Give yourself a break, grab yourself a great luxury deal to do the things you won’t normally do. Make living in Auckland and traveling cheap!

Grab a great deal

Over the past two years, deal sites have been sprouting in New Zealand offering great savings on restaurants, acommodations, shopping, car servicing, fashion, hair styling, massages and so much more! If you are not already one of those people who waits for 12am to see new deals every day, then this might seem strange and dodgy because these sites are offering 40 to 90% savings. How could this be possible?

Well, the basic concept is “buying together, saving together”. Kicked off by Groupon (a deal site based in US and now worldwide), it cashes in on the concept that if we gather our collective power via social network then we can leverage this power to command deals/savings from the seller. Typically, there will be an amount (called tipping point: the point where a cause reaches the mass) that has to be bought before the deal is on.

This is so hugely popular that Google has offered Groupon a USD$6 billion buyout (which Groupon declined in favour of IPO).  As economics would predict, because this concept is so easy to copy, there are many other sites that used this concept and apply it to New Zealand. Some sites offer better deals than others. Since most deal providers try to achieve at least 40% off the products/services they are offering to customers and these providers takes a 20% to 30% cut (commission) off the price,  merchants/businesses rarely make much of out of it (unless of course their cost is like way low and makes you wonder why were you paying a 200% markup in the first place), but it is good advertising for most of them and especially good to build their brands to the mass.

(If you already know of these sites, why not read some of our tips on buying online here?)

Grabone

By far, one of the best deal sites in New Zealand. This is jointly owned by APN Media which also owns New Zealand Herald. Has other sub sites like GrabOne Tee (shirts from Mr Vintage), GrabOne Bottle (wine deals), and newly introduced GrabOne Escape (travel & accommodation deals).

TreatMe

A branch from TradeMe which came in not too long ago. Deal quality ranges.

Groupy

Owned by Yellow pages.

Spreets

A unique feature is that it offers second chance deal (meaning, giving you a second chance to buy expired deals).

1-dayout

A branch of 1-day, a popular one day 3 deals site. Check that out too.

DailyDo

Quality of deals can differ however, good to have a look once in a while.

Cudo

Quality of deals can differ. Popular with deals of getaway/accommodation.

Yazoom

When they have good deals, they are really good. Advertises on tv a lot if you do watch tv during late night.

Dealmate

Relatively new, not so popular but still worth a look.

Living Social

Very popular in the US but they are struggling to get a consistent amount of deals in New Zealand. The site here: LivingSocial

Groupon.co.nz

The source of inspiration for all these deal concepts based in US. Just started in New Zealand.

Grabaseat.co.nz

Air New Zealand deal sites to buy cheap airfares (usually domestic but sometimes international)

GrabANight.co.nz

By Millenium hotels featuring hotel deals from their branches.

SnatchADeal.co.nz

Deals on cosmetics, books and more.

BUYING STUFF DEAL SITES:

1-day.co.nz

Very very popular site for 3 deals every day. Love to grab some 60 AA batteries for $20 when they have it.

GameADay.co.nz

One game offering a day – PS3, PSP, Nintendo Wii, DS, Xbox

DealADay.co.nz

Part of Game-a-day and offers one item at a cheap price a day.

OneDollar.co.nz

Offer stuff for $1 and some others at a low price (typically less than $10). However, be careful before you buy of the shipping cost!

MightyApe.co.nz

Technically, MightyApe is an online book/cd/dvd/game store. However, everyday they offer discount on 3 items of theirs and typically they are pretty good.

Firstin.co.nz

Offers tech products at a cheap price including laptops, desktops, cameras, headphones (and spy pens several times – yes, SPY pens). Be careful that some of the computers and devices are manufacture recertified – that’s why they can be sold cheap. This will be noted under the description so you’ll be able to review it before buying. If you have some knowledge about computers and understand the fundamentals of the term “manufacture recertified”, this can be a great site to get deals on tech products.

OffTheBack.co.nz

Similar to 1-day deals, sells variety of things. Once had 4 Zumba dvd sets for $30, cadbury brunch bars.

3deals.co.nz

Featuring 3 deals like books, jackets, cosmetics and more

Trademe.co.nz

The sellers of TradeMe come together to offer 3 deals at a low price in the middle section of their home page. Usually deals aren’t very attractive but occassional one or two that are of interest.

If these sites are just too much for you to check in one day, try Deal Shrimp which display feeds from different deal sites in one place OR sign up for email notification on those deal sites / follow them on Twitter or Facebook.

SOME TIPS ON GETTING GREAT DEALS

  1. If you see a good deal. Be fast. Decide in the first 10 minutes whether it is worth it. Good deals never last, it sells out fast.
  2. Resist the temptation to click “buy now” before reading. Big discounts like 70% can fool you if you don’t know the current market price. The best way is to Google up similar products and also compare the real price that other deal sites have offer. If its more expensive than what other deal sites can do it for, probably it is worth a wait. Real price counts!
  3. Read the fineprints. Typically, there will be a valid date, a location specification, some form of terms and conditions. If unsure, ask using the discussion option.
  4. NEVER! let the site save your credit card details. Although those sites may suggest you to do so to make buying more convenient, most sites aren’t that “hacked proof” no matter how much they boast about the security. You can uncheck the option under your profile if you accidentally allowed it when you buy.
  5. Don’t fall for any new deal sites. Observe first their progress before jumping onboard.
  6. If you are planning on travelling somewhere (New Zealand or Australia), keep a lookout for restaurant, activities and accommodation deals at least 3 months before. If you can catch some of those good deals, you might be travelling in luxury and enjoying all the activities at the same price that you would otherwise pay for a stingy trip.
  7. Follow the businesses you like on Facebook or Twitter. They often do giveaways or special discounts that would be better than those deal sites.
  8. Finally, control your spending. Buying may get out of hand when huge discounts are thrown at you. Allocate the number of deals you would buy a month and stick to it.

 

 

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