Consumer Law In the News

Spending Tips to Keep You in the Green This Holiday Season

Christmas, Hannukah and Kwanzaa are upon us, and with the season come the sounds near and dear to retailers’ hearts. No, not silver bells, or jolly Old St Nick’s laughter, but the merry sounds of the cash register and the credit card terminal spitting out receipts! While that might make for a very merry season for the retailers of the world, this season, try something different and have a “green” holiday by keeping more of your hard-earned “green”:

• Forget store and brand loyalty. This season, look for the best bargains without regard to favored stores or brands. If the chef on your list would love the Egyptian cotton tea towels selling for $50 at the elite department store, do a little detective work and see if you can find something similar for much less at the local kitchen outlet store.
• Factor in gas and time costs. Don’t be so eager to save a buck that you end up spending five more just to get to an out of the way (but cheap) store. By the same token, a trip to that store could end up costing a lot more than gas money if it takes a huge chunk out of your day - time you could be spending doing other things (like working to make money for all those presents).
• Don’t overlook the Internet. While you should always exercise caution in shopping online, most merchants with a Web store presence are perfectly safe to do business with, as long as you use good common sense and double-check to make sure the transaction is secured. Use sites like Froogle, SlickDeals, Ben’s Bargains, and other sites that allow you to compare prices across the web.
• Ask and you shall receive - a discount, that is! Don’t be shy about asking sales clerks for a discount. A friendly “is that the best price I can get?” or “I’d be willing to buy this with a 10% discount - can you do that?” may or may not work, but you won’t know until you try. On the web, when you find the deal you’re looking for, be sure to open up a new browser window and search for a combination of the store’s name and whatever that store calls a “coupon code” or “promotion code” - the sequence of letters and numbers that will net you a discount of 5% or more (some up to 30%). Make it a habit not to click that final “Order” button until you’ve done a thorough search for those codes!
• Arm yourself with a list. Most impulse buys happen at the register, but quite often when shopping we see something that would go “so well” with the other gift we planned to buy that we just can’t resist. Make a physical list and take it with you; tell yourself frequently on the way to the store and while shopping that if it’s not on the list, it’s not going in your cart. This is a little psychological trick that can really help you withstand the full frontal assault on our pocketbooks and wallets the stores like to engage in during this shopping season.
• Challenge yourselves to a “voluntarily simple” holiday. Harder than it sounds, but it often helps couples and families in ways that have nothing to do with money! Here’s how it works: each person commits to the voluntarily simple approach by agreeing to purchase one, and only one, present for each person on the list. Because you’re limited to one gift, you end up spending more time and putting more thought into that gift. The result? A gift that truly is special and means more to the recipient than a bunch of little gifts. Then take the money you saved as a group, and give it to a charity of your choice. This is a powerful way to make the season more meaningful (and less commercial), not to mention teaching children the true meaning of the holidays.
• The best time to plan your holiday spending? January. This may sound odd but it’s absolutely true. Too often, smart people who budget their money year-round neglect to consider gift-giving occasions in their planning. In January, take your budget for the year and plan how much you want to spent on presents throughout the next 12 months - including birthdays, anniversaries, and the holidays. Take that sum, and divide it by 12; this is the amount you should aim to save each month. Adjust for the timing of the events, and you’ll have a year-long plan for holiday spending that won’t break the bank.

© 2006 SC Bankruptcy & Consumer Law Blog.