Experts offer Cyber Monday shopping tips

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ByAmy Hollyfield KGO logo
Monday, December 1, 2014
Experts offer Cyber Monday shopping tips
Experts say you'll save the most money on buying items such as toys, apparel, electronics and beauty products on Cyber Monday.

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Online retailers are dangling the deals on Cyber Monday, but are shoppers biting?

At least five million fewer shoppers were in stores on Black Friday and Thanksgiving Day. Shopping was down 1.8 million people compared to last year.

Experts suggest shoppers may have gone online instead. They think Cyber Monday will be big, but it may not be as big as last year because one survey revealed fewer people plan to log on Monday. Online shopping might be more of a season now.

VIDEO: Bay Area holiday shopping guide

The first thing you need to know this Cyber Monday is it is no longer a one day event. Some retailers like Amazon are planning for several days of sales. The retailer has promised to add new deals as often as every 10 minutes for the entire week.

Walmart says it will offer 500 new deals online every day this week and is also hoping to help out those who work 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. jobs. The store has announced its first ever Cyber Monday evening edition, so watch for new deals to roll out on Monday night.

You don't have to look far for sales, but here are the items experts say you should focus on Cyber Monday.

"Lots of apparel providers and also consumer electronics and then health and beauty. Those are the three categories that I think will see the deepest discounts on Cyber Monday," RetailMeNot Senior Editor Trae Bodge said.

It's also a good day for toy shopping. Usually the advice is to wait until right before Christmas for the price slashing, but this year we may see some of the best prices on Cyber Monday. Toys "R" Us took $15 off the Princess and Me 18-inch dolls.

"One of the hottest toys is anything Frozen. This Elsa Snow Glow Doll for $28.88, this is the hottest toy of the year," an expert said.

Trampolines are on sale and shoes are marked down. It can all be overwhelming, so retail experts say take it slow.

"There is so much noise around Cyber Monday and of course we're sitting at home, but we have access to millions of websites. My advice would be find a couple of trusted resources and go from there," Bodge said.

Don't forget the coupon code because they are out there. You can do a Google search for the store you're shopping because it can save you even more money.

To check out out our Cyber Monday guide to map out your shopping quest, click here.