The Holidays are here, and with them come quite a bit of work! Cleaning, Decorating, Baking Cookies, Packing, and of course all of that Holiday Shopping! With so much on our December “To Do” lists, many of us are already running out of time!
Not to worry, your Holiday shopping is about to get a whole lot easier! SubmitAndForget.com is a fantastic new online service that will do all of that rigorous research for you! All you need to do is take 3-5 minutes to provide some detail about what you are looking for. Then you can get on to the rest of your Holiday chores while the staff at SubmitAndForget.com searches for great products at low prices that suit your needs. Within 24 hours of submitting your request you’ll receive an email with at least 3 recommended products!
I was very intrigued by this innovative new shopping service so I thought I’d set up a little Q&A with the founder of SubmitAndForget.com to try to find out more!
Q: Hey Ian, even though I’ve known you for about a year now, I’m wondering if you can tell the DealTrunk readers a little bit about yourself.
A: I’m a self-employed entrepreneur luckily married to the most beautiful, supportive, loving woman I’ve ever met. My wife and I live in Austin with our three miniature dachshunds Maggie, Marcy, and Lucy. Marcy is my favorite but don’t tell her sisters.
Q: The new site looks great! Can you give us a little background on how you came up with the idea for this new service?
A: My wife and I moved into our first home a few months ago and I found myself buying stuff online constantly – to the point that my neighbor has started asking me what I got almost daily. I’ve always been the type of person to research online purchases very thoroughly, but with how much stuff I’ve been buying for our new home I found myself almost completely consumed researching products online. I was losing complete workdays on my business to research and I had one of those, “There has to be a better way!” infomercial moments.
After trying multiple software and tools for shopping online I came to the conclusion that, although some software helps with price shopping, there’s no substitute for the human brain when it comes to evaluating a one product vs. a competing product to determine which best solves the customer’s needs. I decided that my previously worthless and self-serving online shopping “super powers” could be used to help others find the best deals and free them up to enjoy time with friends and loved ones. That was about eight weeks ago, and now SubmitAndForget is in full swing and coming to life a bit more every day.
Q: What type of information do you need from your SubmitAndForget customers before you can start working for them? Would I need to do my own research first to find out exactly what TV brand and model I want to buy before I contacted you to find the best deal?
A: You actually don’t even need to give us remotely that much information. We just need to know what your budget is, what features you’re looking for, and a few other small details that take less than five minutes to provide. After you submit the shopping request, forget about it – we’ll take it from there.
Q: Without giving away all of your secrets, can you give us some hints as to how SubmitAndForget generates such detailed product research?
A: Pretty much the same way anyone else would, actually. We can just do it a little faster because we do it day in and day out (just like any other professional). We use some software to make price comparison quicker, but the time consuming part is identifying which products fulfill the customer’s requirements best. We do that the old-fashioned way, just like anyone else would. We hunt for reviews, watch videos, etc… and send those to you as part of your report so that you have everything at your fingertips that we used to make our recommendations.
Q: Sounds like a lot of work. How much is this going to cost me?
A: Nothing – our service is 100% free. The best way to illustrate how we’re paid is to think about a real estate agent. You tell them what you need, they identify and present some options, and they’re paid a small commission by the seller when you purchase. You don’t have to pay for anything because the retailer pays us for you as a way to say “thanks” for referring you to their site.
It’s important to note that we never let commission size influence our recommendations. Sure, we’d make more money recommending a $300 product than a $100 product that’s just as good, but that would completely compromise the mission I set out on when founding SubmitAndForget. We always recommend the best fit for our customers based on their needs. We just want you to have an awesome experience so you’ll come back and use our service again and again in the future.
Q: With so much knowledge on online purchases you must be an avid online shopper yourself? What are your favorite types of items to buy online and why?
A: Hmm… that’s a really tough question! I probably purchase technology more than anything. I’m a “gadget guy” and I love to hunt bargains. The robot vacuum we purchased when we moved into our new home is one of the best purchases I’ve made in a really long time. Gadgets typically make life easier or more enjoyable in some way, so I guess that’s why I’m a gadget guy!
Q: What is something you’ll be doing this Holiday season with all that time you’re going to save by shopping for gifts online?
A: If everything goes according to plan, helping other people shop for their friends and loved ones ☺ Hopefully I’ll also get more time with my family and our furry daughters (the dachshunds – just to be clear).
Q: Ok I’m going to ask this next question for purely selfish reasons. I have so much trouble buying gifts for my husband, Steve. When I shop online I have to worry about him answering the door when the item is delivered to the house! I’m a terrible liar so he usually knows I’m up to something. I just give in and tell him something for him is being delivered to the house and he isn’t allowed to look at the size/shape of the box or read any labels! I make him wait upstairs while I get the package and stash it in a secret hiding place until I get time to wrap it. Do you have any tricks when shopping online for gifts for your wife?
A: Unfortunately it sounds like you and I are on the EXACT same system:
“Don’t check the mail for the next week!”
“Shield your eyes!”
“Don’t go into my office!”
Of course we could pay for the retailer to wrap it and avoid all of this, but $3.99 just to have someone wrap something? Really?!
Q: This is a bit unrelated but since I’m a complete sweet tooth and baking cookies is one of my favorite things about the month of December, I have to ask… what’s your favorite type of Christmas cookie?
A: I don’t mean to toot my own horn, but the chocolate chip cookies I make are my favorite. Add a pack of instant pudding and quadruple the vanilla (Mexican vanilla, if possible) and any cookies are probably my favorite cookies!
Q: Is there anything else you’d like to tell us about SubmitAndForget before we get going?
A: There’s nothing like experiencing the service first-hand. Next time you find yourself researching an online purchase that costs more than $50, take a few minutes to submit a shopping request and let us do all of the work for you. You’ll be amazed at how thorough our reports are and how cool it is to get all of the best products and deals emailed to you without doing any of the work yourself!
Thanks Ian, it was great talking with you! Best of luck with your new online shopping service, SubmitAndForget.com!
So next time you start diving into internet product research, just stop, submit a shopping request at SubmitAndForget.com, and find something better to do with your time!