The biggest shopping days of the year are just around the corner. Every store, online shop and market is touting their “lowest prices of the season.” With deals that seem too good to be true and the excitement of waiting in line at 3 a.m. it can be hard to actually save any money while taking advantage of deals.
Here are some tips for you on saving money during the crazy holiday shopping season.
If you shop early, shop electronics: If you really must do your late night/early morning shopping the day after Thanksgiving hit the right items. The steepest mark-downs tend to be on electronic items. The problem with this: stores have a very limited number or items in these categories so you may not even get one.
Shop online: Many stores are offering the same deals online or better deals on other products. Cyber Monday is usually a better time to score deals on cosmetics, clothing and jewelry.
Shop early: The best way to save money during the holidays isn’t to be the first in line. In fact, you’ll probably save more money if you shop ahead of time and hit the sack early on Thanksgiving night. If you plan in advance and shop right you can save a lot of money by shopping at the end of seasons, getting steep discounts on items that need to be moved out of the store.
Use Cash: By all means, don’t take your credit cards with you when you hit the stores this holiday season. Instead take cash and a list. This will prevent you from over spending because you won’t have the money available to blow on a spur-of-the-moment deal.
Buy your wrapping cheap: If you use bags and bows or ribbons for holiday wrapping hit the dollar store. It’s cheaper and the quality isn’t that much different than what you would buy elsewhere. The bows and ribbons won’t last long anyway, there’s no reason to blow a chunk of your budget on something that will be tossed in the trash Christmas morning.
Draw names: Instead of buying gifts for every single person in your family consider drawing names and purchase a gift for only those you draw. It’s a fun way to make Christmas more meaningful and will allow you to get or make something more personal.
You can save money this holiday season if you plan ahead and stick with your goals.
If you are on a budget this Christmas or you’d simply rather spend your money on something else, take a look at a few financial planning tips from the Online Trading Academy reviews that could put a little more cash in your wallet this year. We want to make sure that we are able to take advantage of what they call to be the most wonderful time of the season, so we should certainly enjoy.