Whether you’re shopping for specific items, or just having a browse to treat yourself, it’s always good to have a budget in mind so you know just how much you have available to spend. Keep these figures in mind when shopping and if something is out of budget, say no. That way when your credit card bill arrives after Christmas, there won’t be any nasty surprises.
If you’re planning on embracing the Boxing Day sales, here are a few tips and tricks to make sure you get the bargains you want without the stress!
Shop Online
Whilst you might look forward to your annual trip to the shopping centre or retail park super early on Boxing Day, why not take a year off and do your shopping online? Shopping online means you can sit in your comfies, browse several shops at once, avoid queues and stay safe.
Create a Budget
Set Up Online Accounts Beforehand
The online checkout process is so much quicker and easier when you’re logged into your store account. Shopping can then be as easy as clicking ‘Checkout’ instead of having to manually type in your address and payment card number on each website. Logging in before you start shopping means you can fill your basket then checkout with a few clicks of a button when you’re ready.
Subscribe to Newsletters
Signing up to online newsletters for your favourite brands and stores is an easy way to stay in the loop about discounts and campaigns they have running and when their sales start. Stores usually send ‘countdown’ emails and then more when their sales begin, so not only will you be prepared when they start, but you might even get access to offers that are exclusive to those signed up to the newsletter too.
Create a Wishlist
If you have a few items in mind which you want to get your hands on, adding these to a wishlist will save you time searching in the long run. In the buying frenzy of Boxing Day, you don’t want to forget something that you wanted or get too distracted by other offers. Some websites offer a ‘wishlist’ or ‘favourites’ feature, where you can add your chosen items to a list for ease when checking discounts – simply check your wishlist and add items to your basket from there.
If a website doesn’t have a wishlist feature, you can either save the link to your favourites in your web browser, or use a tool such as Shoptagr which allows you to save items from all of your favourite stores in one place. Shoptagr will also send you an email when any of the items you save become discounted too – I find this is a great way to keep on top of my shopping!
Shop Around
If a product you want to buy is stocked by more than one retailer, check where is offering the lowest price; A great website for checking beauty items is Cosmetify – it basically does the work for you and searches the internet to find the product you want, at the lowest possible price. It then directs you to the website where it’s being sold so you can complete your purchase!
Check Refund Policies
Before you shop, it’s always a good idea to check the retailer’s refund policies for returning sale items; You can do this ahead of the sales, as there’s usually a section about sale items in their refund policy. This ensures you don’t buy something in a hurry/accidentally and end up not being able to return it, or only receiving a credit note in return instead of a refund.
Buy the Most Popular Items First
This can be a bit of a guessing game, but if you know something is going to be super discounted or at a one-time lowest price kind-of-offer, it’s best to make sure you buy that item first before shopping around for everything else. If you do your shopping in a random order, by the time you get to these items, they are likely to have already been snapped up!
Buy Gifts in Advance
Make a list of upcoming birthdays or even people you will have to buy gifts for next Christmas, and have these in mind when shopping. With such incredible discounts on offer, it’s sometimes worth stocking up on birthday and Christmas gifts early, whilst saving some money… As long as you have somewhere to store them, don’t forget about them or end up buying something twice – I’ve definitely done that before!
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