Bargain Hunting Blog

Offline Sales Starting Early This Summer

I was out walking around this weekend getting roasted by the New York City heat. It’s a hot, humid, strangely aromatic heat that you need to be here to really hate. Anyway in between short thunderstorms I hopped in and out of a bunch of national retail stores. In doing so I was a shocked to see how many big sales were going on. You name it shoes, clothes, electronics, furniture, everything was on sale. It seemed like all the major retailers and even the small boutiques were having some sort of sale. I know, it's a week before the 4th of July, so that could explain some of it, but certainly all of it. So the good news is if you’ve got some disposable income (if you do I’m jealous), now seems like the right to get some shopping done. The bad news is that the economy is obviously slow and likely getting slower if stores are having huge sales, so early in the summer.

Rolling Luggage Cart and Desk

I don't travel much for business, but if I did this Rolling Luggage Cart And Desk is something I would want. It's another great and unique product from Hammacher Schlemmer, where everything you buy is guaranteed for life. This rolling luggage cart converts into a stable work platform, providing a sturdy convenient place to use your laptop while traveling. The desktop platform can hold up to 20 lbs., and can accommodate a 17" wide laptop. The carrying platform can fit a 36" business case and when fully compacted it will easily fit into an overhead compartment.

$99.95 BUY | Hammacher Schlemmer Deals at Bargain Bookmark

Six Flags Theme Park Discounts 2008

Recently I found that trying to find a last minute deal for admission to an amusement park is not easy. I needed three tickets to Six Flags Great Adventure and Wild Safari in New Jersey. I looked for Six Flags coupons online and found the following:

Coupon codes “COLDSTONE” and “PJKID” give the kid’s admission price to adults. This is a $10 savings of the original online adult ticket price of $39.99, meaning adults pay $29.99. Unfortunately I also needed tickets to Great Adventure’s Wild Safari park and these coupons only work for the amusement park. In fact the coupons don’t work at all you get on the other parks without the coupons. What this means is if you need admission to only the amusement park you’ll get the kids price. If you need tickets to more than one of the parks the coupons will not work, but you will get an automatic discount on the other park.

I also learned that if you order tickets to any Six Flags Park via the website adults get $10 off the $49.99 general admission price. Buy them before you go!

So after all this last minute research I managed to not save much. If I had planned ahead I could have taken advantage of a partnership that Six Flags has with Coke. You can get tickets by accumulating Coke Rewards Points. You get points by purchasing Coke products from Coke and its partners. So if you drink a lot of coke remember to create a Coke Rewards account and record your points.

New Sales Tax For New York Residents

Traditionally online shoppers have not had to pay sales tax if the online merchant they are buying from did not have a physical presence in their state. New York State has recently passed a law that attempts to change this for New York residents. The new law specifically targets online merchants that use New York based affiliates to help them sell products. Though these New York affiliates (deal sites, price comparison sites, etc.) are not owned or operated by the merchant, the new law treats them as if they were, thus forcing a sales tax assessment.

Dubbed "The Amazon Tax" this new law seeks to fill what some legislators have for years called a sales tax loophole. This so called loophole has allowed online merchants to avoid the complications of charging and paying state sales tax. Over the years this has benefited companies like Amazon.com, Overstock.com, and many more by providing incentive for customers to make online purchases instead of in store purchases. Plus online shoppers have saved a bundle by not paying state sales tax when buying from these merchants.

What does this new law mean for New York online shoppers? Well, New Yorkers will immediately start paying New York sales tax at online stores that have previously not charged them sales tax. For example, Amazon.com started charging sales tax to New York residents on June 1.

Don’t’ lose hope yet fellow New York shoppers, because this isn't over. Amazon has in the last few days called the law "unconstitutional" and is taking its case to the courts. Stay tuned!

Most Popular Discount Coupon Searches

To illustrate how popluar the use of online coupons is becoming, I performed a simple investigation to find the top 25 internet searches that contain the word “coupon”. The list is based on the estimated average number of searches through Google, Yahoo, and MSN on one day. Using a keyword tool I checked total searches using the word "coupon" on 5 consecutive days. The the top 25 results are a rough compilation of my findings during the 5 days. Though internet search infomation changes constantly, the coupon searches in the list below proved to be the most popular every day. This is just a very simple list of popular coupon searches, but it represents thousands of individual searches each day. What I think this all means is that there are a lot of consumers looking for and using online coupons. The fact that these coupons exist and are relatively easy to find is great news for all of us. Here’s a coupon search tip just add the word coupon to the end of whatever you’re looking for.

1. Las Vegas Coupons
2. Outback Steakhouse Coupons
3. Pizza Coupons
4. Subway Sandwich Coupons
5. Grocery Coupons
6. Dog Food Coupons
7. JCPenney Coupons
8. Babies r us Coupons
9. Discount Hotel Coupons
10. Printable Coupons
11. Papa Johns Coupons
12. Coupon Organizer
13. Printable Grocery Coupons
14. Restaurant Coupons
15. Food Coupons
16. Wendy’s Coupons
17. Netflix Coupons
18. Pizza Hut Coupons
19. Cereal Coupons
20. Dell Coupons
21. Papa Johns Coupon Codes
22. Home Depot Coupons
23. Dominoes Pizza Coupons
24. Free Shipping Coupons
25. Car Rental Coupons

Earth Day - April 22

Earth Day is intended to be a celebration and appreciation day for the Earth’s Environment. John McConnell introduced the idea of a worldwide holiday called Earth Day at the Conference on Environment in 1969. As environmental awareness started to grow, In September 1969 Senator Gaylord Nelson at a conference in Seattle announced there would be a nationwide grassroots rally for the environment. This event was instrumental in helping push environmental issues into the national consciousness. The following year on April, 22 1970 the first Earth Day was held. The United States and many other countries continue to celebrate Earth Day on April 22nd each year.

It’s now more important than ever before to do your part to protect our environment. Doing this is becoming easier every day. Did you know that there are eco-friendly versions of household cleaning products (Gaim), or that companies like Dell will let you plant a tree for every computer you buy? The government is even getting into the act by offering tax deductions for hybrid vehicles, green home improvements, and energy saving appliances. There are more and more ways to start making a difference. If we all just do a little we can accomplish a lot.

More Earth Day & Environmental Information:
EarthDay Network | EarthDay.gov | Nature.org

American Express Does Have Privileges

American Express frequently provides exclusive bargains on products and services for their cardholders. I don't own an American Express card, but I can't count how many times I've been in the process of buying something and found an exclusive discount or special offer for American Express cardholders. Most recently I was renting a car and had I used an Amex card I would have received a greater discount. I have a friend that just purchased tickets for the upcoming George Michael concert. I love George Michael, so I'm not embarrassed by this! Anyway, she was allowed to purchase the tickets before they were available to the general public because she has an Amex card. See what I mean. Get the idea. Owning an American Express card does come with benefits. It must be said that Visa and Mastercard do have some similar benefits, but not nearly to the extent of Amex.

Bargain Hunters Checklist

Here are four simple things to remember that will help you always get a good bargain.

1. Know what you’re looking for:
Whether it’s a camera or bookshelf, learning to shop for only specific items decreases the chance that you’ll succumb to the dreaded impulse buy. An impulsive purchase almost always guarantees that you will overspend and not get the best price for something.

2. Check price comparison sites:
Price comparison websites like My Simon, and Biz Rate are great places to find which retailers are offering the best prices on electronics, DVDs, books, CDs, and other select merchandise.

3. Check discount and coupon sites:
These sites offer thousands of online deals and coupons at any given time. Pick three or four of these sites and check them for special offers or coupons before you buy. Who knows you might find a Kodak coupon that gives you 20% off plus free shipping on the digital camera you are looking for.

4. If you can be patient:
The best sales occur during certain times of year like before and after holidays and at the end of seasons. Remember retailers use holidays to give you more incentive to buy and they use end of season sales to make way for the new seasons products.

New Customers Wanted

Every retailer needs new customers to survive and grow. For this reason you can often find discounts that are available to new customers only. The most common example of this is the discount on cell phones you receive when you change cell phone providers. I just got a new Blackberry for $99 for switching to AT&T, had I purchased it new without switching to AT&T it would have cost over $300.

There are a couple of ways to find new customer offers. First you can try an online search for the specific type of new customer offer you're looking for. If that fails contact the retailer and ask if they have any special offers for new customers. If you end up contacting a retailer be persistent, because they really do want your business. Also I'll post any new customer only deals I come across on BargainBookmark.com. If anyone else reading this has any suggestions please feel free to post them in a comment.

TV's Big Secret: HBO's The Wire

HBO has had several series that have simply taken off and become pop culture sensations. Shows like The Sopranos and Sex and the City have become wildly popular and have received wide spread critical acclaim. I love both of these shows, especially The Sopranos, but HBO has had other shows that have been equally good in quality, but have not experienced the same level of success. Amazing shows like Rome and Deadwood have come and gone with relatively little fanfare. This brings me to the point of this post. One of HBO's very best TV shows is finishing up its final season as I write this. The Wire has received a lot of critical acclaim, but it has not really caught on with most HBO watchers and the general public. Perhaps the problem is the subject matter. Much of The Wire unfolds in the streets of inner city Baltimore. The show takes a hard and often uncomfortable look at the workings of a major US city. From the out of control drug trade and under performing schools to union unrest and political ineffectiveness and corruption, the realism and honesty with which each of these issues and more are dealt with is unprecedented. I won't say anymore about this awesome series, my hope is that anyone reading this will take the time to check it out. The fifth and final season is about halfway through as I write this and all of the seasons episodes are still available on HBO on demand. Previous seasons are on sale at the HBO Store.