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Free 'price protection'
Few things are more irritating to a shopper than paying good money for an item, then later seeing it advertised for less. It's particularly galling if the retailer from which you purchased the item is the one slashing the price.To assuage disgruntled shoppers, many retailers offer "price protection" policies that refund the difference between the new price and the one you paid. But it's up to you to monitor prices and bring the lower one to their attention.
PriceProtectrmakes this process automatic -- and free. If you buy something at one of the 70 listed retailers and the price drops during that store's price-protection period (typically 30 days), you'll get an e-mail notifying you with instructions on how to claim a refund.
The retailers include biggies such as Amazon.com, Best Buy, Circuit City, Staples and Target. The sign-up is dead simple: You copy and paste the URL of the item you bought, then enter your e-mail address. That's it.
Hear from the shopper who's bought one
Amazon.com doesn't always have the best prices on everything, but the mega-retailer was among the first to encourage user reviews, and the sheer volume of opinions is reason enough to bookmark the site. (Nothing is considered too mundane to review; there are more than 200 user opinions of Pampers diapers, for heaven's sake.) Even when I'm ordering from another site, I'll nip over to Amazon to see the reviews of the product I'm buying.(Speaking of reviews, you also should consider bookmarking Epinions.com and BizRate for feedback on products, businesses and sites not covered by Amazon.)
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Another feature at Amazon I like: the redesigned bargain feature, now called "Today's Deals," at the top of the home page. Deals are featured for a few hours each, and you can get a good idea of a product's desirability by how quickly it's snapped up -- something that's tracked in a "percent claimed" graphic that includes a countdown of how much longer the sale will last. Some of the lesser deals fail to sell out, while the best ones disappear in minutes.
The smart shopper's taste tester
Most of the sites I've singled out are free, and some, such as FatWallet, even pay you to sign up. Consumer Reportsposts some free information and reviews, but the $26 annual subscription fee to access the whole site is well worth the cost.Simply put, you shouldn't make a major purchase, or many minor ones, without consulting Consumer Reports. The nonprofit organization subjects an array of products to rigorous testing and thorough, objective reviews, and its buying advice can help you make sense of your options. You'll come away with plenty of information to make sound choices.
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Successful complainingWhen things go wrong, here's how to get satisfaction without blowing your top.
Head-to-head price comparisons
As with bargain sites, there are many good contenders in the price-comparison space, including MSN Shopping, Google Product Search (I still miss the old name, Froogle), MySimon and Shopzilla. All can help you track down low prices on most of the things you want to buy.PriceGrabber.com stands out for its design and ease of navigation. Prices are easy to compare, as are the retailers' reputations. If there's too much negative feedback, or no feedback at all, you'll know to choose somewhere else to buy.
Check your balances before it's too late
If you haven't already, sign up for online access to your financial accounts and bookmark the Web sites for easy retrieval.Why? Because it's not savvy shopping to overdraw your checking account or pile up more credit card charges than you can pay off when the bill arrives. Bargain hunting won't do you much good if you face over-limit fees of $30 to $40 a pop or double-digit finance charges. Before you buy, make sure you can afford it.
Published Dec. 12, 2007
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