Shopping on Black Friday and other Sale-Days

Sales are great moments to buy, especially if you’re looking to get something expensive. However, you require a good buying strategy and a pinch of common sense to get the very most out of your purchases.

Many feel tempted to buy a multitude of cheap items, and let me tell you that it isn’t always a smart move, and neither is buying stuff from unknown brands just because they’re heavily discounted.

Another problem altogether is that sometimes we fall for the impulses—We buy a lot of things we want but none of what we need. In other words, we blow our money on non-essential items.

Let me share with you how to shop on Sale-Days the proper way.

Assess Your Needs & Wants

This sounds surprisingly easy, does it not?

Well, it should be easy! But society tricks us into spending our money on “wants”, leaving us unable to satisfy our “needs”. Don’t become a victim of this!

Make two lists: one for the things you really need, and other for the things you really want. Make sure you sort each item in accordance with how much you need/want it. For example, you might need a pair of shoes, but you might also need to replace your car’s battery; one of those is more important than the other and it is up to you to determine!

Ask yourself if you need to replace something broken in the house, if you’re missing an essential tool, or if you need to upgrade some of your hardware.

People tend to forget about these things during sales, but you shouldn’t! Getting the latest video game console or computer part might be sweet, but you shouldn’t neglect an air compressor for your off road adventures or good impact wrench for removing lug nuts from your car, especially considering the returns in the long run.

Just don’t forget you must balance everything in life, and needs definitely weigh more than wants in this scenario.

Once you’ve got your lists, go over them again and ask yourself the same questions again. You have to be honest with yourself! Maybe you’ll realize you don’t actually need something, or maybe you’ll realize you left something very important out. This will save you a headache, trust me.

With your revised lists in hand, it is time to go into the next stage.

Review Your Options and Set a Budget

So, you’ve tracked down what you need and what you want. Now it is time you put some faces on those names!

What I mean by that is simple: you know you need a pair of shoes, but from what brand do you want them? Feel free to list several models, in fact, list several brands as well.

You have a little more freedom on this part. You can put all the brands you want, but don’t forget about your budget. Set something realistic, you can designate as much or as little as you want, but set an amount (preferably a little bit over what you think you’re going to end up spending).

The best way to get a semi-accurate budget projection is first listing the possible options for each item you need/want, sorting them by price, and then adding up the costs of buying everything you need, plus what you want. Maybe you can’t afford everything you want, but you should try to get everything you need!

With your options laid on paper and your budget set, you’re ready to go!

The next stage happens during the sale, so how would it theoretically go? Find out in the next segment!

Go Back and Forth

So, the day is now. What do you do?

Well, the first thing you should do the day of the sale is arriving early, really! A lot of people will do the same, but you’ll have higher chances of getting what you want that way.

The day of the sale you’ll have to check several stores and depots. I’m not saying you should avoid big names or anything, but generally leave those towards the end of your shopping spree, as those retailers often put ads like “$50, down from $150!” when in reality, their price was bad in the first place.

Try to build a route you’re going to check for each individual category. Perhaps three to four stores you know sell the clothes you want, so be sure you follow that route when buying your new clothes, and maybe those two to three computer stores have what you’re looking for, so check each when getting your computer parts!

Don’t buy things as soon as you see them, rather, make sure you’ve checked all the stores you’ve marked down to understand which one offers you the best price.

One by one, erase the stores that offer you high prices and lean towards the lowest price possible. When you know which stores have the best prices you’re ready to buy, but it doesn’t stop there!

Buy Smartly

So, maybe you found a deal, but maybe you didn’t! What do you do in that case? Surrender is not an option.

There are many things you can do: using discounted gift cards, coupons, searchable databases, even real-time price checking online, or outright buying online means you can capitalize sale days even further!

During sales, people often focus on physical retailers, but what they’re forgetting is that online retailers also have to remain competitive. If you didn’t find what you’re looking for, or if the prices were above what you’re willing to pay, search for it online! Odds are you’ll find there, at the price you expected, or even better!

Try to get the most out of the sale before the sale itself, as many retailers nowadays put their discounted goods online before the sales themselves, as it commonly happens with Black Friday. Many amazing deals won’t be available the day of the sale, so try not to miss the chance.

Lastly, try not to get out of your budget. I told you to set your budget a little higher than you need to in order to give you some flexibility, but don’t overdo it.

Final thoughts:

Following these easy little steps, you will be able of turning the next sale into a great deal, not just a deal.

• Create a list of your wishes, determine the real needs;
• Set your budget;
• Read the product reviews, choose the best brands and products;
• Find the best deals, and make a purchase;
• Be Happy!

Don’t forget that covering your needs is far better than covering your wants!