Shopping over the Internet is an increasingly common practice in the lives of everyone, and has definitely changed the way consumers buy their goods. Worldwide, ecommerce has been growing rapidly year after year and, by the end of 2016, the industry expects to reach a global sales value of almost $2 trillion, according to eMarketer.
Regardless of this, when choosing to buy online, it is a good idea to think about the process and analyze where (and how) to save money. Discount coupons and price comparison sites are the main tools used by consumers when buying a product online - after all, saving is always good.
Look for sales
Whenever you enter a website to buy something, look for sales, discounts and other special prices. Sometimes, the product you are looking for is exactly the one that is currently on sale.
Compare prices
The ideal is to look for a given item on more than one site, because there may be a price difference between competitors. Price comparison sites are great for this, as they can compare several online stores at once and also highlight the best prices.
Install shopping browser plugins
There are some resources available that let you know what are the best deals are when you enter a specific site. Using a browser plugin or extension is a good idea, because it can notify you every time there are discounts on the site you are visiting.
Use discount coupons
Before finalizing any purchase, look for discount coupons, as they can help you save up to 70% without much effort.
Keep an eye on "lightning offers"
Many stores offer lightning deals, especially at times when fewer people connected. With this in mind, it is worth keeping an eye on the Internet on weekends, holidays, at dawn and so on (times where fewer people are online), in order to possibly grab a great deal.
Postage and shipping
As important as the price of the items you want to purchase is the amount charged on postage and shipping costs, especially on foreign websites. In this case, it is advisable to inquire look for any benefits – some stores can, depending on the value of the purchase, make the postage free. Also, most of them also offer cheaper prices for bulk orders, instead of buying products one by one.
However, this does not mean you should start shopping wildly. Check out if any of your friends of family wants to buy something from the same store, so that the order can be bigger and, with that, the shipping costs can be diminished and both of you can save money by splitting that sum.
Double check sizes and measurements
In the case of clothing and footwear, be sure to confirm in the size tables if you are making the right choice, especially if you are buying from a foreign store. With this, you can avoid (and save money) on returns, but also save yourself from disappointingly noticing that the new shoes or the new dress do not fit.