Smart Buying: Think Decisively About Products With These 5 Quick Tips
Disclosure: In our articles, we independently choose products and services to feature that we think you'll find useful. This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase after clicking one of our links, we may earn a small commission.Buying is something that we all do often. Many times, we are buying necessary products that are of a high priority. However, keeping a clutter-free home, and saving money, are also priorities. Here are some great ways to balance your priorities by smart buying.
Smart Buying through Money Saving
If you’re looking to save money, here are three awesome tips.
Tip 1: Compare Unit Prices
Comparing unit prices is the good way to actually know whether or not you are getting a good deal. Products may say “Lower Price!” or “Better Deal!”, but you can’t take their word for everything. When you divide the price by the quantity (ounces, pounds, etc.), you get the unit price. The unit price is what you can use to actually compare better deals. Since every product has a price and a quantity, you can find how much you pay for each quantity of a product. If it is lower for one product than for another, then you can actually know that your getting a better deal.
Note: Keep an eye on prices, and beware of “Lower Price!” statements. Some stores mark up prices right before bringing them down, so that they can make the discount look bigger than it really would be.
Tip 2: Use Price Comparison Apps
If you don’t want to sit around comparing prices all day, you don’t have to. There are many price comparison apps out there. They sync the prices of a product from multiple different stores, and they show you the lowest prices. For some, you can even scan barcodes and you’ll see what other stores are offering. Price comparison apps make your life so much easier if you are on a tighter budget. Here are some of the top apps:
Save yourself time and money by simply using one of those apps. You won’t regret it!
Tip 3: Know When and When Not to Buy in Bulk
Buying in bulk is extremely appealing sometimes. But do you really need to? You have to think smart. Stores like Costco and Sam’s Club make large amounts of money. The fact that you get bigger quantities doesn’t mean you get better deals. Sometimes you do, but the prices at bulk stores aren’t always low. That goes back to the unit price idea. The quantity can be high, and so can the price.
When buying in bulk, you need to make sure that you will really eat or use everything you buy. If you have teenagers or other kids, then that’s a good excuse. But if you are alone and just looking for ways to “save” money, then you should rethink. What you buy could go to waste. Instead, you should try some alternatives, such as zero-waste stores, which have custom quantities of products so that you can buy just the right amount of what you need. To learn some more about zero-waste stores, check out litterless.com.
Smart Buying through Decluttering
If you’re buying, but are worried about clutter, here are two great tips.
Tip 1: Know Your Situation
When you buy something, you need to know your situation. By situation, I mean your shopping situation at home. In order to practice smart buying, ask yourself these questions:
- Do I have a place to store this product?
- How much of it do I need? (Back to the bulk-buying idea again)
- Will it just clutter my house?
- Will I use it all?
- What are the reasons why I need this product?
- If I only want this product, what are three benefits?
You should really ask yourself those questions. You’ll find yourself stopping and thinking much more, so that your house doesn’t eventually become a cluttered, unused mess. By having good reasoning behind your buying habits, you’ll save money and reduce waste.
Tip 2: Declutter before Buying
Maybe you have really good reasons to buy a product, but your house is just so cluttered that you don’t think you should buy it. If you’re satisfied where you are with how much stuff you have in your house, but don’t want any more, then declutter before you buy. It’s like the kids’ toys idea: before new toys come in, some have to go. If you want more help decluttering, check out more at our home section on Plan and Organize. You’ll find that by decluttering before you go on big shopping trips could keep your house much cleaner
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Steve is a staff writer at Plan and Organize™. He specializes in articles about technology and education yet often delves into home, business and finance topics.
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