Cyber Monday is here and there are some things you NEED TO KNOW!
A savvy online shopper can save a whole bundle by shopping on these dates from November 26 to December 29, but if you’re not prepared, you’ll find that all your hopes for great deals are replaced with the frustration of blocked orders, slow transactions, and sales that end before you can get your order in!
But if you are prepared, you can survive this chaotic shopping wilderness!
Let’s take a look at what you need to know!
- It’s never too early to begin preparations! As an international shopper, you have a number of hurdles to overcome – many of the best deals offered by stores during this season, even online deals, come with “no international shipping” as a catch. So if you don’t already have one, get an account with OPAS! You’ll get a US address in the sales tax-free state of Oregon to place your orders with!
- There are a lot of sellers that won’t ship to package forwarders! We call them Black List stores and we have a whole document listing them out, available for download. Check it out! Here at OPAS, we have methods to get around these blocks, including our Personal Shopper service!
Here’s our Block List document!
- International credit card fraud is one of the biggest threats for stores on Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Even those that accept international payment methods will be watching for transactions where the shipping and billing address don’t match, and this could lead to canceled orders. Get a US Unlocked card with an address that matches your OPAS address, and be sure it’s loaded up! US Unlocked needs time to process your application for a prepaid US card, so be sure to submit sooner rather than later!
The U.S. Unlocked
Here’s a link to US Unlocked that leads through the OPAS site. Use this link and you’ll get a discount on your US Unlocked sign-up fee!
- Prep your credit cards! If you’re planning on only using your own payment methods to make your purchases, make sure that you pay your balance beforehand. We find many of our customers use prepaid cards to shop. If you’re using a credit card with a limited line of credit (another shopping method we find customers use for security purposes), make sure there are no outstanding holds that could suddenly come due and disrupt your balance.
That’s all we have for today, so follow these helpful guidelines and email any questions to may have to us at service@opas.com.
Here are some tips on how you can best take advantage of our services:
Use your OPAS Deposit!
Are you planning on using OPAS as your personal shopper for Cyber Monday, be sure to fill up your OPAS Deposit beforehand! We’ll be able to draw directly from that to make purchases for you. Be sure to reference your OPAS account number in any payments you make! It’s better to pre-pay than to wait for us to send you a PayPal invoice because we can’t make Personal Shopper purchases until we receive your payment! Don’t let PayPal Delay cause you to miss a deal! Be sure to include the amounts required for any transaction fees, as well as our Personal Shopper service fees in your prepayment.
OPAS Personal Shopper
Use your OPAS Personal Shopper! Some of the biggest sellers (Wal-Mart, Target, Best Buy, etc.) are so strict with their Black List control that the only method to make purchases. The only option that you may have is to use OPAS Personal Shopper Service.
You’ll want to check our clock function on our website. Remember, our office hours are 9 AM-5:30 PM Pacific time. You’ll want to submit your request as soon as possible and make sure to use the OPAS Deposit feature to make sure OPAS will have the necessary funds to pay for your purchases!
Early Bird, Gets The Worm!
We can’t overstate the importance of acting early! You don’t want to be rushing to get approval for your OPAS account. If you just follow the steps we’ve outlined here, and email us at service@opas.com with any questions you may have, then not only can you survive, but you will be able to find great deals on Black Friday and Cyber Monday!
