TOP 3 Reasons to Shop Online for Black Friday

Now that I live in the mountains of Asheville, North Carolina, I have to drive to the (very small with a limited selection) mall during the bitter cold winter months if I want to stock up on my fave designer clothes, replace my fancy dept store brand makeup and restock my favorite perfume...

If like me, you loathe cold winter temps and live in a somewhat small-ish town, but still need to shop, what do you do?

Shop Online, of course!

Here are my Top 3 Reasons to Shop Online for Black Friday:

1. You'll Avoid Long Lines: You can avoid wasting time driving in traffic, avoid exhaustion from waiting in long lines in stores, and *bonus* avoid getting into a fight with the little old lady who cut the line right in front of you just after she swiped in and stole your spot in the parking lot earlier.


2. You'll Save Money: on gas driving to and from, on money for the bus, train or subway. Save money on food and drinks, because all of that walking and driving (and fighting little old ladies) can get exhausting and you'll inevitably need to refuel.

But if I shop online... what about the shipping fees, you may ask? Many retailers offer free shipping with minimum purchases. I myself have a small $35 minimum purchase fee in my shop for my free shipping guarantee right now. But even without Free Shipping, try to look at a shipping fee like a small convenience fee. Shopping online and getting your packages delivered to your door is really a huge convenience!


3. Shop Online and Earn Money! When you shop at your favorite stores online (including Amazon, Ebay, Saks, Kate Spade, The GAP, and More) through Rakuten.com (formerly known as Ebates), you can literally earn money every time you shop! AND, Bonus! My affiliate link gets you an automatic $10 just for joining.
https://go.ebat.es/AZIZA118

So far I've earned $58+ as you can see in the top right corner of the screen and I JUST joined.

You can opt to receive the money earned via PayPal, or have it applied as an account balance at one of your favorite online retailers or opt to receive a physical check in the mail. Honestly, at first I was skeptical, but I've already received a check in the mail and thats all it took to make me a believer!

There are many many stores to shop through Rakuten. Some of my current favorites are Sephora, Amazon, and Ebay.

Happy Shopping!

xo
Aziza

5 Reasons to Shop Online Right Now for Black Friday 2014

Now that I live on the west coast and its practically 70 degrees all year long, I often lose track of the time of year and it doesn't really seem like the Holidays are around the corner. But, here they are yet again and Thanksgiving is (eeps) tomorrow!

If you are someone who likes to get ahead of the shopping curve and catch a good sale, but you don't want to participate in the Black Friday craziness, then, keep reading because here are my top 5 reasons to start shopping online RIGHT NOW instead of actually on Black Friday this year. 

1. Avoid Lines by shopping online. If you're anything like me, you abhor crowds and craziness and lines that are more than 2 people long. I have even left a store once or twice because the lines were just too long and not enough cashiers were staffed at the checkout counters for the holiday season to help me and the 10,000 other customers online.

2. $ave money beyond just $ale prices. Shopping trips can be costly beyond just the items you're paying for. There's money spent on lost time traveling, gas money to get there or other travel expenses, impromptu purchases on items besides the ones you were planning to buy and extra money spent on fast food and dining out while you're out and about shopping. Also, lately at the checkout counter I have noticed a HUGE increase in the amount of retailers asking me to "round up" my purchase to be donated to xyz charity that the store is affiliated with. All that sales pressure while I'm just trying to quickly pay for my item and leave just feels plain icky to me.

3. Sales are on NOW. In fact some retailers started their sales last week. Even though Cyber Monday is reserved for online sales, many online retailers and small business owners (like myself) have already started their online sales to give their customers plenty of time to avoid the Holiday rush! And if you have a popular size like I do (medium top and 8.5 in shoes) then that top you've been coveting may be sold out by Friday. So go ahead and shop and get that item... like, now!

4. Hundreds of categories all on one website. Literally hundreds of deals are already available on all sorts of different products from a variety of retailers on sites like amazon.com and ebay.com. One of my personal favorite deals is that Amazon Wine is featuring deep discounts starting at 60% off on over 100 unique wines.

5. Convenience. When I lived in NYC, I did not have a car and shopping beyond my neighborhood for large bulky items and figuring out how to get them home was always a challenge. Living in the city, trying to avoid crowds on the subways was hard work and it wasn't always easy to hale a cab from Manhattan to Brooklyn.  But even if you do have a car, you may have to worry about parking or other transportation issues. Shopping online means those same large items are delivered (hassle free) right to your door and if you need it within a day or two, you can always spend a little more for upgraded shipping. Its definitely worth the extra spent on upgraded shipping since you'll likely save time, and aggravation. 

So, get online and go shopping! :)

Thats it! I hope you enjoyed my personal top 5 reasons to shop online right now for Black Friday!
And I'm having an early online Black Friday/Cyber Monday sale as well. You can save 15% off everything in my shop from now until the end of Monday by entering code: THANKS at checkout.

Happy (Online) Shopping!

xx
Aziza