With the way that many shops and stores are becoming smarter in the way they market their products, it can leave consumers confused as to the best options and cheapest prices. However, that doesn’t mean there aren’t ways you can try to shop smarter yourself. By following a few simple rules, you can quickly learn to interpret the store marketing schemes and choose a product that’s right for you.
Try Not to be Seduced
One of the ways the retailers operate is to try and get your senses involved in your purchasing decisions. For example, you may have heard that if you want to sell a house, you should put on a pot of coffee or bake some bread. This makes your home smell welcoming and friendly and can ultimately influence your buyer’s decision. In the same way, many retailers use perfume and music to try and divert your attention to a particular product. They add bright lights to watches and rings to make them sparkle and pump out fresh aromas around the areas of the store they want you to visit. If you are aware of these tactics, then you can learn to avoid them and not be seduced.
Keep an Eye on Product Sizes
Sometimes called the reference price, this type of marketing involves the size of the project in relation to the price it sells at retail. For example, if you have always bought the same product and, therefore, know the general price and size of the product, it might not be something you generally check. However, in some cases, retailers will make a product slightly smaller but keep it at the same retail price in order to gain more profit. There is nothing wrong with this practice, but it can mean that you get less for your money which could be something you need to look out for.
Check the Special Offers
Part of being a smart shopper is understanding when special offers are a good deal or when you can possibly find a better one. These special offers are usually placed in prominent positions because they want you to buy them. However, even though they are marketed as special offers this might not be the case. For example, if there was an offer to buy one get one free, check to see whether the same deal is cheaper if you buy two of the same products at the same price. Even if the deal is a good one the quality of the products themselves might be slightly lower than what you need.
Shop Around
If you have been looking for something in particular, then it can be easy to fall for the first offer you see. However, in most cases, the first offer you see might not necessarily be the best one. It is important especially for items that cost a lot of money, that you shop around to try and find the best deal you can. In many cases, the deal might not be saving you a lot of money, but it still pointless spending additional funds if you don’t need to. It can also be good to shop around for different reasons, such as finding the same products but with another item free that goes with it. Some retailers will do this to try and sell smaller items that may not be gathering as much interest. Shopping online can also produce bargains you might not find in the store, such as cheap e liquid. This is usually because online retailers have fewer overheads then stores and so can sell items cheaper.
Choose Shopping Partners Wisely
Sometimes a little retail therapy is just what’s needed, although you need to be careful who you are choosing to go shopping with, in case it costs you more than you intended. This phenomenon is often called group level consideration, which means that others and not you are setting the standards for what is considered a normal purchase. An example of this would be that’s if one person thinks a pair of shoes for $500 is acceptable, you and the rest of the group might also consider it justified. The problem then lies when you get the purchase home and wonder what it was you were thinking.
Plan Your Shop
While there are many people who enjoy wandering around the shops browsing at the bargains, this doesn’t provide a good use of your time. You’ll find a lot of shoppers will create additional time for something they want to do. However, this time that you are creating will only be taken away from something you need to do later on. That is why it is important, but you try to plan your shop as much as possible. If you can, take a shopping list with you of the items you need, not only will this make your shopping quicker, you will also avoid unnecessary purchases.
Indulge Yourself
Simply because you are shopping smarter doesn’t mean you don’t have the option to indulge yourself. In fact, the fact that you are a wise shopper, means you are able to indulge yourself and still feel as though you’re getting a good return on your money. This can be especially true when dealing with high-cost items. If you find a product that’s been discounted from $1000 to $500 dollars, then this is a sensible buy because the product will be of high quality and last you many years. You will find many smart shoppers doing the same things, and while you think they might be frugal they are in fact simply being sensible.
Life is full of choices, and while many of them will be between your heart in your head, it is important that when it comes to shopping, you do it mainly with your head. Although there is nothing wrong with impulse buying it isn’t something you want to do all the time. If you can learn to shop around and plan your purchases wisely, you will soon find you will be able to afford almost anything you wish within your budget.
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