Savvy Shopping Habits

There is nothing quite like the rush of shopping and landing yourself a huge bargain. However, savvy shoppers know that while many deals are alluring, it is worthwhile to take a shopping step back to evaluate the deal-ness of a purchase.

Do you Need it?

With prices like these, I can’t afford not to buy this! This is a common refrain of the bargain hunter, but sadly this is blatantly untrue.  Always, always use the need vs. want system to evaluate a purchase. Is this essential, or is it nice-to-have?

If you decide that it falls somewhere on that fine line between need and want, and you do decide to buy it, you need to swap it out somewhere else in the budget in order to keep your books balanced.

Walk Away

It takes a brave shopper to turn down a major find. However, it pays to put some distance between yourself and the prospective purchase so that you can better evaluate pros and cons. If after time and reflection, you still really, really need it, and the deal still holds its lustre, than it may be worth considering

Beware Buyer’s Regret

A surefire way to crush the rush of finding a bargain is to feel the scourge of buyer’s regret in the aftermath of your purchase. Make sure you are getting what you want- and if you are not totally sold, make sure to investigate return policies on your purchase

Buy More Get More

Buy three! Get one free!  The language of a deal is tricky and can sometimes serve to muddle your shopping thought process. While spending more to get more can apply when you are buying in bulk (buying in volume decreases your overall cost, usually), buying something that you didn’t intend to buy takes the “free” out of buying multiple items. If you went shopping for a sweater, but instead actually purchased two or three, you don’t come out ahead.

Think in the Moment

Don’t make purchases based on hopes or dreams, meaning don’t buy items that are not going to serve a purpose in the current day- or not at all. Don’t buy clothes that are a size smaller saying that you’ll grow into them. Don’t buy a musical instrument or sporting equipment that you’d always been interested in trying, but know that it may have good company in your attic/basement/garage collecting dust with your other wish list purchases.