Holiday Shopping Tips

Here’s some holiday shopping tips – and if you go to my social media pages: Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, you’ll find different tips than the ones here. So, you can get real informed, real quick!

1. Who you giving to? Make list of everyone receiving a gift. The prioritize it. You can sort by how much money you’re willing to spend on each person; you can sort family from friends. Then place a dollar amount of how much you’re willing to spend on them. Don’t worry, no one will see. It’s not a question of their worth; it’s a question of your wallet. If you have a great deal of disposable income, then dispose of it with abandon. If not, you’re gonna have to start with knowing who you want to give to and how much you have to give.
2. Use a shopping app. I have three on my devices: Honey , Capitol One and AA (yes, American Airlines!) They have found me sales, coupons and discounts over the year and I love them. They are free to use. I’m not sure if you have to be a member of the Advatage program on American. You put your items in the checkout and then the apps popup to let you know if they have discount codes to apply. Sometimes you get nothing but  there have been times when I’ve gotten a big discount on top of sales prices for a bigger win-win for me.
3. Those electronics are so last year. And you should get them. It’s the latest tech that costs the big bucks. If you can get the previous version of whatever and can live without the latest dohickey, you can save some serious coin.
4. Don’t fall into the Black Friday/Cyber Monday rabbit hole. If you’re shopping in person, don’t follow the crowd to the big sales. For the most part, there’s not that big a savings during that rush week. Check prices on line and, if possible, order on line and then pick it up.
5. Do It Yourself. C’mon, you know I was saving the best for last. If you can sew, knit, crochet, draw, bake or have some crafting skill, consider making gifts. You can get the thrill of shopping for great materials (always a rush) and then feel great making unique items for people. Win-win all day.