Cyber Monday is the serene twin brother of Black Friday. It affords the opportunity to find just as many discounts, if not more, from the comfort of your own home while avoiding the madness of the high-street.
The sales can be huge, and grow every year! Last year saw an average discount of 21% off TVs and tablets, but Cyber Monday isn’t only for technology. Whether you’re after clothing and jewellery, or seeking a new broadband deal, Cyber Monday sees reductions on all of this and more.
The internet being as vast as it is, the scale of Cyber Monday can sometimes be overwhelming. We’ve put together a list of tips to help you through it this year. Check them out below and prepare to make some serious savings!
Make a List
Do you know what you want to buy? You should do! With so many different offers at this time of the year it’s easy to get lost among them and forget what you actually set out for. After all, you’re only saving money if you would have bought the thing in the first place!
Whether you’re seeking Christmas presents, or after a treat for yourself, we recommend making a list of everything you want. Split it into things you need, and things you want. Keep an open mind and try to think of everything you’re looking for, whether it’s a games console or a broadband deal.
Do Your Research
So you’ve got your list, now you need to get familiar with everything on it. How many HDMI ports do you need for your TV? What network has the best phone signal in your area? What shoe size does your partner wear? Get specific, you don’t want to wind up spending hard earned cash on the wrong stuff!
Once you know exactly what you’re looking for, find out who sells it and bookmark those websites. Get an idea what the regular price was before Black Friday or Cyber Monday –– it’s not unheard of for retailers to mark up their products in the lead-up to this period, only to reduce them back to their original prices again. If you know your list, you’ll know which offers are worth your money.
This is the time to set a budget for yourself. How much everything would cost full price? What is an achievable target to aim for? How much can you afford to spend? Nobody wants to run out of money running up to Christmas.
Get Notified
Things move fast once Cyber Monday gets started. Don’t hear about the perfect deals after the stock has already sold out. We suggest following your favourite retailers on social media, and signing up to email newsletters if they have them (you can always unsubscribe later). This way you’ll be one of the first to know what deals they’re running, and you might even receive some discount codes as well! Consider the benefits of signing up for membership schemes; free delivery or store credit can be incredibly valuable at this time of the year.
Shipping and Returns
Don’t get caught out! If you’re buying gifts for Christmas, ensure the expected delivery date is well before then. Similarly, check the return policies: do you benefit from an extended Christmas return period, and who pays for postage on returns?
These are some of the only disadvantages of Cyber Monday, make sure you’re prepared for them.
Check Your Options
While shipping and returns is a potential downside, the ease of comparison easily makes up for it. Keep all of your bookmarks open in separate tabs and check each competitor when the deals start rolling in. You could even use a comparison site, such as Broadband Choice, to check all of the special deals on a single page.
Just be sure you don’t hesitate too much. Cyber Monday sees a lot of limited time offers, so don’t miss the deal-of-a-lifetime while you’re comparing twenty different websites. If you know your list well enough, you’ll recognise when an offer is too good to miss!
When you find those unmissable deals, add them straight to your basket and checkout! Thank us later when you’re adding up your savings.
Photo: Rawpixel
