In today’s world, buy something is as easy as pie. You can order it online, charge it to your credit card or just buy it from the store with some cold, hard cash. In an eye blink, the money is gone and you have a shiny new toy. But there’s a problem right here. The money is gone. And if it happens that the toy doesn’t really offer any value, then that money is really gone, wasted away. So can you save money when shopping?
The short answer is: You can! This article will show you how.
1. Make buying it your last choice
Let’s say that there’s a book that you really want to read. You can buy it, of course, but there are other things you can do as well. Just think about it first and, most importantly, ask yourself these two questions:
- Can you get it for free?
- Can you borrow it?
We buy a lot of things that we don’t really need, or that we don’t really need right away. And that’s just money thrown out of the window. So instead of going shopping, try to see first if there’s a chance for you to get the thing that you need for free or at a lower price. And renting is also an option, don’t forget it.
2. Always negotiate
“Haggling” is such an ugly word. That’s why I like to use “negotiate”. And you should definitely use it too. Always negotiate, no matter what, even if the price for something that you’re looking to buy is low. If you can bring it down even more, then that’s another win for you.
A lot of people are reluctant to negotiate, either because they aren’t confident enough to do it or because they feel embarrassed. But that’s a mistake. It’s your money we’re talking about here. And if you feel that something is not worth its price, you should try to lower it. It’s your right. Not to mention that you have absolutely nothing to lose.
3. Time is your friend
People often rush to buy products fresh off the assembly line. This happens quite often, especially when it comes to gadgets such as smartphones. People stand in lines for days in order to throw money at the latest version of a smartphone they only end up using for about a year, until the next version comes out.
This is very wasteful. Not only do those people not need a new phone, but the gadget itself comes with a huge price tag attached to it. The smart thing to do here is to wait until the prices drops. And it always does, especially since newer versions of the gadget keep coming out.
If you already have a phone that works just fine, you can wait until you really need to replace it, or until discounts season.
4. Look for substitutes
We often hear of certain brands as being the best in their fields, but is this really so? It could be, but there’s also a chance that there’s someone better out there, with better prices. A quick Google search can help you find out.
5. Try not to have favorite shops, websites or malls
This one is really hard, since we tend to get attached to the things that we like. However, this can often blind us to things such as what the competition has to offer. So, next time you want to buy something, try not to go straight to your favorite store. Shop around first to see if you can find the same product at a lower price. You’ll probably spend some more of your free time, but you’ll save money.
