NoBetterBlog.comNoBetterDeal.com takes a look at your wallet.

If you’re skeptical about buying secondary market goods, don’t be!  Many of our Nobetterdeal.com customers have saved hundreds, if not thousands of dollars by shopping with us instead of going out to a nearby retail store.  You can get the same high-quality items delivered right to your door without ever having to venture out to a store. 

Take Matt, for example, a new homeowner and loyal buyer of NoBetterDeal.com – his story says it all:

“Buying a house is tough!!  Looking at houses, finding the right one, making an offer, settling on an offer, closing… it’s one big headache!  I just bought my very first house a few months ago and I was glad to be done with the buying end of things, but now I am broke and have all the wonderful things that come with owning a new house:  cleaning, fixing, painting, and furnishing!!  Yikes!  Sounds like another headache, right?  Well luckily for me I furnished a lot of my house with items that I purchased at NoBetterDeal.com!  I was able to get the same things that I could get in the store, online instead and at a great, reduced price!  I saved a load of cash when I needed it the most!  I’ve included some photos of items that I have purchased at NoBetterDeal so you all can see the great stuff that I bought and I get to show off my new house at the same time!   Now if I can only find a NoBetterPainter website!!”

- Matt, the new homeowner

Matt was also kind enough to provide photos of some of the items that he purchased from Nobetterdeal (below).  After doing a little bit of homework and working with Matt, we compared the original retail prices of these items with the deals that Matt got from us.  We think that you will be pleasantly surprised to see how quickly his savings added up!

Microwave Cart - White Retail: $103.99 NOBETTERDEAL: $46.80

Bissell 20Q9 CleanView II Plus Bagless Vacuum Retail: $79.99 NOBETTERDEAL: $36.00

Hamilton Beach Toastation - Gray/Black Retail: $34.99 NOBETTERDEAL: $18.60

White Kitchen Island with Natural Top Retail: $95.99 NOBETTERDEAL: $42.00

Samsung 46" LN46B650 120Hz 1080p LCD HDTV Retail: $1,247.00 NOBETTERDEAL: $799.99

Abby Pub 5 piece Dining Set - Espresso Retail: $989.99 NOBETTERDEAL: $259.50

Hamilton Beach 6-qt. Programmable Slow Cooker Retail: $49.99 NOBETTERDEAL: $18.60

Buying good stuff cheap is really the focus of advice offered on this blog.  But here’s a little secret.  Some folks who buy on NoBetterDeal.com resell the goods on eBay for a profit.  (Don’t worry, it’s legal.)  

Take David. He lives in Detroit and has built a growing eBay business, with customers around the country, selling product he buys on NoBetterDeal.com and other sites.  “I’ve been at it for three or four years.  I buy consumer electronics almost exclusively – mainly digital video cameras, but other products, too.  It’s a nice secondary income.”

 This isn’t new.  People have been buying from liquidators and reselling on eBay for years, but only those who could afford to buy in bulk.  In this tough economy, however, we’re seeing more people experimenting with eBay as a way to earn a few bucks.  They’ll buy a few individual items from NoBetterDeal.com and try their hand at reselling.  So NoBetterDeal.com is not only a place to find bargains, it could help you launch your own business!  Who knew? 

Keep checking back for more updates and advice on the secondary market.  After all, I do know a little something about the subject.

-Professor Jim

Success in the secondary market – finding the best possible deals – takes hard work and lots of patience.  Here’s how to work the Web for maximum savings:

• Find sites you like and trust, and visit frequently – at least 2-3 times per week.  Here’s why.  Liquidators carry what becomes available through retailers.  One week, it might be large-screen TVs, the next week laptop computers, and a week later talking teddy bears.  If you’re shopping for a specific item (a boom box, a camera, an entertainment unit), you need to visit frequently and monitor the sites until such an item appears. 
• Do your research.  Check the flyers in your Sunday paper, and be aware of the retail price of the product you’re hoping to find.  That way, you’ll know instantly if a real bargain appears, or if a deal isn’t really a deal.
• Understand who pays for shipping.  Most secondary market sites require the buyers to pay shipping costs.  Make sure you add the shipping costs to determine a total price.  And when a site offers free shipping deals, jump on it!

In a recent post we told you that products sold in “as is” condition carry the biggest discounts, but they might be scratched, missing a part or even broken.  Here’s the “behind the scenes” story.  When it comes to retail store returns, retailers would go broke inspecting every single item to determine what, if anything, was wrong with it.  So, they get rid of it quickly through the secondary market.  Because the condition is unknown, it gets sold with an “as is” label, even though most times the product works just fine.  If you’re looking for a product that works and don’t demand new and factory-sealed, the best deals are on “As Is” or “Scratch and Dent” listings.  

Some web stores tell you what’s wrong with an “As Is” item and exactly what parts are missing.  If so, this indicates real people spent real time inspecting the product and expect to be paid real money for the effort.  This inspection process hikes the price slightly, but not much.   

Secondary market websites sell products under different category listings.  They indicate the condition of the product and, trust me, they’re important.  Don’t buy unless you know the condition.  Below are the most common. 

New.  Just what you’d find on the store shelf.  Highest priced stuff you’ll find in the secondary market.  Still the lowest price around.   

Open Box.  The box was opened and re-taped, but the stuff inside works.  Deeper discount than “new” items. 

Refurbished.  It had a problem, but was fixed, tested and is now good as new.  Discounts on refurb items will be similar to open box.  

As Is.  Retail store returns, most of which work just fine.  But they’re not tested, so no way to know for sure.  Could have a scratch or a missing component.  “As Is” products carry the biggest discounts – up to 70% off retail (not kidding!).  Some sites won’t offer refunds on “as is,” so do your research.  NoBetterDeal.com let’s you return items up to two weeks after purchase date. 

If you care less about looks and more about whether or not an item works, then “as is” is a good way to go.  But when appearance matters more (for example, if it’s a piece of furniture), think twice about “as is!”   

The moral here is that you don’t need to be afraid of shopping in the secondary market as long as you take the time to find out what the product conditions mean and what the return policies are.

Happy Bargain Shopping!