Friendships, Lifestyle
How to Plan Your Holiday Shopping
SIX SHOPPING TIPS to help you from being “cyber-crazy” this holiday.
It’s that time again – time for the year-end holiday traditions: the Christmas office party, finger foods, holiday decorations, and gifts. OMG, did you forget the Secret Santa Gift – again? You rush headlong into the mall and BAM – you’re smack in the middle of another tradition: the start of holiday shopping season.
Take a breath and remember that it only happens once a year. Retailers have been calling the day after Thanksgiving “Black Friday” for more than 60 years. The theory is that the term “Black Friday” originally came from the Philadelphia police department because thousands of people would descend on the city the day after Thanksgiving ahead of the annual Army/Navy football game on Saturday. The stores took advantage of the crowds with big sales and the police were stuck with long and very busy shifts. They weren’t happy. But, the shoppers were!
Why the rush? It’s historically a day when retailers pull out all the stops to get shoppers into their stores. Retailers called it “Black Friday” because the volume of sales could put a retail store back into “the black” with enough profit to cover the entire year.
It’s also, historically, the best day of the year to get a great deal on all those holiday gifts you want to buy for friends – and for yourself. But these days, it doesn’t stop there. If you’re an online shopper like many people are now, you can avoid the crowds, the lines, the hassle of brick and mortar shopping, and get in on some pretty good deals. Retailers got wise pretty quickly and created “Cyber Monday” just for you.
The whole weekend has morphed into the biggest shopping weekend of the year (sales begin to be advertised more than a week before with some retailers posting ads as early as October); enough cyber-crazy to produce more than $3 billion in sales last year. Some retailers will also push out good deals through Tuesday. So, from Thursday (with some starting midnight Wednesday night) to Tuesday, you can literally shop until you drop – or your fingers get too tired! Big Retailers already have their ads out for Black Friday. If the retailers are planning that far in advance then it just makes sense then that we should plan ahead too, right?
Here are Six easy tips to help you survive this holiday shopping season and not spend more than you planned:
Tip One – Make your shopping lists for everything including electronics (iPhone, Xbox, etc.) and set the price that you’re willing to pay now. That way you can jump on the deals when you recognize them.
Tip Two – The technology deals are best on Thanksgiving and Black Friday but some may get better the closer to Cyber Monday/Tuesday you get. But, don’t wait and hope to see a lower price than the one you’re happy with because it’s possible the item will sell out before the end of the day. Remember – once an item is sold out the store will not honor the sale price – if it’s sold out – it’s sold out. Cyber Monday has gotten pretty good for “soft goods” like clothing, shoes, even beauty products. There are even great deals on travel – mostly for year-round presales for resort hotels and spas.
Tip Three – Buy from companies you know – Amazon, Best Buy, Walmart, eBay, and so on. The holidays are a very bad time to test out a new online shopping experience.
Tip Four – DOUBLE check the return policies – because you never know. Remember that whatever the store policy was last year, it’s a good bet they’ve changed it this year.
Tip Five – Don’t forget to check shipping terms and conditions. Sometimes you’ll find excellent deals that can save you a bundle on shipping. How about that Secret Santa gift? Remember that the faster you want something, the higher shipping costs. It only makes sense. All the more reason to plan ahead and shop with plenty of time to spare. About that sometimes nasty shipping cost – if you’re a late shopper you may have traded one hell for another. Your choice might be to either get swallowed up by the thick crowds at the mall or be hammered by very expensive overnight shipping costs.
A friend told me about her experience last year. She waited until the very last week to do her holiday shopping online and wound up paying hundreds of dollars in rush shipping fees to make sure that the gifts arrived on time. She said that one gift that she bought cost less than the overnight shipping fees. I was astounded.
Tip Six is for the deep divers: I found this great stream on The Verge for the best Black Friday/Cyber Monday deals all in one place. The deals change quite a bit, so go back and check it often.
Keep it fun!
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