How to Make the Most of Daily Deal Sites Online

Online deals have become so common that it seems a shame to pay full price for anything anymore! There is a method to getting the most out of these daily specials, however, so strategize before you buy. Take a look at these tips.
How they workDeal sites work on a bulk-purchase basis; the bulk is the number of customers who purchase the deal. If a sufficient number of site visitors make the buy, then all of those buyers — and all those who come after them for a certain period of time — are eligible for the discount, which is usually around 50%. Most sites require you to submit your e-mail and create an account before you can access deals and details.
Many of these sites, such as Groupon and LivingSocial, have daily deals that really do last for just a single day and are not available after that time. Others, like Scoutmob, will feature a daily deal on their homepage to request online. The request period is just a day, but the deal is available for several months, or as long as supplies last.
Some deal sites require printing out vouchers for use, while others, like Scoutmob, have apps that let you show the coupon on your phone when you go to redeem the deal.
Not all deal sites are active in every major U.S. city, but those that aren’t, like Scoutmob, are getting there fast. Remember that many national chains offer country-wide discounts. Groupon offers deals in Canada, while Half Off Depot serves North America, Australia and Europe, making them a great planning tool for discount travel.
The date’s the thingWhen you buy a deal, it will have an expiration date, so make sure you make note of it somewhere. (It can be easy to forget.) Once the expiration date is up, your deal is defunct, and that’s not much of a savings. Because of this, it makes the most sense to buy deals for products or services which you use regularly.
Buy what you’ll really useMany discounts on deal sites are for restaurants, spas or services in your area, such as tooth-whitening. There is nothing more satisfying than seeing your favorite restaurant pop up on a deal site, because you know the deal you purchase will be used immediately. Or maybe there’s a restaurant or event that you’ve wanted to attend but didn’t want to pay full price for — the second kind of windfall that deal sites do best. Now you’ll get to have that special meal or see a live play or sporting event for as much as half-off.
But every once in a while, a deal site can inspire the kind of sale-shopping we’ve all fallen prey to. When things seem too cheap to let go by, they can end up in our closet or our voucher queue, even though the appeal ends up being the low price, rather than how suitable the item is. If you would never consider paying full price for the deal of the day, chances are good you may not get around to using it before the expiration date. At best, you may end up paying half-price for something you could really have done without.
Show me the sitesThere are a lot of great deal sites out there. Here are some of the most popular:
Groupon
Scoutmob
Half Off Depot
DealSwarm
Eversave
LivingSocial
Heartsy
The Mini Social
Plum District
Mamapedia’s Sweet Deal
Savvy Source
No More Rack
Zulily
These are just a few of the available deal sites, so do some searching on your own, as well. Most cities have their own, so search for local deals.
It’s nice to live in the age of the online deal, when nearly anything you could want will show up at a discount, sooner or later. Be ready when it does. Sign up for your favorite deal sites and check for bargains daily — then you can get the ones you want before they’re gone!


source: http://www.movingtoday.com/how-to-make-the-most-of-daily-deal-sites-online/