HERO4 bundle (sale price: $499.99)
47% off Bose SoundTrue On-Ear Headphones (sale price: $80)
34% off iRobot Robot Roomba (sale price: $250)
38% off Amazon Fire TV Stick (sale price: $24.00)

While Amazon hasn't announced if it would reprise its Prime Day in 2016, it's a good idea to save your chance for a free trial of Amazon Prime until July 2016 to potentially take advantage of this major shopping day. If you already have a Prime membership, make sure you use it then. (See also: 16 Amazon Deal Hacks You May Not Already Know)

2. Singles Day (November 11th)

Forget Black Friday, Singles Day (created by Chinese company Alibaba) is the largest shopping day in the world! In 2014, Singles Day hit a new record of $9.3 billion (RMB 57.1 billion) in gross merchandise sales, a 60% increase from last year's $5.8 billion. (See also: 4 Big Tech Stocks Offering Big Returns)

Only 27 merchants took part in Singles Day back when it first started in 2009. In just five years, that number grew to an estimated 27,000. Non-Chinese companies are also eager to jump in the game and more than 200 merchants from over 20 countries participated last year.

For 2015, the total value of discounted coupons is estimated to be $0.7 billion (RMB 4.8 billion).

3. Small Business Saturday (Saturday After Thanksgiving)

In 2014, 88 million Americans "shopped small" on Small Business Saturday, up 14.9% from the previous year, spending about $14.3 billion at independent retailers and restaurants.

To help its cardmembers in supporting their favorite local shops and small businesses, in previous years American Express has offered up to three $10 statement credits per eligible American Express Card for shopping at participating stores. In 2014, registration for this perk took place between November 1st and November 29th, so keep an eye on your American Express card portal and sign up for it under the "Amex Offers & Benefits" tab.

4. Cyber Monday (Monday After Thanksgiving)

This major shopping day has proven so successful for U.S. retailers that some of them, such as Target, Walmart, and Best Buy, already have landing pages for Cyber Monday (November 30, 2015) and extend some of the savings throughout "Cyber Week."

Here are some examples of past savings during Cyber Monday:

In 2014, Amazon cut down the price of its Fire TV by $30 to $69.
In 2014, Best Buy reduced the price of Sharp Aquos Q+ Series 70" Class LED 1080p 240Hz Smart HDTV by $1,100 to $1,799.99.
In 2013, Newegg shaved off $100 of the LG G Pad 8.3 and offered it at $249.

5. Green Monday (Early December)

Created by eBay in 2007, Green Monday is held the second Monday of every December. Sorry environmentalists, this day has nothing to do with hugging trees — it's all about saving some greenbacks!

Since 2010, Green Monday has consistently ranked as the third heaviest online sales day of the year. And for good reason: Many retailers, including Walmart, Sears, Macy's, J.C. Penney, and Amazon take part of this shopping day. According to deals site FatWallet, about 70% of retailers take part of this day, offering 20% to 50% in discounts for toys and electronics.

6. Free Shipping Day (Middle December)

Taking place on December 18th this year, Free Shipping Day capitalizes on two big trends. First, more and more late Christmas shoppers are looking for free shipping with guaranteed arrival by Christmas Eve. Second, 90% of consumers spend more when offered free delivery, and nearly 50% of them will abandon an online shopping cart if met with high shipping fees.

The full list of participating merchants will be revealed at the same site at 12:01am EST on Friday, December 18, 2015. On top of guaranteed free shipping by Christmas Eve, most companies offer discount codes and coupons.

7. Super Saturday (Saturday Before Christmas)

Many shoppers won't be done until Christmas Eve. Retailers know this and are willing to provide some last minute savings on Super Saturday. While sale offers may differ among retailers, deals site DealNews found that last year Super Saturday offered good savings in TVs, appliances, and clothes (except shoes).

Some sample savings from 2014's Super Saturday were:

Kmart: Westinghouse 39" TV ($239.99 with free shipping)
Sears: Kenmore 1.6-Cubic-Foot Over-the-Range Microwave ($189.99)
Sears: Kenmore 25-Cubic-Foot Side-by-Side Refrigerator ($985.28)
Target: Samsung 32" HDTV ($199.99)
Target: Nintendo 3DS XL Handheld Gaming System ($149.99)
Walmart: 55" LED HDTV ($678)
Walmart: GoPro HERO3: White Edition Action Camcorder ($199)

What are other major shopping days besides Black Friday?

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This article is from Damian Davila of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

Best Money Tips: Essential Tips for Black Friday and Cyber Monday

Amy Lu — Wed, 05 Nov 2014 20:00:07 +0000

Welcome to Wise Bread's Best Money Tips Roundup! Today we found some helpful articles with tips for shopping on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, stretching your holiday shopping dollar, and the best price-comparison apps.

Cyber Monday Tips From Our Senior Editor

Meg Favreau — Mon, 02 Dec 2013 21:12:36 +0000

I was on FOX 5 in Washington DC this morning talking about ways to get the best deals on Cyber Monday, "deals" to avoid, and ways to save money shopping online no matter what time of year it is. Check it out:

This article is from Meg Favreau of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

Black Friday Tips From Money-Saving Experts

Carrie Kirby — Thu, 25 Nov 2010 13:00:06 +0000

I recently had the chance to hear top money-saving bloggers Miriam Kamin of Wantnot.net, Cassie and Alex Michael of TheThriftyCouple, and Tiffany Ivanovsky of MyLitter (so called because the lady has seven kids). They all presented at Savings.com's Save Up conference in Chicago, and they shared their top tips for saving the most money possible on Black Friday. Here's a sampling:

From Mir of Wantnot.net: Prepare for online Black Friday and Cyber Monday shopping at least a day ahead of time (as in, now)

Try filling your shopping cart in advance. Some retailers will save it, some won't. If you're not sure if it will save, jot down the item numbers so you can quickly throw them into your cart on the big day.
Layer on the discounts. Black Friday sales may look good, but you can probably do even better by combining that sale with a coupon code, or shopping through a rebate portal like Ebates. (Carrie here: If you have a Groupon or other daily deal certificate, try using that on a Black Friday sale.)
Assemble your coupon codes in advance. (Carrie here: You can find them at RetailMeNot, Ebates or just by Googling the store name and "coupon code.")
Follow your retailers on Twitter and Facebook. They might announce limited-time deals or release coupon codes.

For more tips from Mir, see my Black Friday planning post on my blog, Frugalista.

From The Thrifty Couple: Take advantage of the deals without blowing your budget

If you're married, work together to set up a specific per-person budget and gift list. For example, the Michaels budget $50 for each immediate family member and $15 for extended family.
As you shop, update the list so you know when you've spent your allocated funds.
Also note on your list where you hid each gift.

For more tips from Cassie and Alex, see my Black Friday budgeting post on Frugalista.

From Tiffany of MyLitter: Tips for buying for a large family

No matter how many children you have, leave them at home on Black Friday.
Don't feel like you have to budget exactly the same amount for each child. "There's no reason that my 4-month-old child is really going to get anything at Christmas. She's going to get the token wrapped present from Santa at Christmas so the other kids don't get suspicious."
If you see a good toy on sale, buy it. Chances are, one of the kids will be ready for it by the holidays.
Look for large toys sets, like the huge Lego bucket with lots of pieces, or multipacks that can be divided and wrapped individually.

This article is from Carrie Kirby of Wise Bread, an award-winning personal finance and credit card comparison website. Read more great articles from Wise Bread:

On Cyber Monday, Don't Miss a Single Coupon Code

Carrie Kirby — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 02:29:01 +0000

I hate losing my momentum when shopping online. Too many times, I take the time to research and locate the exact item I want, only to be sidetracked when getting my credit card or some other annoying step along the way.

One of those annoying sidetrackers is the search for coupon codes. Thanks to Jessica Okon's post, I knew RetailMeNot.com was a good place to search for them. But I still hated having to remember to visit the site before completing a transaction. And I hated forgetting to search for a coupon even more.

Now I don't have to remember. I downloaded Retailmenot's Firefox add-on, and now it whenever I'm visiting a site with an available coupon, it tells me. For instance, I just visited OneStepAhead.com, and a little gray bar appeared a the top of the screen telling me that 43 coupons are listed for the site, the top one being a 15 percent off deal that expires Friday.

If you don't have Firefox, you can still get in on some gadget action from RetailMeNot. They have a "bookmarklet" that is supposed to do something similar to the Firefox gadget, but I couldn't get it to work with Explorer. They also have gadgets for Google and Mac desktops.

And as an added benefit, if you're looking for frugal ways to help those less fortunate, for every gadget installed, RetailMeNot is donating a goat, calf, piglet, chicken or donkey through Oxfam Unwrapped.