Finding great holiday deals online
There's a whole online shopping world out there, so knowing how to find the sites with the best deals from local and online retailers is crucial -- and especially helpful during the holiday season. You can think of these sites as lookouts for the best prices on a range of products and services, but you'll need to keep an eye on the deals, since they tend to be first come, first served.
The most popular of these sites is RedFlagDeals, simply because of its sheer scope. You can search for items by category, or even look at suggestions based on who you're shopping for (him, her, mom, dad, kids), as well as pinpointing deals with free shipping. Laptops, video games and other tech items are constantly being posted on the site's main page, but the selection also includes apparel, food, travel and financial services, just to name a few.
SmartCanucks is a cool, slightly different type of site that focuses on sales, freebies and limited time offers from brick-and-mortar retailers. Even better, the site posts flyers from dozens of stores, so you can see what kind of deals might be available from specific ones.
There are some deals to be found on sites like Frugal Shopper and Canadian Shopping Deals, but their iffy site design means you have to be patient and dig a little deeper. Frugal Shopper's selection is quite extensive, so you'll likely find some goodies in there, while Canadian Shopping Deals also includes eBay listings on its main page.
You might also want to try DealCetera, even if only for its slick design and user-friendly navigation. Every day they post new sales and deals that retailers are offering, especially during the holiday shopping craze.
Wishabi adds an extra layer of shopping reconnaissance by including cross-border analysis, so you can see if making the drive to the U.S. might be worthwhile for particular items. Search capabilities are great on this site, and the level of detail is impressive too.
Of course, cell phones can be a great gift, but it's difficult and time-consuming to find the right device and the right plan. So it's a good things there's a site like Cellphones.ca to help. The site allows you to compare phones and plans from all carriers to see where you'll get the most bang for your buck.
