“As a consumer that’s dealt with a lot of frustration myself, I felt like there needed to be something that gave consumers more power,” said Menke.
So far the site has helped 2,000 people in the Cincinnati area find their best cable and internet deal, negotiated 230 contracts, and saved consumers over $30,000, according to Menke.
The initial search at Billbusters.co is free. The company takes a percentage of any discounts they negotiate on your behalf.
“If we don’t save you money - it doesn’t cost you a thing,” said Menke.
Billbusters.co plans to grow into other nearby markets in the coming months and hopes to expand to find consumers deals on other services like mobile phone plans in the future.
If you try it - let me know what you think - rachel.murray@coxinc.com.
June: what to buy and wait to buy
Father’s Day is June 18 so when it comes to big deals and discounts this month- it’s mostly about dad.
“If my two adult children got together and bought me a nice pair of trousers and a shirt that match- that would be wonderful,” said Fred Bakaitis of West Carrollton.
His children will be in luck - men's clothing deals are big this month, according to FatWallet.com's online shopping expert Brent Shelton.
“Especially sportswear and sports apparel. We usually see some of the best prices outside of Black Friday on those types of things,” said Shelton.
Deep discounts can also be found on power tools and gardening supplies.
Shelton said shoppers should also keep an eye out for the big semi-annual sales and Victoria’s Secret, Lane Bryant, and Sax Fifth Avenue.
There are some items you should wait to buy.
Grills will go on sale at the end of summer, laptops deals will be much better during back-to-school sales, and don't buy a TV because discounts are scarce in June and prices are usually higher, according to DealNews.com.
Credit card breaches
It was another week of some high profile credit card breaches. Local Chipotle locations were breached in a malware attack. Check to see if you may have had your credit card information information compromised here.
Kmart also announced it has discovered a malware attack involving credit card numbers. More information on that here.
To protect yourself you should check your bank and credit card statements frequently for any unauthorized purchases and report them, and consider putting a fraud alert or freeze on your accounts at the three major credit unions, according to U.D. professor of information systems David Salisbury.
Rachel Murray is a WHIO-TV consumer reporter. You can watch her reports on News Center 7, follow her on Twitter @RMurrayWHIO, and like her fan page on Facebook.
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