According to Jody Rohlena, senior editor at ShopSmart magazine, steep discounts abound on one of the most popular gifts -- flat screen televisions. "Bigger screens for smaller prices," said Rohlena. "It's a really great time to buy a TV."
"We have seen amazing deals online," said Rohlena. "One of the biggest shopping trends this season is free shipping. Everyone is offering it."
Rohlena said shoppers can check freeshippingday.com to see if their favorite store is one of over 1,000 retailers offering free shipping on December 17, just in time for Christmas Day.
Rohlena predicts e-books will be among the hottest gifts and best deals this year. One of her favorites is the Amazon Kindle, starting at $139.
Jennifer Black of research firm, Jennifer Black and Associates, says that apparel will have some of the best discounts.
The deals are not necessarily deep, but value driven," said Black. "And after such a long period of time without self-purchasing, the female shopper is out there buying for not just others, but herself as well."
The following is a list of the best shopping deals, for yourself or others, compiled from Jody Rohlena, Consumer Reports' ShopSmart December 2010 issue and Jennifer Black & Associates.
1. Music player: Apple iPod Touch $230-400
2. Point and shoot camera: Nikon Coolpix S8000 $250
3. Videocamera: Canon VIXIA HF M31 $725
4. Mini videocam: Kodak Play Sport ZX3 $135
5. LCD TVs: Toshiba 40XV648U 40 inch $700
6. Smart phones: HTV Aria (AT&T) $130
7. Smart phones: Samsung Vibrant (T-Mobile) $200
8. Blu-Ray player: Sony BDP-S470 $170
9. Desktop computer: HP Pavilion Elite HPE-240f $1,100
10. Laptop: Apple macbook pro 13-inch mc374ll/a $1,200
11. Netbook: Asus Eee PC 1015PEB-RD601 10 inch $350
12. Amazon Kindle $139 (wi-fi), amazon.com
13. Bath and Body Works: From Signature Care Collection, Buy 3 get 2 free, or Buy 2 get 1 free.
14. Zumiez: past season snowboards over 40 percent off at zumiez.com
15. Lululemon Relaxed fit pants $98 (one of Oprah's favorite things) oprah.com
16. Coach Occasion Sequin Wristlet $58, Coach.com
17. Set of handmade holiday cards $20, GoodPaper.com
18. Flip wallet $10, buyherbagnotherbody.com
Friday, December 10, 2010
Best Holiday Shopping Deals for 2010 courtesy of ABC
Saturday, December 1, 2007
The AdSense API on an e-commerce platform
A few months ago, I mentioned how e-commerce sites could use AdSense to increase their overall revenues without changing their current business models. Today Zlio.com has taken it to the next level by using the AdSense API to allow their users to implement this strategy.
The core service of Zlio is to allow internet users to create and run their own internet shops. After a quick registration process, users can pick from millions of products and earn commission on every item bought from their ZlioShops. Aside from choosing their products, future shopowners can select from a few different templates to give their shops the look and feel they want. Finally, these shopowners can add text to describe the products and highlight their favorites.
Today, as added functionality, Zlio users can also add Google ads to their shops. Very much like what we currently offer via Blogger, users can pick shop templates that already include AdSense ad units without ever having to dig into the HTML code of their shop. This new API will help bring AdSense to existing Zlio users, and also that current AdSense publishers will try Zlio as a way to increase their current AdSense revenue.
The screenshot above shows an example of a shop offering scuba diving items -- you might notice that two AdSense ad units and one link unit have been placed on the page. From a revenue perspective, 60% of all the revenue generated from AdSense will go to the shopowner.
If you wish to create your own shop and associate it with your current AdSense account, you can visit Zlio.com and follow these steps:
1. Select a general template for your shop.
2. Create your own shop by choosing among the available products.
3. Once you have selected products, go to My Zlio Shop > Revenue Model > AdSense for my shop.
4. If you aren't an AdSense publisher yet, you can apply for an account through Zlio. If you already have an AdSense account, enter your AdSense e-mail address and your current zip code.
5. Log into AdSense and grant access to Zlio to use your publisher ID by clicking on My Account > Account Access.
6. Go back to your ZlioShop, where you'll be able to view your products and relevant Google Ads.
Friday, November 23, 2007
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