Google Now Offers Discounts on Purchases Made with Google Checkout

With the holiday shopping spree getting on its way, everyone even marginally involved in retail is going into overtime. This year more than ever, people are going online to avoid the crowds and long lines, but it doesn't always mean they'll have less of a hassle. Google is trying to make it worth their while, though, and also maybe getting them to use Google Checkout, the company's payment system which hasn't quite gotten as popular as Google would like. And what better way to convince them than through the ever-popular discounts.

“This holiday season, Google Checkout can help you save time and money. You can shop quickly and easily with one secure login for thousands of stores across the web. And through December 17, save with exclusive discounts of $5, $10 or $20 at hundreds of participating stores, including TigerDirect.com, BlueNile.com and Petco.com,” Anita Barci from the Google Checkout Team wrote.

The offer pretty much speaks for itself, Google has partnered with several online retailers to offer discounts on a bunch of products. The discounts aren't exactly massive, but they can be as much as 20 percent of the listed product price in some cases and they don't really require any effort from the customer, other than setting up a Checkout account if they don't have one.

Google isn't the only one offering discounted prices to its users, Bing's Cashback program having proven quite popular so far. The two programs aren't exactly the same thing as Microsoft offers those using its search engine to find and then purchase a product a way to get some money back, as much as 20 percent. Still, both are going for the same target, spending-conscious users looking for a bargain.

Google's program is already underway and will run for the best part of the month. “And for Cyber Monday, you can take advantage of special limited-time offers available at Toysrus.com, Babiesrus.com and Buy.com. Visit our new Checkout deals page for more details and to browse participating stores. Finally, if you're looking for gift ideas, check out the Product Search team's list of popular products. May your "shopping season" be easier than ever!,” Google added.