Online shopping is more popular than ever. With the click of a button, you can buy all of your favorite things without ever leaving your seat. The best news is that by shopping online you can actually save money. Instead of throwing that grocery money out the window, you can stick it right back in your pocket. The following information is packed with the top ways to spend less grocery money by shopping online.
Avoid Pricing Traps
Merchants can often trap you in their dynamic pricing traps. Extremely high shipping prices may be added once everything is ordered and ready to purchase. If you’re not careful you could miss those costs completely! Although when purchasing food it may occasionally be a good idea to pay extra shipping to expedite the package’s arrival, you want to avoid any additional charges that were not expected when you originally clicked on the item.
There are other pricing traps to be aware of, especially when dealing with food quality. What you see in pictures online may not always be what you get – so be sure you are buying from a business or individual with a great reputation. Be sure the pictures of the products are accurate and are not simply placed at clever angles to keep you from seeing the less fresh side. A good retailer will have multiple, high quality pictures and a guarantee that what you will receive is fresh. Many will offer a money back guarantee if that is not the case, so take your time and look for those options to avoid pricing traps.
Use Coupon Codes Strategically
Coupon codes are a big win when you’re shopping online. You can often combine different promo codes and coupons to get a big discount. It’s important that you’re using the promo codes before the coupon codes. Use online coupons as a way to get small discounts here and there that add up to a big reward. The days of clipping coupons are gone. Now, you just visit sites like CouponCodes or RetailMeNot to get everyday discounts. If you love to shop for groceries on Amazon, it has an entire section dedicated to just grocery coupons. Do your research for coupons before clicking on anything to buy and remember that if you use coupons not listed on our site, it may result in cashback not being awarded.
Get Your Emails in Order
Don’t let your emails become a sea of mail. It’s cool to sign up for promotion lists, newsletters, and coupon sites, as long as you keep on top of them. Check your inbox on a regular basis so you don’t lose a great coupon in a disorganized mess. If you’re worried about too much spam, use Unroll.me. It keeps your email free of clutter and unsubscribes from random junk mail.
Leave Items In Your Cart
It’s always best to leave a merchant wanting more. Put things in your cart, but don’t buy them yet. This will also help keep you from making those impulse buys. Most retailers hate to see your cart sitting there with all of that great stuff in it, so they will often reach out with discounts to entice you to check out. One of the best ways to take advantage of this is to keep items on a wishlist in your online shopping cart. Many times retailers will alert you that the price has dropped or send you special discounts. If you don’t like the alerts in your email account, set up a separate account specifically for shopping. Depending on the site you are purchasing from, some discounts or cashback items won’t work if you have the item sitting in your cart for an extended period of time (you may have to start off with an empty cart after clicking the cashback link), so be aware of which site you are using before trying this technique.
Run Smart Comparison Checks
It’s tough to have a dozen browser windows open trying to compare all of the prices of your groceries around the internet. There are some sites that can help you run comparison checks by pulling the prices for the same product from many different merchants and organizing them in a chart for you. Some things don’t fit in this category, of course. If you need a product that is selling out fast or going out of season, you can’t wait all day for a comparison! Keep in mind cashback pages will often not work if you use extensions or plug-ins to make your purchase.
Name Your Own Price
We live in a world where you can name your own price in reasonable terms and you just might get that item. There are certain sites where you can search for many different products. You then make an offer on that product, which will then be sent to a network of retailers. If the retailer accepts your offer, you get the items at your named price. This doesn’t mean you’ll get all your groceries at extremely low cost, but it does mean you can get some great discounts. In most cases, naming your own price doesn’t stack with cashback.
Check Groupon
Many people simply forget about Groupon. It’s a place where there are a million different deals, and while you may often wonder if they’re worth it, Groupon is cool because you can often catch a really steep deal on something you love. They often have hard-to-find items for much less than the price offered in store.
Search “As Is”
An imperfect product means steep deals for you. Search for “As Is” on your favorite shopping sites such as Overstock.com. Some items are sold at a discount simply because they are off-season or were returned in perfect condition. The return reason will be listed, so you know you aren’t getting a bum product.
Use Discounted Gift Cards
Saving money is easy when you use discounted gift cards. Sites like Swagbucks, Raise or Slide (a newer site) are places you can buy extremely discounted gift cards, and these can be used on any promo code or sale. Not to mention, they make incredible holiday or birthday gifts!
Don’t Browse
It’s best if you stick to a list. If not, you’ll browse every page finding every little thing you just must have. You’ll see those related items popping up on your page, but you won’t be wandering down every aisle as if you were in the store. Search for the item on your list then put it in your cart. You may have a few impulse buys, but you probably won’t buy half of the store if you stick to your list.
Follow Your Favorite Merchants On Social Media
Social media is a marketing tool for all retailers. Many merchants will use social media to promote their new sales and products. It’s best to follow them on all forums so you get all the best discounts. The stores also give promo codes and even early access to sales for loyal customers. Some discounts won’t even show up on their website, but will be on their social media. Please note that if a coupon is not listed on our site for that merchant, they may decline your cashback.
Referral Program
Get paid to tell your friends and family your shopping secrets. It’s that easy. Many retailers offer a referral program when you send someone their way. It’s easy to save your referral credits then make a big purchase. This helps you stretch your budget by simply spreading the word. Sometimes you have to hunt to see which retailers offer this.
Shop In New Places
The most popular places aren’t always the first to offer a discount. During the first of the pandemic, people went crazy trying to find toilet paper. You can always check out drug stores to see if they’re running sales on essential items and even canned goods in case you are concerned about lockdowns in the future. Walgreens is a store that is always selling popular grocery items, but not many people know it. Big box stores are great for online shopping, but sometimes you can’t find the most popular items.
Reward Programs
Many retailers offer loyal customers Rewards Programs. Some have apps that offer you big discounts just for downloading their app and shopping. They also offer big points on store credit cards. You might even get cashback from earning rewards. The only drawback is that you have to remember to pay these cards off each month. Rewards Programs are a great way to get free shipping, deep discounts, and big perks. Sometimes it really pays off to be a loyal shopper.
Use Dollar Dig
Before you check out, make sure you visit DollarDig. It is considered by many to be the most reliable cashback rebate site on the internet. If you buy your groceries through this site, instead of another, you can actually be paid! DollarDig is paid to advertise other products, and they share some of that money with you when you purchase through them – it’s a very simple process! Be aware that you may not be eligible if you use other coupons before checking out.
Don’t Pay For Shipping
If you love a store, you’ll never have to pay for shipping again. This is because you’ll probably fill your cart with enough items to avoid shipping. Many stores offer a minimum purchase amount in order to get free shipping. Sometimes all you need to buy are a few items to get the perk. Other times, shipping is included. Stores like Children’s Place never ask for extra shipping. Amazon Prime includes shipping on most items. If you don’t want to buy a lot and you don’t want to pay for shipping, go for free in-store pick up at many locations. Many big stores like Target, Walmart, and Kohl’s have free pickup.
Saving money doesn’t have to be stressful. Sign up for your favorite stores’ loyalty rewards programs and shop at the right times to get the biggest discounts. You’ll have so much extra money in those pockets that you’ll be able to buy some of the most expensive things on your wishlist.
