With the end of the year nigh, thoughts are now naturally turning to the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays. Which also means – bargain hunting! Black Friday and Cyber Monday means deals aplenty, so here’s our top tips on getting the most out of your shopping…
Preparation is Everything
Whether you’re shopping online or in an actual store, do your research well in advance. You’ll probably have lots of emails from your favorite retailers telling you what deals you can get, so use these to base your research on.
Sifting through all the deals on the day could mean you lose out to all those who already know exactly where to look. If you know exactly what you want, keep the retailer’s webpage in your favorites, or plan to get to the store early.
Remember, even if you’re shopping online, there’s still a virtual scrum to get to the checkout, and there’s always the possibility that very popular websites will crash under the strain!
Be Ready for Early Deals
Some retailers like to start offering deals and discounts in the week leading up to Black Friday. If you haven’t already, sign up to the mailing list of brands and shops that you want to buy from so that you’re among the first to hear about their offers. The last thing you want is missing out on a deal to spoil your Thanksgiving turkey dinner.
Nothing’s Cheap if you Don’t Want it
Don’t. Be. Seduced. I repeat. Don’t. Be. Seduced. Set your spending limit and stick to it. Don’t be sucked into buying that fancy half price leaf blower if you know you won’t use it. The same can be said for those three huge oven-to-table stock pots for the price of two, if you know they simply won’t fit in your kitchen let alone your oven.
Have a shopping list, and a budget, and don’t deviate from them!
Check the Returns Policy
Okay, so even the best laid plans sometimes fail. We might end up with delivery after delivery of stuff we either don’t actually want, or stuff that isn’t quite what we expected. Either way, we’ll need to know how and even if, we can send it back, preferably before we buy it…
The returns policy is usually included in the website’s T&Cs. If you’re shopping in-store, check with a sales assistant. If you can’t return the product, and it’s something you’re unsure about, think twice before buying it.
Hold Out – if you can!
This one takes a bit of guts. Quite often, retailers will add further discounts in December, when Christmas is only around the corner and they still have stock to shift. Not always, and obviously you run the risk of losing out. But if you dare, hold on and keep an eye open for further deals!
