About 72 percent of shoppers are going to be looking to take advantage of free shipping deals during the holiday season. To fully benefit from free shipping during the holidays, you have to make sure you are doing a few things so you don’t miss out on saving some money.
- If you have things shipped throughout the year (and not just around Christmas time), you may want to consider signing up for a free shipping service. There are two main online services that provide shipping services. Amazon Prime, which costs $99 for the year, and ShopRunner ($79 a year) both offer free unlimited two-day shipping. Amazon Prime covers free two-day shipping for Amazon products and it also includes some streaming capabilities (movies, music, TV shows). Prime also offers unlimited photo storage and access to free Kindle books. ShopRunner offers free shipping through different retailers such as PetSmart, Staples and Toys R Us. Each shipping service allows for a one-month free trial period, so if you want to try it out, you can without committing to a yearly fee.
- You can also save a decent amount if you ship to the store. Retailers such as Walmart, Kohl’s, Staples and REI offer this option. If you choose the store pickup option, you usually get a text or an email when your order is ready to be picked up. The best part about the store pickup is that you don’t have to pay for shipping, and most stores have pickup areas, so you don’t even have to wait in line.
- Take advantage of Free Shipping Day. This year’s annual free shipping day has already passed, but next year, you can take full advantage of the day. On that day, hundreds of retailers will be offering free shipping with no minimum order and guaranteed delivery by Christmas Eve on their websites. You can stayed updated on the offerings at freeshippingday.com.
- Always check for special deals. There are a few sites you can take advantage of like freeshipping.org that will give you shipping deals and, surprise, surprise, throughout the holiday season, there are tons of deals. Some retailers such as Best Buy and Target are offering free shipping with no minimum order. Other stores like Sears and Kmart, have lowered minimum order requirements for free shipping.
- You can always haggle with customer service as well. During the holiday season, they do not want to lose your business. Because of this, many places will give you free shipping (if they aren’t already) if you call into the customer service line and try and talk them into allowing the free shipping option for your specific order. During this phone call, you will probably want to threaten to bring your business elsewhere (it usually works).
Free shipping during the holiday season is definitely something you should take advantage of if you’re an online shopper. However, keep an eye out throughout the year for shipping deals. Christmastime is not the only time that retailers offer free shipping offers.
Amanda Blankenship is the Chief Editor for District Media. With a BA in journalism from Wingate University, she frequently writes for a handful of websites and loves to share her own personal finance story with others. When she isn’t typing away at her desk, she enjoys spending time with her daughter, son, husband, and dog. During her free time, you’re likely to find her with her nose in a book, hiking, or playing RPG video games.
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