Whether it involves camping in a store parking lot for Black Friday deals or racing other parents for that last hot-ticket toy, just about everybody has their own nightmare holiday shopping story。
Let’s be honest: holiday shopping has the potential to be awful. You have to brave crowded malls, overpriced items, and the same Christmas carols playing on repeat. But your shopping experience doesn’t have to be that way。
Try these tips to shop smarter and have a much happier holiday experience。
1. Plan ahead。
It would be nice if we were able to shower our friends and family with unlimited expensive gifts, but the truth is that the majority of us have a limited amount of money. Before you even start your holiday shopping, make a gift list and set yourself a budget. That way you won’t fall prey to last minute splurge purchases。
2. Save gas (and time) by shopping online。
Avoid crowded shopping centers altogether by doing the bulk of your shopping online. Just make sure that you keep mailing costs in mind and order your gifts far enough ahead of time so that you don’t have to pay for expensive overnight shipping。
3. Focus on Cyber Monday–not Black Friday。
Sure, you may find some pretty crazy deals on Black Friday, but when you factor in the gas you use to drive to the store, the time you spend waiting in the cold out front before they open, and the time spent fighting the crowds and waiting in line to make your purchase, is it really worth it? This year, try shopping on the Monday immediately after Thanksgiving. This is the day when online retailers promote big sales, so you can save while shopping from the comfort of your own home。
4. Track price changes for expensive items。
If you’re shopping with a big online retailer like Amazon, you can set up a tracker through websites like CamelCamelCamelor The Tracktor. You can check out past prices of the items you’re shopping for in order to determine whether now is a good time to buy or if you should wait for the price to drop。
5. Use online coupons。
Avoid the hassle of clipping coupons and shoving them in your wallet until you can get to the right store by using online coupons. Many sites give you an easy way to quickly search for and redeem deals for your gift items。
6. Avoid credit card debt。
This should go without saying, but one of the best ways to shop smart this season is to avoid charging more than you’ll be able to pay off. Don’t get talked into starting a credit card with a particular department store, either. It’s usually not worth it. Keep close track of the money you spend and know where your limits are。
7. Don’t be afraid to buy the same gift twice。
If you find a gift that you know several people on your list would enjoy, don’t be afraid to buy it in multiples. This cuts down on your shopping time, and if the store is offering any kind of “Buy 1, get the second 1 at a discount” deal, that’s even better!
8. Considering buying experiences–not just stuff。
Instead of buying material goods that your family members aren’t that excited about, consider buying a day or weekend trip that you can share together. It can make more sense to invest money in creating a family memory that will last forever than buying an item that will have a short life span。
9. Group your shopping trips。
If you have to go to brick and mortar stores to do some of your holiday shopping, figure out where all the stores you need to visit are and plan the route that will involve the least driving. Try to get all your shopping done in one fell swoop so that you don’t have to keep driving back out to the stores。
10. Save money by using your smartphone。
The Amazon Price Checker app, which is available for bothiPhones and Androids, lets you scan the barcodes of items in a store and compare to prices of the same item online. Shopkickis another great app that rewards you just for visiting stores by offering you special discounts. Make purchases at the store and you’ll get even more points to put towards a future reward。
11. Never shop on weekends。
Weekends are inevitably the busiest shopping days during the holiday season, so if you want to avoid the crowds, try shopping on weekday evenings。
12. Shop alone。
While shopping alone doesn’t sound as fun as bringing along a friend, it will save you time and potentially prevent you from being influenced to make big spur-of-the-moment purchases。
13. Know when to eschew the express line。
Each person has to do an individual transaction, so a medium regular checkout line is often better than a long express lane line。
The holidays should be a time to relax and hang out with friends and family–don’t let yourself get stressed out by last-minute shopping expeditions. Just take a deep breath, do some planning in advance, and shop smart this season. 查看译文
不论你是在露营在黑色星期五打折期的商店停车场，还是催促父母为你买下最后一款Hot-ticket的玩具，似乎每个人都拥有一段噩梦般的假日购物故事。
老实说吧，圣诞假期购物有潜在的让你心情糟糕的倾向。你需要勇敢面对人潮拥挤的商场，标价过高的商品以及不厌其烦重复播放的圣诞圣歌。但是你的购物经历可以不用变得如此糟糕。
尝试一下这些小贴士吧，他们能让你变成一个更聪明的消费者，同时拥有一个更愉悦的购物经历。
1. 提前规划
如果我们能送给家人朋友无限的贵重礼品就更好不过了，但是现实是大部分人都只拥有有限的资金。在你开始你的假日购物之前，做好一份礼物列表并建立一份预算支出。这样的话，你就不会陷入最后一秒钟超额支出的陷阱啦。
2. 省油省时——网购
你可以通过网购的途径来避开拥挤的购物中心。你只需要确认邮费的问题以及尽早预定好要赠送的礼物，这样就可以避免昂贵的连夜运输啦。
3. 关注网购星期一，而非黑色星期五
理所应当的，你可以在黑色星期五的时候发现一些不错的疯狂降价商品，但是当你给需要驱车去商店的汽车加油时，你所花费的在寒风中等待商店开门营业的时间，在拥挤的人潮中穿梭的时间以及排队等待收银的时间的时候，你有没有想想这样做值得么?今年，尝试一下在感恩节过后就在星期一迅速购物吧。这正是网上零售商推行大降价的时候，这样你只需舒舒服服呆在家里便可节约不少钱了。
4. 跟踪昂贵商品的价格变化
如果你在类似于亚马逊这样的大网上零售商上购物时，你可以在 CamelCamelCamelor The Tracktor这样的网站上设置一个价格追踪器。通过这种方式，你可以了解到你意向购买的商品的过去的价格，从而能够帮你决定现在是否是一个购买的好时机还是你应该等着它的价格的跌落。
5. 使用网购代金券
避免剪息票引发的纠纷，将它们塞进你的钱包知道你能找到一个能使用网购优惠券的正确的商店。很多网站都会给你提供一个便捷的渠道从而让你能够迅速检索和赎回购买你的礼品。
6. 避免信用卡欠债
这其实是不用提醒的，但是在圣诞季能够聪明购物的最好方法是避免超出你支付能力的购买。同样也不要在普通的百货商店使用信用卡支付。这样做是不值得的。紧密计算好你需要花费的钱并且知道你的支付极限到底是多少。
7. 不要畏惧重复购买同样的礼品
如果你发掘到了一份你的赠送名单上几个人都会喜欢的礼物，不要害怕多次购买。这样不仅能够帮助你缩短购物时间，同时如果商家提供“买一件第二件享受折扣”的打折手段时，这样就再好不过了!
8. 不仅仅是购买物品，同时也可以考虑收获一份购买经验
你可以考虑收获一份和家人共同分享的周末旅行而不仅仅是你的家人不一定十分喜欢的物质礼品。在创造家庭回忆方面投资一些资金或许会更有意义，这样会持续的更长久，而赠送一份礼物只能带来一段短暂的记忆使用期。
9. 将你的购物旅程分组规划
如果你需要去实体店进行假日购物时，思考一下你需要去的所有的商店都在哪里并计划一条能够包含所有商店的最少的购物路线。尝试能在一次性的做完所有的购物功课这样你就不用反反复复驾车去逛商店了。
10. 用智能手机来省钱
亚马逊价格审查程序，在Iphone 和安卓均可使用，能够帮你扫描商店物品的条形码并能通过网络对比同样商品的价格。Shopkickis作为另一款功能强大的软件能够赠送你特殊的折扣而只因为你逛了那家店。进店购物的话甚至你会得到更多积分从而能够提供给你未来更多的奖励。
11. 千万不要在周末购物
圣诞假日季里周末无可厚非的成为了最繁忙的购物日，所以如果你想避开拥挤的人群，尝试一下在平日的晚上吧。
12. 单独购物
单独去购物听起来没有带着朋友一起去购物那么有意思，但是这会帮你节约时间并在无形中阻止你受朋友影响而做出超出预想的购买。
13. 知道何时避开快速通道
每个人都会进行收银业务办理，因此一个中型规模的收银通道会比一个长的快速支付通道更好。
假期本应该是一个轻松自我，和家人朋友一起出去玩耍的好时光，不要让自己在最后一分钟的购物支出中折磨得死去活来。做一个深呼吸吧，提前做一些购物计划，在这个购物季让自己能够聪明理性的消费。
