If you’re anything like me, then you shied away from shopping on Black Friday. It’s not that the deals weren’t great – it’s that the masses of people were greater (and that’s just too much for me)! Perhaps that’s why I’m so excited that today is Cyber Monday, the biggest online shopping day of the year. In lieu of our usual More Monday feature, I want to offer up some tips for smart online shopping on this very special (and money-saving) day!

• Use an online aggregation site to view deals across a variety of different sites. Otherwise, all of the deals can become overwhelming, writes Erin Williams of the Washington Post. She recommends trying out sites like DealNews’ Cyber Monday page and CyberMonday.com, a subsidiary of Shop.org.
• Sign up for your favorite stores’ e-newsletters, says Real Simple. You’ll get advance notice about any special deals
• Download apps. From store apps to Cyber Monday apps, there’s pretty much an app for anything and everything you’ve got on your shopping list, writes Forbes contributor Lydia Dishman.
• Research, research, research! You may find a good deal on one site, but you might just find a better deal on another!
• Do it on your own time. Dana, I promise I won’t make online purchases at work – I’m thinking about staying up until Midnight or doing it on my lunch!
• Beware of scams. Sad, but true – there’s always someone out there that will try to steal your information. Only share credit card numbers and other personal information with trusted sites.
• Have fun! For all of you other claustrophobic folks out there, this is your day!

Have any other online shopping tips for us? We’d love to add to our list!