Historically, finding the best holiday bargains meant sifting through the flyers in your local newspaper, then heading out early on Black Friday. And while Black Friday sales continue to draw large crowds to local stores, more and more bargain shoppers have turned to the Internet as their top source for holiday deals. Despite the slow economy, online holiday sales are expected to be strong this year as increasing numbers of holiday shoppers opt for the ease and power of online shopping.

If you want to be a truly savvy shopper this holiday season, you need to know how to find the best deals online. Here are some tips to help you get started:

Shop around

The Internet provides shoppers with unprecedented access to tens of thousands of stores – ranging from specialized niche stores to online behemoths like Amazon.com. If there’s a product that you can think of, chances are it’s available online. Even traditional brick and mortar giants like Target and Walmart offer more products through their website than they could at any one store. Not only is the selection of products far greater online than offline, but online shopping gives anyone the ability to compare products and prices from different stores instantly.

Use online coupons

Online coupons have exploded in popularity over the past few years and most major stores now offer them. The great news for bargain shoppers is that many stores offer their best online coupons during the holiday shopping season. For example, special Personal Creations coupons are available throughout November and December, allowing holiday shoppers to save big on personalized gifts for their family and friends.

Online coupons are typically redeemed by entering a coupon code on the online checkout form, or in some cases, simply clicking on a coupon link to automatically activate the coupon. A great place to find coupon codes for thousands of online stores is BeFrugal.com. BeFrugal.com updates its coupons hourly and features exclusive coupon codes not found anywhere else.

Take advantage of free shipping

One of the drawbacks of shopping online has been the need to pay for the product to be shipped. This is less of a concern today as more and more stores are offering free or heavily discounted shipping promotions, particularly during the holiday season. Not all stores offer free shipping in the same way so the key is to research your store and determine how to qualify your order for free shipping.

Some stores, like Zappos, offer free shipping and free return shipping on all orders. Others offer free shipping when spending over a certain amount – such as Amazon.com’s offer of free shipping on orders of $25 or more. Many stores will require you to use a coupon code in order to get free shipping. Other stores, such as Walmart, don’t offer free shipping directly to you but will ship your item(s) for free to their local store in your area.

Sign up for e-mail newsletters

Sign up for e-mail newsletters for all of the stores that you plan on shopping at during the holiday season. Newsletters will alert you to special sales, promotions and deals offered ahead of time, allowing you the chance to wait for the best deals before you make your purchases. As an added bonus, many stores will send you exclusive coupons just for signing up.

Find printable coupons and weekly flyers online

Even if you plan to do some or all of your holiday shopping at your local stores, you can still use the Internet to help you get the best deals by printing coupons and browsing weekly ad flyers for your local stores. There’s no need to rummage through the newspapers in search of these anymore. You can find both printable coupons and updated weekly ad flyers at BeFrugal.com.

Shop Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales

Most of the Black Friday deals offered at your local stores can be also found on the corresponding store’s websites. The advantages of buying online are you won’t have to fight through a mob of shoppers or worry about the store running out of inventory on the item(s) you want. Most online-only stores also offer their biggest holiday promotions on or around Black Friday.

Exclusive for online shoppers is Cyber Monday – the online-only “shopping holiday” on the Monday after Black Friday. Cyber Monday is the second biggest online shopping day of the year where many online stores also offer amazing deals and promotions.

Black Friday and Cyber Monday are especially good for finding deals on big-ticket electronics like TVs, computers, GPS, cell phones, etc. Bonus tip: There has been a trend in recent years for online stores to start their holiday promotions early so keep an eye out for good bargains.