Shop smart online: The savvy shoppers guide​

Time, as they say, is money. And these days, when money is on everyone’s mind, not a lot of us have time to shop around.

And what happens if you do spend a lot of time looking for the right item at the right price only to realise it’s not available or the postage costs mean it’s not the most affordable option?

If you’re not all over the Shopbots, you’re missing a trick!

Comparison sites crawl the internet looking for whatever you ask them to. And they’ve very easy to use:

1. Search for a product
2. Use the filters to narrow your search
3. Select the item
4. Compare

All search a wide range of the best-known retailers. Google Shopping also searches eBay and deals sites such as Groupon. You can also sort results with or without postage, for example.

Our favourites are:

• Google Shopping
• Kelkoo
• PriceRunner
• Price Spy

Give them a try!

How to use price comparison sites

Ever had that sinking feeling when you buy something and the find out that it’s discounted somewhere else??

Again, finding the good deals all comes down to doing your homework. And again, the good old internet can do a lot of your homework for you!

Check out our top three daily deal and voucher finder websites…

• Voucher Codes offer codes that work and lots of big brand sale information!
• Latest Deals have deals, freebies, vouchers and competitions shared by real people.
• Money Saving Expert has all the deals on everything from food & drinks to days out.

Follow them on Twitter or Instagram to keep up to date.

It doesn’t always work but it’s definitely worth a try!

People abandoning their basket right at the point of purchase is a real issue for online shops. Some experts say that almost 70% of baskets online are abandoned before checkout! That’s a pretty high number and often because people are filling baskets on several sites to see what the total is. Clever people!

To get around the issue of abandoned baskets, lots of retailers use technology to entice you back. They’re alerted when you don’t complete a transaction and might send you an email to encourage you to come back and buy!

We’re not saying it happens every time. You might get a notification to say you left something behind… or you could hit the jackpot and be offered a discount or free postage.

In the case of larger items – like a sofa or a holiday - the savings can be significant.