Thrifty Thinking: Shopping Tips

“I don’t believe in paying full retail,” says CouponCactus.com CEO Scott Fitterman. “We make it our mission to ensure no one else pays full retail either. Not only do we find the best money-saving offers for our members, we make sure they get the highest possible cash back rates to make already great deals even better.”

TheCouponCactus.com cash back service is uniquely proactive: CouponCactus.com shares a percentage of the commission the company earns on its sales, and if members don’t receive cash back in their account within seven days of a transaction, the CouponCactus.com team follows up to make sure members get the funds they’ve earned. The company issues checks to members who have accumulated $10 or more in cash back rewards each quarter.

Scott shared his top five shopping tips:

1. Maximize value with online coupons: Always search for a coupon code to save money on items you buy online during checkout. If the code you’re using doesn’t work for some reason, contact CouponCactus.com via live chat – we will research it and fix the issue or give you a different coupon code that works. When you use online coupons, make sure the coupon is applied before you check out.

2. Use a cash back site: Sites like CouponCactus.com earn commissions for sales originating from their sites, and they can share their commission with you in the form of cash back. It’s just like a cash back credit card. You can earn cash back from thousands of online merchants. If you’re not shopping through a cash back site, you’re throwing money away.

3. Exercise caution when combining coupons with cash back: You can use online coupons and combine the savings with cash back features for extra value, but exercise caution: Some coupon codes disqualify the order for cash back benefits, so read the cash back site’s coupon details or ask CouponCactus.com via live chat if you are unsure.

4. Get holiday shopping done at least seven days before Christmas: If you’re shopping for the holidays, remember that it takes time to ship your order and that this is the busiest time of the year. Online retailers start dialing back holiday promotions and coupon codes about a week before Christmas. The only things left after that are deals on overnight shipping. Complete your shopping early to take full advantage of online deals.

5. Shop online for a tax break and free shipping: The malls and retail stores are crazy this time of year. There is no point wasting gas and time and dealing with the aggravation you’ll find at the crowded brick and mortar stores at holiday time when you can order your gifts online, usually with no sales tax and no shipping costs, and have them delivered right to your door.