The Power of Online Coupons

Article explains how online coupons work and where to find them.
Gosh I love a good deal! You can really get some great deals online when you use coupons. For example, last year I bought a leather office chair at OfficeDepot.com for $49. The original price on this chair was over $100, but with an online coupon plus a sale that they were having I got a fantastic deal! The idea of coupons has always been a love/hate relationship for many consumers. You love them if you have them but you hate the effort it takes to use them. In the past, to use coupons you needed to find them in newspapers, magazines, etc., clip them out, and sort them so they could easily be found. This often took up more time than it was worth. But now that we live in a digital world, using coupons is as simple as typing in a code while checking out of your favorite online retailer. This code is known as a ‘coupon code' or ‘promotional code' and many of the most popular online retailers have them available to the public. These retailers include practically every store you might see walking through a major mall and some that are only familiar to avid online shoppers.

What Exactly is an Online Coupon Code? A ‘coupon code' is offered by retailers to encourage spending and customer loyalty. The coupon might read like this ‘Free shipping on your $25 order, enter coupon code ‘FREESHIP' at checkout', or ‘Save 10% off your $50 order, enter coupon code ‘10OFF' at checkout'. With the tough economy that we are experiencing and the increasing costs of shipping, online coupons can be a real life-saver to families, especially around holidays and birthdays!

Where Do I Get These Online Coupons? How do you find most things on the Internet? You search for them and coupons are no different! Let's say you are shopping at JCPenney.com and you find that perfect outfit that you can't live without! Perhaps you are thinking it is a little more than you wanted to spend. Wouldn't it be nice if you had a coupon for free shipping or $10 off your $75 order? This is what I call a ‘Coupon Moment'! Simply go to your favorite search engine (I prefer Google.com) and type in "JCPenney Coupons" and presto, you will immediately be bombarded by sites that collect and organize coupons for you! Some coupon sites are better than others as they are updated daily and rarely have out-dated coupons. I recommend bookmarking or adding your favorite coupon site to your browser ‘Favorites'.

I Have My Coupon Code, Now What? Once you have found your coupon, just enter the coupon code into the appropriate box during the checkout process on the retailer's website. Remember, the location where you enter your code varies by retailer. You will be prompted to enter your coupon code anywhere from the 'shopping cart' page to the 'billing' page. Look for a box saying coupon code, promotional code, promotional discount, discount code, or any variation of these terms and enter it in the corresponding box.

~More Important Coupon Tid-Bits~ 1. – IMPORTANT – ‘Make sure your discount/coupon is reflected in your order total before you confirm or finalize your order', otherwise you are up a creek without a paddle. In other words, the retailer will have no sympathy for you if you forget to enter the coupon code or fail to realize that the code you entered has already expired. There is nothing worse than paying full price when you don't have to. 2. - Worried about using your credit card online? Always look for a little locked padlock (often yellow) at the bottom of your browser window. Secondly, always verify that the url (web address) at checkout changes from http:// to https://. These two security checks verify the site has gone through the appropriate measures to ensure their site is SSL Secured and is safe to enter your credit card information. 3. - Always print out your receipt for your records just in case any problems arise with your order.

Follow the advice I have given you in this article, and I ensure you your wallet will grow! Once you start using online coupons, you will never go back to paying full price!

© 2003, Kyle James

About the Author

Kyle is the owner of Rather-Be-Shopping.com. Visit his Coupon Web Site, http://www.rather-be-shopping.com or contact him via e-mail, ratherbeshopping@sbcglobal.net

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