Orange County Register

Part 2 in an ongoing series about online deals. See part one on FatWallet and part three on Buy.com.

When I search for coupon codes, most of the time I don’t expect them to work. Possible reasons include the code expired, was used by the maximum number of shoppers or, well, I don’t know. The codes just don’t work.

Jonathan Lieberman feels my pain. He’s president of Deal Locker, a year-old deal site based in San Diego.

He started the site for the same reason I search for coupon codes: “I was 100 percent driven by the fact that I hated when I got to the checkout, that empty coupon code box was just staring me in the face. It’s a truly frustrating experience. But I could do something about it,” he said.

He’s a developer and one code led to another code led to Deal Locker.

Deal Locker gets coupon codes and discounts directly from 3,000 stores. But unlike some sites, it strives to only post codes that work. Deal codes it gets directly from the stores or manufacturers get a ‘Guaranteed to work‘ logo next to those offers.

But since it also accepts coupon codes and tips from users, it needed a way to vet the working from the non working. With only 3.5 employees, it relies on users to perfect the system. Every coupon that didn’t come from the manufacturer has a little link next to it asking, “Did it work for you?”

If the coupon doesn’t work for 66 percent of people who vote, it is removed.

That, says Lieberman, helps manage codes that just expired or have reached the store’s limit on discounts. A comment area allows users to indicate why the coupon may not work or other tips, for example, it’s only good on a $49-or-more purchase or it’s a stackable coupon that can be used with other coupons.

“This is a deal site where coupons actually work and if they don’t, you can do something about it. The whole notion around the site is friends help friends get deals,” he said.

Since launching the site, Lieberman has added a few more tools. Typo Buddy searches eBay and Craigslist for typos and misspelled items.

The Secret Amazon Discount Finder: If you’re a big Amazon shopper, you know that Amazon isn’t the simplest site to search for deals. If you want to find purple women’s shoes in size 8 sold by Amazon at 50 percent off, you’ll have to configure a half-dozen pages before finding exactly what you want. This tool does that for you.

And Free Shipping On: Quick spot to find recent ‘free shipping’ coupons for various of online stores.

Still, with only 10,000 users, the site is a pea next to more established sites like FatWallet. But, says Lieberman, he hopes you’ll find everything faster at Deal Locker.

“The thing that drove me crazy was that I would go in search of a coupon and I would try out coupon after coupon and they didn’t work. Most of the time, I want to save some money but I don’t have an hour to spend on this,” he said. “I often describe us as FatWallet, if your time isn’t worthless. You can find deals on FatWallet if you want to read through 80 pages.”

Related posts: How FatWallet tracks down deals, Getting the best deal at Buy.com

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