You may not have the privilege of haggling over product prices when shopping online, but you can still get massive price cuts.
A basic understanding of how e-commerce sites operate will give you significant leverage in getting the best deals.
Here are the most effective strategies.
In a bid to get more app downloads, some ecommerce sites offer big discounts, and coupons to buyers using their mobile apps.
Therefore, before making that buying decision, compare the prices on mobile and desktop.
In some instances, you may have to sign in to the mobile app to access the promotions. Take note that some promotions work through referrals. You may have to recommend the ecommerce site to some of your friends to unlock the available offers.
In other instances, the offers may be tied to a specific purchase amount.
Newsletters from ecommerce sites aren’t particularly interesting. They are typically just filled with the same content found on their website. However, you’re sure to stumble on great deals once in a while.
Some online sellers offer discounts restricted to their email newsletter subscribers.
In fact, some of the deals on offer target email subscribers within particular locations. Therefore, check with your friends from different places to see what offers they are getting.
Don’t just bookmark the ecommerce site, but also open it daily and even check it at different times of the day to grab any time-specific deals.
Customers often grab super deals incredibly fast. So, you must be on your toes.
That’s especially useful if you have a specific product in mind. If you plan on buying it soon, regularly check on it to see if the seller will offer any discounts.
Also, take note of the seasons in which sellers offer massive clearance sales.
Some sellers have special offers for customers on their birthdays. If you’ve signed up to the site, watch out for any rewards you may get on your birthday.
You may also like:
In fact, some products and services aren’t available in certain regions. You often find this restriction with such services as movie streaming.
A VPN helps you access those restricted services.
Online sellers often track your online activity, which they use in determining the discounts to give you.
They can even track your activity when you’re not on their ecommerce site. That’s possible through partnerships with online advertisers like Google and Facebook. It's the reason you find advertisements for products you recently looked at when scrolling through Facebook.
To avoid that, you can use your browser in incognito mode, which prevents tracking of your online activity.
You can then compare the prices you find through incognito mode and the normal browser window.
In some instances, using the incognito mode might not be effective enough to avoid tracking of your online activity. You might have to clear your cookies and browsing history.
You can clear cookies on the specific seller’s site only, but the seller might still track your activity through advertising partners. Hence, it’s more effective to clear your entire browsing history and all cookies.
A better alternative is setting a specific browser apart which you use for shopping only. This way, the rest of your online activity stays on a different browser.
You can also use a search engine like DuckDuckGo, to avoid tracking of your online activity. Complement that with a browser like Brave, which also safeguards you from online tracking.
In case you have an extra computer, restrict its use, so none of your online activity is recorded on it. Hence, you can compare the prices you see on that computer with what you find in your day-to-day computer.
A similar effect may be achieved by installing a second operating system on one computer.
Many ecommerce sites have a social media presence which they use to engage audiences, for customer support, and promotions.
Always follow your favorite online sellers on social media. You never know when you’ll get an excellent deal for a product you want to buy. You can get such promotions in the form of contests, discounts, and rewards.
Comparison sites make your search for deals incredibly simple.
Instead of spending hours tracking multiple sites for deals, constantly looking for the best offer, tracking promotions, using VPNs, clearing cookies, and everything else you can think of, you can simply check a comparison site.
The comparison site does all the leg-work for you.
A process that could take countless hours of online research is easily completed within a few clicks. This way, you can make multiple purchases within a short time, which might have taken more time than you have to do the groundwork on your own.
E-commerce sites usually have chat tabs which you can use to inquire about anything on the site. They may even have an option to place your order on the phone (usually using the mobile app) by speaking directly to a sales representative. Take advantage of these options to ask about any discounts or promotions that you may not know.
The sales representative can give you a coupon that’s currently running, or inform you about any other offer that will reduce your shopping costs.
It can even be a simple thing like getting free shipping, which is sure to benefit you if you’re making a small purchase.
Even if all those strategies don’t get you the price cut you want, you still have some wiggle room when making your purchase.
If you’re not worried about the product you’re buying going out of stock, you can leave it in the shopping cart. Let it stay there for a day or two, and the automated system of the ecommerce site will detect it as an abandoned shopping cart.
Such automated systems are usually designed to present various incentives to shoppers to make them complete their orders. You can get a coupon code or a massive discount.
If you still don’t get the price cut you want, you can reduce your expense by eliminating your shipping costs.
This typically works for online sellers located close to you or large sellers with multiple depots. Instead of having the products delivered to your doorstep, take the option of picking it up in-store.
Even after completing the purchase and getting your product, there might still be a chance of getting a price cut.
Here, you can get a refund from certain online sellers if the product has a price drop after you purchase it. The seller will refund you the difference. Email a screenshot of the product’s price drop and, hopefully, you’ll get your refund.
Unfortunately, you may not always get a price reduction with your first purchase. However, that first purchase can set you up for massive discounts in the future.
Instead of buying all your products at once when there are no discounts, you can set up a pattern of purchasing in smaller quantities for some time. This way, the seller will consider you a loyal customer, and you can benefit from loyalty points or other rewards awarded to repeat buyers.
However, if you're not planning on making regular purchases, you might be better off with a one-time bulk purchase. This way, you won’t have to pay repeated shipping charges for every purchase you make. Instead, you’ll pay one shipping charge for all your items.
Despite all those strategies to get the best prices on ecommerce sites, one of the biggest challenges you’ll face is your own impulses.
If you don’t have self-control, you’ll end up paying high prices for something which you could have bought at a much lower price.
One way you can overcome impulse buying is merely buying in advance. Don't wait until you urgently need something in order to buy it. You’ll have limited time to make an informed decision.
Instead, plan your purchase days, weeks, or months in advance. This will give you sufficient time to search for the best price and get the best deal.
On that note, you shouldn’t be too obsessed with specific brands. You can often get alternative brands offering the same quality at a lower price. Depending on the product and your personal preference, you can even get second-hand products of your desired brand.
With these strategies, you might end up with far bigger price cuts than you would haggling at a brick and mortar store. Try them out and see how enjoyable your online shopping experience will be.
A basic understanding of how e-commerce sites operate will give you significant leverage in getting the best deals.
Here are the most effective strategies.
1. Compare Mobile and Desktop
In a bid to get more app downloads, some ecommerce sites offer big discounts, and coupons to buyers using their mobile apps.
Therefore, before making that buying decision, compare the prices on mobile and desktop.
In some instances, you may have to sign in to the mobile app to access the promotions. Take note that some promotions work through referrals. You may have to recommend the ecommerce site to some of your friends to unlock the available offers.
In other instances, the offers may be tied to a specific purchase amount.
2. Subscribe to Newsletters
Newsletters from ecommerce sites aren’t particularly interesting. They are typically just filled with the same content found on their website. However, you’re sure to stumble on great deals once in a while.
Some online sellers offer discounts restricted to their email newsletter subscribers.
In fact, some of the deals on offer target email subscribers within particular locations. Therefore, check with your friends from different places to see what offers they are getting.
3. Check on the Site Regularly
Don’t just bookmark the ecommerce site, but also open it daily and even check it at different times of the day to grab any time-specific deals.
Customers often grab super deals incredibly fast. So, you must be on your toes.
That’s especially useful if you have a specific product in mind. If you plan on buying it soon, regularly check on it to see if the seller will offer any discounts.
Also, take note of the seasons in which sellers offer massive clearance sales.
Some sellers have special offers for customers on their birthdays. If you’ve signed up to the site, watch out for any rewards you may get on your birthday.
You may also like:
4. Use a VPN
Sellers can launch promotions targeting different locations. If you can’t access the promotion in your location, use a VPN that changes your virtual IP to the targeted area.In fact, some products and services aren’t available in certain regions. You often find this restriction with such services as movie streaming.
A VPN helps you access those restricted services.
5. Use Incognito Mode on Your Browser
Online sellers often track your online activity, which they use in determining the discounts to give you.
They can even track your activity when you’re not on their ecommerce site. That’s possible through partnerships with online advertisers like Google and Facebook. It's the reason you find advertisements for products you recently looked at when scrolling through Facebook.
To avoid that, you can use your browser in incognito mode, which prevents tracking of your online activity.
You can then compare the prices you find through incognito mode and the normal browser window.
6. Clear Cookies and Browsing History
In some instances, using the incognito mode might not be effective enough to avoid tracking of your online activity. You might have to clear your cookies and browsing history.
You can clear cookies on the specific seller’s site only, but the seller might still track your activity through advertising partners. Hence, it’s more effective to clear your entire browsing history and all cookies.
A better alternative is setting a specific browser apart which you use for shopping only. This way, the rest of your online activity stays on a different browser.
You can also use a search engine like DuckDuckGo, to avoid tracking of your online activity. Complement that with a browser like Brave, which also safeguards you from online tracking.
In case you have an extra computer, restrict its use, so none of your online activity is recorded on it. Hence, you can compare the prices you see on that computer with what you find in your day-to-day computer.
A similar effect may be achieved by installing a second operating system on one computer.
7. Use Social Media
Many ecommerce sites have a social media presence which they use to engage audiences, for customer support, and promotions.
Always follow your favorite online sellers on social media. You never know when you’ll get an excellent deal for a product you want to buy. You can get such promotions in the form of contests, discounts, and rewards.
8. Use Comparison Sites
Comparison sites make your search for deals incredibly simple.
Instead of spending hours tracking multiple sites for deals, constantly looking for the best offer, tracking promotions, using VPNs, clearing cookies, and everything else you can think of, you can simply check a comparison site.
The comparison site does all the leg-work for you.
A process that could take countless hours of online research is easily completed within a few clicks. This way, you can make multiple purchases within a short time, which might have taken more time than you have to do the groundwork on your own.
9. Ask
E-commerce sites usually have chat tabs which you can use to inquire about anything on the site. They may even have an option to place your order on the phone (usually using the mobile app) by speaking directly to a sales representative. Take advantage of these options to ask about any discounts or promotions that you may not know.
The sales representative can give you a coupon that’s currently running, or inform you about any other offer that will reduce your shopping costs.
It can even be a simple thing like getting free shipping, which is sure to benefit you if you’re making a small purchase.
10. Leave Your Products in the Shopping Cart
Even if all those strategies don’t get you the price cut you want, you still have some wiggle room when making your purchase.
If you’re not worried about the product you’re buying going out of stock, you can leave it in the shopping cart. Let it stay there for a day or two, and the automated system of the ecommerce site will detect it as an abandoned shopping cart.
Such automated systems are usually designed to present various incentives to shoppers to make them complete their orders. You can get a coupon code or a massive discount.
11. Buy Online and Pick Up in Store
If you still don’t get the price cut you want, you can reduce your expense by eliminating your shipping costs.
This typically works for online sellers located close to you or large sellers with multiple depots. Instead of having the products delivered to your doorstep, take the option of picking it up in-store.
12. Get a Refund
Even after completing the purchase and getting your product, there might still be a chance of getting a price cut.
Here, you can get a refund from certain online sellers if the product has a price drop after you purchase it. The seller will refund you the difference. Email a screenshot of the product’s price drop and, hopefully, you’ll get your refund.
13. Be a Loyal Customer
Unfortunately, you may not always get a price reduction with your first purchase. However, that first purchase can set you up for massive discounts in the future.
Instead of buying all your products at once when there are no discounts, you can set up a pattern of purchasing in smaller quantities for some time. This way, the seller will consider you a loyal customer, and you can benefit from loyalty points or other rewards awarded to repeat buyers.
However, if you're not planning on making regular purchases, you might be better off with a one-time bulk purchase. This way, you won’t have to pay repeated shipping charges for every purchase you make. Instead, you’ll pay one shipping charge for all your items.
14. Avoid Impulse Buying
Despite all those strategies to get the best prices on ecommerce sites, one of the biggest challenges you’ll face is your own impulses.
If you don’t have self-control, you’ll end up paying high prices for something which you could have bought at a much lower price.
One way you can overcome impulse buying is merely buying in advance. Don't wait until you urgently need something in order to buy it. You’ll have limited time to make an informed decision.
Instead, plan your purchase days, weeks, or months in advance. This will give you sufficient time to search for the best price and get the best deal.
On that note, you shouldn’t be too obsessed with specific brands. You can often get alternative brands offering the same quality at a lower price. Depending on the product and your personal preference, you can even get second-hand products of your desired brand.
Conclusion
With these strategies, you might end up with far bigger price cuts than you would haggling at a brick and mortar store. Try them out and see how enjoyable your online shopping experience will be.
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