The thrill of getting a good deal is exciting, especially when you’re holiday shopping. Amazon, in particular, has a way of making us feel like they’re giving us the deal of the century on just about everything from household staples to luxury gifts. With Black Friday coming up, it’s important to know what’s actually a great deal and what’s nothing more than smoke and mirrors. The most common tactic shoppers need to watch out for are artificial price inflation and fake discounts. What that means is Amazon will raise the price of a product in the weeks before a big sale like Black Friday or Prime Day, and then “discount” them to a lower price so it looks like a better deal than it really is. Artificial price inflation also creates a sense of unneeded urgency. For example, a 2-Quart Mini Air Fryer by Chefman is hyped as being 25% off its list price of $59.99. That’s about $15 off, meaning you would pay around $45 if you bought it today. However, the regular price is $46.56. A $1.50-off sale doesn’t have the same ring, does it? How can you tell if Amazon has done this with an item? The biggest red flag: If a deal looks too good to be true, it probably is. If the seller is boasting a 70% discount with an unimpressive price, they likely hiked the original price to trick you into believing you’re paying less. Price-comparison websites can help. One of the best price comparison websites is Visualping, which tracks prices by monitoring website changes. There’s also a web extension called Camelizer that will let you know if a deal you’re eyeing is real.
