Rain showers early with scattered thunderstorms arriving overnight. Low 66F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%..
Rain showers early with scattered thunderstorms arriving overnight. Low 66F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%.
Updated: September 3, 2022 @ 4:15 pm
When you’re shopping online, do you take the time to look for a coupon code before checking out? I hope so because there are plenty of ways to save on your online purchases.
So, where should we look for coupon codes? Some online retailers will provide coupon codes in a banner at the top of the screen or on a homepage pop-up. Anytime I visit a site with the intention to shop, I’ll glance around the homepage and see if any coupon codes are offered there. This is one of the easiest and simplest ways to find a discount.
However, some retailers aren’t quite as forthcoming. Here are some tips for finding coupon codes when shopping online:
• Coupon near product: Several large online retailers offer checkbox-style coupons right near a product when a coupon is available. These are typically a percent-off or dollars-off offer specific to a single item that you might put in your shopping cart versus a general discount for the entire order.
• Sign up for e-newsletter: Many retailers will offer you a coupon code when you sign up for their electronic mailings. I also understand we all want to keep our email inboxes usable without receiving a lot of spam or junk emails. I recommend setting up a free email account to collect all of your coupon-related email. That way, you can receive coupons for the sites you enjoy shopping at without having every sale-related email taking up space amongst your personal email.
• Use a coupon aggregator: There are multiple websites that collect coupon codes from hundreds of online retailers and enter them into a searchable database. You can search these sites by entering the name of the website you’re shopping at and seeing what discounts are active.
Many of these coupon code sites are user-supported, which means people are sharing and updating any available coupon codes they might have found themselves online or via mailers or email. If a specific coupon code does not work, you can enter another from the list.
If you’re interested in trying a coupon aggregator website, check out retailmenot.com and couponcabin.com.
• Use a coupon finder plugin: There are also several web browser plugins that, once installed, automatically will look for coupon codes based on the website you happen to be visiting at the time. Note you are trading some of your personal information for the convenience of having the plugins continually look for deals for you — they will track the sites you visit and collect data on your web surfing habits. If you are comfortable with this, look into joinhoney.com or capitaloneshopping.com.
• Use a cash-back shopping site: Rakuten.com is a cash-back site that sends you a check for a percentage of your total purchase at one of their participating retailers. More than 3,500 online stores participate in Rakuten’s program. Create a free account, and when you’re ready to shop, log in and search for the retailer you’re interested in. When you click the link to that retailer’s website from within your Rakuten dashboard, your account will collect and keep track of your purchases. Rakuten also has a browser extension you can install that automatically will track and collect participating purchases’ totals while you shop online.
• Postcards, flyers, and mailers: The last way to find coupon codes is also the most traditional. Look at any print media you might receive from an online retailer and see if it has a coupon code printed on it. Multiple online retailers still send actual, physical mail pieces to your residence with discount codes and offers printed on them. I like to keep these in a folder so they’re easy to find if I’d like to make a purchase at one of the participating stores.
Jill Cataldo, a coupon workshop instructor, writer and mother of three, never passes up a good deal. Learn more about Super-Couponing at her website, jillcataldo.com. Email your own couponing victories and questions to jill@ctwfeatures.com.
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