Heading out today for fight the chaos in the stores?

Not us. We’ll be spending more time as a family this year as the girls crowd around the laptop and check out Facebook for the best shopping deals of the weekend.

Confused about what Facebook has to do with Black Friday and the busiest shopping weekend of the year?

Just another innovative idea from the good folks at YTB who will be posting cyber specials all weekend long to help me, you, and anyone else who wants to avoid the crowded malls – saving both time and money this holiday weekend.

I gotta hand it to the YTB Home Office. They really know how to marry and capitalize on the latest and greatest market shifts.

Let’s face it – purchasing products over the internet is more the norm these days rather than the exception. Stores like Wal-Mart, Best Buy, Macy’s, Sears, The Home Depot, Bass Pro Shop, The Finish Line, Champs, Target, Boarders (all right – you get the idea here) wouldn’t create these sites if people weren’t actually spending money on-line right?

Because I do so much shopping on-line my inbox has been flooded with all kinds of cyber deals this week to get ready for Black Friday. Best Buy is sending me this – Boarders is sending me that – and the vast majority of the deals are internet only. Some may be as small as free shipping and others are an additional discount for shopping on-line with them. The point here is that each of these retail stores have a new medium to reach customers in order to increase profits at a time of year that could make or break their bottom line.

Somewhere in the neighborhood of 250 MILLION people also subscribe to Facebook to connect with friends, post pictures, post links to funny videos and find the best deals for this years Christmas list.

Haven’t seen that last bit yet about the Christmas list? You will if you know where to look.

Because shopYTB has the inside track from hundreds of stores this holiday season, they’ll be posting all their specials this weekend on their three top fan pages for you to simply browse, find a deal you like and then go out and snag. If a deal from one of these major retailers wasn’t good enough, you can access the store through the shopYTB portal (something you can sign up for and do for free right here) you’ll get additional savings in the form of cash back.

Don’t have a Facebook account? Not a problem – each of the following pages are public – meaning you don’t need a Facebook account to see the long list of deals that will be posted this weekend.

www.facebook.com/CoachTomer
www.facebook.com/JKimSorensen
www.facebook.com/YTBDealsandSteals

Simply hit up one of these pages during the weekend for a list of specials and stores that are offering up some great savings this weekend. You can forget the crowded malls, the traffic, and the chaos that Black Friday always brings this time of year.

Save more time with family.

Save money.

Save your sanity.

It’s just a better way to shop for Christmas this year.

Thanks YTB!

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Each year the family swaps holidays with each set of Grandparents. This year we’ll spend Thanksgiving with Ronda’s side of the family and Christmas with my side of the family. Next year we’ll switch holidays. It’s something we’ve always done, long before the kids ever came along and it works for both us, and our families.

With Thanksgiving comes the annual start of the Christmas shopping season and Black Friday. It’s a day I’ve tried to avoid like the plague. I hate crowded malls, the parking nightmare, and hoards of people. While the girls don’t seem to mind the experience, shopping at one set of Grandparents on Black Friday just to transfer it to another set of Grandparents for Christmas does raise the problem of attempting to smuggle it back home in the car so the kids don’t see what we’ve bought. Then there’s the added problem of transporting the presents to and from Grandmothers house for the Christmas holiday. (Can you imagine the shipping charges or airline baggage fees associated with all those presents under the tree?? Yikes!)

I’m happy to report that most of these problems have been resolved this year thanks to shopYTB.

I’ve always been a big fan of shopping online and have been doing it for years. This year, because of what YTB has created for both ourselves, family and friends, we can all eliminate the nightmare of shopping the traditional way this holiday season – along with the added bonus of getting cash back when it’s all said and done. So far, it’s looking as if the shopYTB concept is the start of a new tradition in our family during the holiday season.

What got the ball rolling was my wife and mother who have been planning just what presents to get for the kids this year for Christmas. Mom had found the perfect doll house for Brittany and wanted Ronda to see it. While the two discussed the item over the phone, Ronda went to the internet to look it up online.

Not only were we able to find the item online, but also found one of the better prices through WalMart.com.

As an added bonus for everyone involved – Ronda can access the WalMart.com web site through the shopYTB portal, purchase the doll house, and have this large item transferred (site to store) to the WalMart near my parents for my mother to pick up free of charge. It also keeps the item out of Brittany’s prying eyes and hands here at home and she has no idea it will be sitting under the tree this Christmas.

We’re also finding other items from stores that offer free shipping, which eliminates the need to even hit the crowded stores and malls this Christmas season. In addition, I’ve had the unpleasant experience of hitting several of the same stores because one store was completely out of stock. I’m seeing more and more products offered exclusively online that are not found in stores – expanding the offering with more products to choose from.

While I’m also aware of the extended hours each store operates during the Holiday Season, it still doesn’t beat the 24/7 hours available from the comfort of our own home. Just after the kids went to bed last night, we ordered new bathroom decor for the kids bathroom that they’ve picked out. (A new beach and surf theme, fresh off their cruise experience.)

This year, not only is shopping for Christmas going to be far less of a hassle, but it will be nice to actually receive a check with cash back for doing it this way come the beginning of the year. Each purchase saves money in an assortment of ways.

If you’re like me, it one heck of a deal – and avoids all the hassle of the Christmas shopping season.

Just one more reason and example that makes YTB a great value for me and my entire family!

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Shopping for that perfect holiday gift?

What do you get for the person who has EVERYTHING?

What about the person that’s SO hard to shop for?

Have I got a stocking stuffer for you!

It’s that time of year again. YTB’s second annual Carnival One Day Sale. Carnival Cruise Gift Certificates are available NOW from BandBVacations.com. Choose from 18 different Gift Certificate options available for online purchase through December 31, 2008. (Don’t think you could miss it…but it’s that LARGE ad with the Carnival Funnel wrapped in Christmas lights…)

If a gift certificate isn’t you type of thing, we also have over 100 Carnival Cruise Specials if you head to our Group Bookings page. I would suggest you look at this entire list of groups. (Although it may take some time with well over 500 groups at any one time.) This page is ALWAYS the first place I look for clients because it’s the one place I know that can’t be beat when it comes to price. And please don’t think you’ll be stuck playing Parcheesi all week if you book with any one particular group. You’re free to do what you want, when you want, and the group probably won’t even know you booked with their group. But you can take advantage of the special group pricing to save anywhere between $50 and $250 per person.

If you’re not sure about which cruise you’d like, that’s fine too, the Gift Certificates are a great save now, cruise later option. This way you can let someone decide on their own what cruise they might like, or even when they want to go over the next 18 months.

By the way…all of these Gift Certificates can be upgraded to ANY cruise of their choice. Simply pay the difference. I have a certificate valid for a 3-4 day for two, but want to take the entire family on a 5 day this spring. The Promotions Department at Carnival will be extremely accommodating for any upgrade and use what you have to fulfill you dream cruise.

If you’re just now thinking about a cruise for a stocking stuffer, you might not know where to begin, or what is offered in regards to ports, destinations, and the wide variety of selections available. To help out with that, review the following documents for options.

CCL DEPARTURE PORTS
CCL MORE FUN EVERYWHERE
CCL FUN SHIP FINDER
CCL 2009-10 CRUISE CATALOG

Of course, you could also join YTB tonight, December 4 from 5 -10:00 pm CST for a live webcast from YTB Headquarters in Wood River, Illinois. (Contact me and I’ll send you the link.) While you certainly don’t have to watch Coach, Kim, and Scott, and Carnival’s own Ann Sedgwick, but last years live webcast was a lot of fun. Last year’s event was loaded with all kinds of information on why a cruise is not only a great value, but has all kinds of activities and options to make your experience enjoyable.

Regardless if you want to watch or not, phones will be open till Midnight CST at the Home Office to take your reservations, with a special reservation number 800-400-9382. Of course, I’m available at 678-458-5812 at any time. (Even later in the month, or any time for that matter.)

Our goal is to be #1 with the #1. There’s a reason why Carnival is the Most Popular Cruise Line in the World. We’ve sailed with Carnival so much, they feel like home. We know the ships, we know the activities, we know the benefits.

Regardless if you’re a seasoned cruise veteran like us, or a first timer, a 100,000 ton cruise ship could be the most unique stocking stuffer your special someone has ever seen.

Bon Voyage!

PS - If you're involved with YTB, sign up for our FREE Newsletter. As a Website Owner or Website Seller, we'll keep you up to date with all the latest news, acquisitions, and developments with YTB.

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