Free shipping, discount coupon codes and Cyber Monday specials are among the many ways that consumers can save when shopping online for holiday gifts.

Such incentives are part of the evolving online shopping world, but Brentwood resident David Rajan starts out his online endeavor by making a list.

"I have a few things I do. First, I usually make a list of what type of things I'm looking for to buy for gifts and then I go online," he said.

Cyber Monday is when many online retailers go all out to provide incentives to entice buyers through Web sites such as www.cybermonday.com. The site provides a platform for hundreds of retailers to post holiday savings for Cyber Monday and throughout the holidays.

Rajan checks Web sites such as online giant amazon.com. and shopping.com., a comparison shopping site, to find what the price range is for a product.

"The second thing I look for is does it provide any free shipping," said Rajan, who also evaluates an online merchant to make sure delivery will be on time. Another aspect Rajan considers is whether the return policy picks up the mailing cost of sending back an unwanted item.

Successful online shopping does indeed require paying attention to many details. But doing so can result in big savings.

American consumers are expected to spend $44.7

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billion on holiday online shopping, an 8 percent increase from 2008, according to Forrester Research.

Nearly nine in 10 online retailers will have special promotions on Cyber Monday, said a National Retail Federation survey. The most popular promotions are expected to be specific deals (42.9 percent), one-day sales (32.9 percent) and free shipping on all purchases (15.7 percent), the survey said. Fifty percent of retailers surveyed said they will send out information about promotions to shoppers through a Cyber Monday e-mail.

On Dec. 17 hundreds of retailers will offer free shipping with delivery by Christmas Eve on the freeshippingday.com. Web site. A related Web site — freeshipping.org. — is a one-stop destination that helps consumers find retailers offering free shipping deals during the holidays.

Generally, a week before Christmas is the latest time for ordering online merchandise that will be delivered on time for the holidays.

If you find yourself about to buy something from an online merchant, there is a good chance you'll be asked to enter a coupon or other promotional code to provide additional savings.

Sites such as www.promotionalcodes.com., www.shopping-bargains.com and www.findsavings.com. provide consumers with coupon codes needed to obtain discounts, free shipping and other promotions offered by particular retailers.

"If you are shopping online and come to the check out page and you see a box that asks for a promotional code, a coupon code, a promotional discount code, all those different terms, a lot of people just wish they had one and they finish checking out without one," said Andrea Woroch, a spokeswoman for www.promotionalcodes.com.

"You can find a great value with coupons and discounts and even free shipping which in many cases depending on the purchase value is going to be a big savings," she said.

Some online merchants used to offer free shipping that actually had hidden costs but that happens less often nowadays, said Mike Allen, founder of www.shopping-bargains.com. Still, consumers should study the charges on their online order carefully before hitting the buy button, he said. For example, there could be a surcharge for heavy items such as furniture, even if there was an offer of free shipping.

"Be sure to verify the order," Allen said. "Your total costs should all be there."

Not sure about a retailer's reputation or how a product is liked or disliked among consumers? Comparison shopping sites such as www.pricegrabber.com. and www.bizrate.com. provide coupon discounts along with online ratings and evaluations for retailers and merchandise.

Social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook are now part of online retail world. Retailers such as Staples, OfficeMax, Old Navy and others are using them to let consumers know about upcoming promotions.

One out of five Bay Area residents expects to use social media in their holiday shopping plans to learn about deals, said a survey conducted by Deloitte Consulting LLC.

Consumers are also learning about free shipping and other promotions offered by retailers through a network of online friends that use social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook, said Steve Lemelin, an executive with the San Francisco office of Deloitte.

"Technology is playing a greater role in the holiday shopping experience," he said.

Technology is also playing a role way some people make a holiday gift lists for friends and family.

"They are creating a holiday list so that friends and family can purchase things they have actually (listed) on a Facebook page," said Lemelin.

Associated Press contributed to this report.


Online shopping tips
  • Get on retailers e-mail lists, as they often give the best deals to those on their lists. Consider using a "junk" e-mail address with a free e-mail service (such as Yahoo, Hotmail or Gmail), rather than your personal account when you are asked to give an e-mail address. Retailers often trade and sell their lists to each other and marketers, which could lead to more spam and junk mail.
  • Look into the return policy of any online site you buy from. If you can't find it online or you're unsure what the terms mean, use the company's toll-free number to call and ask.
  • Make sure any site you buy from has a fixed address and phone number. If you don't know the retailer, check them out with a local Attorney General's office and/the Better Business Bureau.
  • Make sure the checkout is secure. When it's time to enter your personal information, the browser URL should change to indicate it's secure, with an "s" in the Web address ("https" or "shttp").
  • Don't provide your bank account or Social Security numbers to any pop-up box that appears on your screen. Good banks and Web retailers won't ask for your information that way, and it could be a phishing or pharming scam.
  • If you think you've fallen for a scam - mistakenly given to a charity that's a fraud or submitted your financial information on a suspect Web site, visit www.fraud.org to file a complaint and get advice about what to do next.
    Source: National Consumers League
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