Tech Talk Live Secrets of an Online Shopping Guru

Secrets of an Online Shopping Guru

Mike Oetting
Reference Librarian
Hinsdale Public Library

Some recent examples…

Example One: Presentation Remote
Street price $48
Price paid $20
Savings $28
Saved 58%

Example Two: Oxford Shoes
Street price $175
Price paid $53
Savings $122
Saved 70%

Example Three: Down Jacket
Street price $199
Price paid $53
Savings $146
Saved 73%

Why shop online?
You can save a lot of money
Incredible selection
It’s fun to score a great deal
You can usually avoid paying local sales tax at the time of purchase*
*Check with your tax preparer regarding Illinois Use Tax.

Finding the right item
General review sources
Consumer Reports (available in Reference Dept.)
ConsumerSearch.com

Finding the right item (continued)
Voice of the people
Amateur enthusiasts on discussion forums
Consumer ratings on sites like Amazon.com

Finding the best deal
Price Comparison Search Engines
General Merchandise (but especially electronics and computer gear)
Shopper.com
PriceScan.com
StreetPrices.com
PriceGrabber.com
Total price after shipping in descending order

Finding the best deal (continued)
Price Comparison Search Engines
Movies
DVDpricesearch.com
Clothing and Accessories
Like.com
TheFind.com

How do you know if an online vendor is reliable?
Sometimes it’s hard to tell. Your best bet is to use an online customer feedback service like ResellerRatings.com.

Use RetailMeNot.com to look for codes.
Enter this code on the site’s checkout page

Opportunistic Shopping
Sometimes the best deals present themselves when you’re not looking for anything in particular…

Discovering Deals
Deal Tracking SitesEditors for these sites scour the Internet looking for good deals. They are posted in a list, with the most recent deals on top.
TechBargains.com
BensBargains.net

Discovering Deals(continued)
Deal Discussion ForumsOn these discussion groups, users share deals with other members of the online community.
SlickDealsforum: forum.slickdeals.net
Fatwallet: fatwallet.com/forums/hot-deals

Regularly Scheduled SpecialsCheck periodically for these deals.
Woot.com: a new deal every day at midnight (mostly electronics and computer gear)
Friday sale at Amazon.com: big markdowns on items throughout the store—from clothing to sporting goods and small appliances
Deal-a-Day tracker: DealaDayTracker.com

Limited quantities
SteepAndCheap.com: outdoor clothing and gear on closeout from Backcountry.com

Deal Notification Service
DealNews.com: sign up for email notifications of deals on specific brands or categories

Buying Used Items
Why buy used?
Price: you can often save over 50% by buying gently used instead of new.
Quality: some used items are made better than their new counterparts.

Sources for Used Items
Online Communities: enthusiasts often sell perfectly good items to finance their acquisitions of the latest-and-greatest. There’s literally an online community for every interest, and many have online classifieds. For example:
TheSandTrap.com: golf
iLounge.com: iPods and accessories
StyleForum.net: men’s fashion and clothing
ThePursePage.com and forum.purseblog.com: buy, sell, or exchange handbags

Sources for Used Items(continued)
Online Classifieds and Private Sale Facilitators:
CraigsListChicago.org: (everything… including the kitchen sink)
GearTrade.com: outdoor gear and clothing
Half.com: books and music
Alibris.com: books (including rare items)
Audiogon.com: high-end audiovisual equipment

Sources for Used Items(continued)
As the largest Internet auction house—eBay.com has an absolutely incredible assortment of new and used items listed at any time. From clothing to cars to beef jerky and basketball goals. eBay has it all.

Ebay tips
Read the fine print for the seller’s payment, shipping and return policies.
Check seller’s feedback rating.
Ask seller questions if item description is too brief or overly broad. For example, what does “good condition” mean?
Never assume. Always ask.
Improve your chances of winning by using a proxy bidding service like AuctionSniper.com or BidNapper.com.

What about buying locally?
Sometimes it’s more convenient to buy from a local store. For example, bulky items might cost too much to ship. Use the Internet to do research before you buy something in person.
SalesCircular.com: categorized listing of local Sunday sale items at big box retailers.
Gasbuddy.com: find the lowest gas prices on gasoline as reported by your fellow consumers.

A Few Live Examples…

Tech Talk Live Secrets of an Online Shopping Guru

by Mike Oetting on Dec 04, 2009

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Tech Talk Live Secrets of an Online Shopping Guru — Presentation Transcript