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Using discount and coupon Web sites
By Aviya
Kushner • Bankrate.com
Clipping coupons and snail-mailing smudged copies
of receipts to get a manufacturer rebate used to be the way to save
more on groceries, clothing and computers.
But what if you could chuck the scissors, lose the
crumpled receipts, avoid the one-day-sale lines at the department
store and erase the hassle required just to get your rebate check?
Some Web sites promise just that -- instant savings.
They'll deliver the coupons right to your in-box, scour the Web
for offers and deals that interest you and tell you about store
sales on products you want.
They'll even pour some rebate cash directly into your
checking account.
But be warned: some sites insist on personal information
in exchange for bargains, and the e-mail clutter -- and accompanying
snail-mail junk avalanche -- can be annoying. A few even ask for
your home phone number and your date of birth, which may be too
much to reveal in these days of identity theft.
Still, an extended test of Internet savings sites
like CoolSavings.com, FatWallet.com and CleverMoms.com turned up
plenty of working current links to shave 20 percent to 50 percent
off your purchase. (See chart.)
For bedding, software and clothing, the sites can
offer excellent deals. For groceries, it's a mixed bag. In any case,
it's definitely worth looking at these sites to see if they can
save you cash on items you plan to purchase. And if you want to
avoid extra e-mail, there's usually a way to just use the links
to deals and not subscribe to a newsletter.
Checking these sites regularly can also alert you
to sales at national retailers like Target and JCPenney so you can
click on one or two sites instead of spending hours with the Sunday
circulars.
Sometimes, sale information is even posted ahead of
the Sunday circulars, so you get a head start on your shopping planning.
Subscribing for free coupons
Well, do the bargain sites really offer bargains? The deals range
from the hassle-free to the downright painful.
Subscribing to CoolSavings.com's e-mail service for
a few weeks brought welcome coupons on Blue Bunny ice cream -- $1
off two boxes -- and 50 cents off Land O'Lakes butter and Scotch-Brite
sponges. Freebies included trial samples of Coppertone sunscreen
and an offer for a free coffeemaker with the purchase of two pounds
of coffee.
But CoolSavings.com also cluttered my inbox with offers
I definitely didn't want. Though I signed up for grocery coupons,
I kept getting mortgage refinancing information.
Returning to the CoolSavings.com Web site, I found
links to stores and products that were not included in my e-mail
newsletter. Sears offered $10 off any $35 clothing purchase, which
seemed like a generous discount. I also saw 55 cents off Post-It
sticky notes, and a coupon for Yoplait yogurt. Clearly, the best
deals go to those who check back with these sites -- often.
Some stuff IS cheaper
Some product categories are definitely cheaper online. If you're
buying books, office supplies, software or computers, an online
discount can easily save you between 5 percent and 15 percent of
your purchase price, and it's worth looking at the bargain sites
for those items. Usually, you type in some savings code right before
you pay for the item.
FatWallet.com, for example, advertises 15 percent
off software purchased through Dell Computer, and it will kick back
2.25 percent off Dell hardware.
Generally, you can avoid shipping costs on Amazon.com
and BarnesandNoble.com all the time with special coupons from most
of the sites listed on the chart. And if you're buying something
like a magazine subscription, online sites can offer eye-popping
savings -- 75 percent off was not uncommon.
Getting cash back
Coupons are only the beginning. FatWallet.com also lets you sign
up for "Cash Back." With cash back, you can save a percentage,
usually 2 percent to 8 percent of your purchase price, which you
get back 91 days after your purchase through PayPal, the Web payment
site. For example, 1-800-FLOWERS kicks back 6.6 percent, as does
Drugstore.com. FOSSIL online offers 8.8 percent on items such as
watches.
How does it work? Basically, it's a way to entice
you to buy more so the site can make more. FatWallet gets a commission
from its partner merchants, and it gives a slice of that commission
back to the consumer. For big-ticket items such as a laptop computer,
a seemingly small percentage can add up quickly. Even for a wristwatch,
8 percent off is welcome.
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