These days, a lot of people are attracted to online shopping not just because of convenience but also because of the great deals they can get via coupon codes. It’s not uncommon for shops to give coupon codes that allow you to get discounts, buy one get one deal, and free shipping. The question here is how to find these coupon codes. Not all coupon codes that you find online will work. Most of the time, they’re actually either scams or outdated codes.
If you’re serious about always getting the best deals, then you must learn the art of finding coupon codes. In this guide, we’re going to teach you these 7 tricks on how to get coupon codes that work:
1. Search in the Right Place
The easiest way to find promo codes is to simply Google the name of your desired retailer and type in “coupon code” or “promo code”. This will give you a great set of results, but keep in mind that a vast majority of them simply won’t work. Like we said above, most codes you find online are either expired or fake.
So instead of turning to Google, you can work with websites that track promo codes for you and even verify the validity of codes you find. We suggest you try websites such as RetailMeNot and GoMontana. These cool websites are affiliated with a number of retailers in your area allowing you to validate your code and give you a few ones as well.
2. Don’t Buy Items from your Item Cart
Did you know that if you abandon items in your shopping cart, there is a big chance that you’ll get a coupon? You see, if you abandon items in your cart without processing them through the checkout, e-commerce sellers will often wonder why you didn’t proceed with your purchase. From there, the company will follow you and promote coupons on the items that were abandoned.
This is known as retargeting, a strategy that’s used to make the deal sweet enough to seal it. So if you’re not really in a hurry to buy the items that you placed in your shopping cart, let them go for a while. Most of the time, discounts will flow back to you.
3. Download Wikibuy or JoinHoney
“Wikibuy is a browser extension that allows you to try every promo code available in their arsenal and apply it to the best offers. It’s kind of like a robot that automates the discount hunting process for you so you don’t need to do it yourself. This is extremely useful if you’re the type of person who can’t stand hunting for discounts but love them anyway, “says R Das, co-founder of a shopping assistant website Hellodiya.
4. Stay Loyal to One (Or Few Retailers)
The thing about online shopping is that loyalty pays off. If a certain retailer notices that you’re always buying stuff from them, they’ll most likely give you a coupon that you can use on your next purchase. Some retailers even have loyalty programs wherein you can get even more discounts.
You can join these programs and get even more rewards for your constant purchases. But do remember that not all retailers offer these deals. You need to do research on which retailers usually offer great programs and discounts to customers.
5. Download Cashback Apps
Aside from browser extensions, there are also a number of cashback apps that can hunt for cashback deals for you. You can check out cashback apps such as Ibotta or Checkout 51 for a start. Of course, these aren’t the only ones on the internet. You can research more about these apps and download the ones that you like best.
6. Go Directly to the Source
Did you know that manufacturers also offer coupons occasionally? They usually offer some free stuff if you sign up for their newsletter. You will also get emails from them consistently promoting more deals that you can avail of.
7. Know Why a Code Won’t Work
Now, if all fails, you just need to understand why your code didn’t work for you. As we mentioned above, two main reasons are because the code is either fake or expired. Other reasons include non-fulfillment of terms and conditions or the code not being applicable to your desired purchase. In any case, do your homework before you apply your code.
Conclusion
There are so many ways you can take advantage of good deals for your online purchases. You just need to know how. These 7 tips will give you insights on how to hunt for these deals and use only the right ones.