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How to find a really good deal on the Web When you’re looking for deals, there are the traditional locations — clearance racks at the mall and stores, holiday bargains or sometimes you’ll find something good on eBay. To do that, you’ll probably end up having to do a lot of digging, which is fine if you love the thrill of the sale chase. But if you’re looking to save both time and money, a few Internet sites can point you toward bargains. “I probably saved over $800 using a couple helpful websites last year. It was surprisingly fun,” Nancy Rabin, a bargain hunter from St. Joseph, says. Sites ranging from the all-encompassing Amazon to tech-driven online retailers like New Egg to high-end clothing savings sites like JackThreads often have big deals if you’re able to catch them. Rabin says she discovered several that keep her updated.
Slick Deals (Slickdeals.net) — When it comes to filtering out the deals from the regular-priced items, few compare to Slick Deals, a sales site comprised of user-submitted sales on the Internet. With a large user base who interact on the site’s forums, they submit deals from retailers and specialty sites and vote on the best ones. Those that get the most votes end up 10
February 2014
on the front page. “This was my introduction to the whole thing,” Rabin says. “I found a really good deal on bulk cereal and a TV stand and just couldn’t stop.” One of Rabin’s friends, Gillian Green, even got in on the savings. “Nancy couldn’t stop talking about it to the point where it was almost annoying,” she says, laughing. “But the deals were very good. I got as hooked as she did.” The site gives users the ability to set up deal alerts based on their interests. Users also can receive updates on Facebook and Twitter.
Fat Wallet (fatwallet.com) — Equipped with an expansive, dedicated fanbase of bargain hunters, Fat Wallet works in several ways. Much like Slick Deals, it has a forum of users constantly posting sales they found and helping others figure out if the deal they encountered is worth it. The site also allows offers a percentage off of items purchased through it, though sometimes it’s as negligible as 1 percent. “It’s pretty good. We’ve both found some pretty good stuff,” Rabin says. Dealnews (dealnews.com) — Sometimes deals only last a day or even a couple of hours.
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Dealnews tries to catch them all. Working like a news site, it updates often with daily deals and breaking sales that have the potential of expiring quick because of high demand. “It’s not as good as Slickdeals because I don’t think there’s as many users to interact with. But I like it and have found some good bargains,” Rabin says.
Tech Bargains (techbargains.com) — Though Rabin and Green say they’ve never used this site, it’s a good start to finding some great deals on tech-related items. With sales alerts for products ranging from laptops to blenders to computer games, it’s a solid resource for more geek-centric deals. No matter what the deal is, Rabin gives a warning that she had to heed after awhile — if you’re on the fence about something, only buy it if you truly consider it a bargain. “I have a talking cookie jar I bought for $10 because it was marked down from $30. The fact is, I didn’t need it and I wouldn’t have bought it for more than $10 in the first place, so I don’t think I really saved anything,” she says. “So I would (tell) people, watch what you buy. Don’t end up with a talking cookie jar.” — Andrew Gaug | Josephine magazine
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