Websites hoisting weekly bargains are the newest e-trend. But don’t be fooled by their seemingly amazing deals, many of the bargains they are pedaling may not be all they are talked up to be. Do some research before you spend your money thinking you’re saving a bundle.
Often daily deal sites will advertise up to fifty percent off of normal prices, but they fail to take into account taxes an other unaccounted for costs. Be sure to check the deal for any restrictions on uses or unaccounted for costs and check the company it applies to see what their actual prices are. Once you’ve done the math ask yourself if it’s really a deal worth buying. The answer may of course still be yes, it’s just often the case that you’re receiving less of a discount than originally advertised.
You should also take into account how easy it will be to use. Often these sites advertise deals on exercise classes or spas, but they may have an expiration date and it may be near impossible for you to capitalize on them before they become worthless. Be sure to schedule your appointment as early as possible, you may even want to contact the company about wait times before purchasing the coupon. If you have trouble cashing in you may want to check the refund policy as difficulty scheduling may constitute a full refund.
Another thing to note is that many of these sites are on unclear legal terms. While it is illegal for gift-cards to expire it is unclear as to whether purchased discount coupons are allowed to expire. Because of this it is often difficult for customers to get their money’s worth. In addition to unclear legal circumstances many of these companies are also on unsteady financial footing. Many of these companies go under pretty quickly and it can be difficult to redeem purchased coupons if that happens. It’s up to the business whether they still honer the voucher or not.
Additionally many of the purchased coupons go unused. About forty percent of vouchers don’t get redeemed. You really need to ask yourself if you are going to use the coupon and if you intend to do so make a date to do it. Don’t just keep pushing it off as the coupon will eventually expire and you’ll have paid money for nothing.
More and more companies are avoiding these vouchers as they find that most of the customers they bring in through them aren’t nearly as courteous as their regular customers, are likely to disregard their rules and are not likely to return. This means there will be less deals to find and more restrictions.
You should also make sure that the deal is for something you would normally spend money on. Just because you’re getting something at a discount does not justify breaking your budget for an item you normally wouldn’t care about. Just because they may help you to save money does not mean you’re not still spending it.
This is not to say you should steer clear of all of them. Often people find good deals on things they purchase regularly, and they can be a great way to save money. Just work out the details before you click buy.
Robert Boroff is the Managing Director of Reaction Search International Marketing Recruiters Sales Management Headhunters a leading sales and marketing Executive Search Firm that assists both U.S. and International firms recruit all levels of sales and marketing experts Globally.
The Executive Search Consultants at Reaction Search International Executive Recruiters Sales successfully placing top performing candidates since 1995.
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