Adrien: Online Shopping. It's How I Do.

I wrote this entry back in 2012 and thought it could use an update! Here you go:

Okay, so let's say you want to buy something online. You go to the website where you found The Thing, put it in your cart and paid for it and now you are waiting patiently for it to arrive.

Yay! You just did it wrong.

First of all, it makes me angry to pay for shipping. This is not rational but so many websites offer free shipping these days so it seems like throwing money away if I have to pay it. 

Some sites, like Zappos, will upgrade to free overnight shipping (sign up to be a VIP!) and Amazon is always tempting me with a free trial of Prime, which gets me free 2-day shipping. Yay free! You just saved yourself $8-$10 right there. I also look for sites that offer free returns (or allow in-store returns) because paying to return something is not a good feeling.

The next thing you should be doing is signing up with a shopping rebate site. If you aren't doing this, I will give you this look:

Because YOU SHOULD BE DOING THIS. They want to give you money! I use eBates (that's my referral link) but there are all kinds of rebate sites out there. The main trick is to remember to use them. 

Now, if you are patient you will wait for a promo code to be emailed to you or if it's not a retailer where you've shopped before, go find one. Actually, now you don't even have to do that!  There are extensions that will do it for you. I have eBates and Honey right on my toolbar and when I go to an online retailer there's a little popup that reminds me to redirect through eBates and also lists coupon codes. Honey has a list of codes and will automatically apply them all for you while you sit there and drool on your computer. (Sure, they're also sending all this info to Google Central to better dominate and assimilate you, but DISCOUNT. Eyes on the prize.)

If you're not into a plugin option, try RetailMeNot. Also, some retail sites will give you 10-20% off if you sign up for the newsletter. This is why I get so much junk email but I have a separate email account just for that purpose. I want that discount.

Finally, and I don't actually recommend this unless you are a very fiscally responsible person, a store credit card will also get you discounts and free shipping and whatnot. So, if you have a Banana Republic or Gap card you'll usually get free shipping and will also earn rewards, which can be stacked with promo codes. On my last Old Navy order I used a reward that brought my final price way down.

I am just going to stop right here for a second and tell you that I LIVE for stacking promo codes. It's the best. I get mad when retailers won't let me stack (AMAZON) because that is some bullshit. I also live for further discounts on sale merchandise which, if you read this blog, you probably already know. An extra 30% off sale stuff? I AM THERE. 

Okay! So, I am going to break this down. Say you want to buy a cute top, crossbody bag and cut-off shorts from Old Navy. I don't know about you, but I find it physically painful to pay full price for that stuff. But hey, Old Navy just emailed you a 40% off code! That helps. They also offer free shipping and returns, even better. And you have a $10 reward you haven't used. And hey, eBates is offering 2% back! That is a lot of discount, you guys. 

Now, this is math, and the space where math is stored in my head is actually full of Duran Duran lyrics, so bear with me here while I try to break this down:

Merchandise total: $65.88*
40% code: - $26.35
$10 reward: - $10.00
cash back: - $0.76
shipping: free

Final price (minus sales tax): $28.77! That's whole lot better, eh? Not mind-blowing but it breaks down to less than $10 per item. 

Now, what did I forget? And please, tell me about your best online shopping bargain!

*Old Navy prices are, uh, fluid at best, so my math is based on my order from last month. All of these items are probably $2.00 by now.