Detergents, deodorants, toothpaste, and toiletries – the various items needed in a household can easily cost hundreds of dollars every month. Humans are creatures of habit, so we tend to shop at the same stores week after week, buying the same goods each time without thinking. As a consequence, most Americans spend 15% to 20% more than necessary, wasting a massive amount of hard-earned dollars.
Retail is big business, and stores are set up to manipulate your senses and entice you to make high-priced impulse purchases. Unless you’re prepared, it’s hard to avoid over-spending. Most stores are designed to appeal to your emotional brain – that part of your mind that gets the pleasurable bursts of dopamine – with their aisle layout and displays, use of colors and sounds, pricing strategies, and the position of the products on the shelf.
To beat the retail geniuses, you need to be focused, aware of the situation, and determined to get the best value for your money.
Prioritize Cost & Convenience Over Customer Care
To get the lowest prices, the majority of your purchases should be in the stores that focus on price, rather than customer service. Good customer service requires retailers to employ more people who have received customer service training; in other words, stores with above-average customer service have more costs, which will be reflected in the price of their goods. Walmart, renowned for its low prices, is not noted for quality customer service, and the people who shop there don’t expect it.
Convenience is another factor that should be considered. It makes no sense to spend $4 more on gas, for example, to save a dollar or two on a single purchase. Studies have shown that every minute in excess of one-half hour adds an extra $5 to the total bill. Why? The more time you spend in the store, the greater you are likely to make impulse purchases. Grocery stores often have long lines at the checkout where buyers have plenty of time to scan the highest profit margin goods available in the store.
Simple Ways to Save Money at the Store
1. Know What You Need
Saving money begins before you go to the store. Research has shown that people who shop with a list buy less than shoppers without one. To save real money, however, you need to take more steps than preparing a list:
- Identify Your Staples. What kinds of products do you consume regularly? Scan your past grocery receipts for a month, along with any other receipts from stores you frequent often. In business terms, this is analogous to understanding your demand.
- Analyze Your Product Suppliers. While some products may be so unique that we will accept them from a single source, most goods of a specific type are fungible, or easily substituted. I prefer Diet Coke, for example, but I also like Diet Pepsi. If Coca-Cola isn’t available or if the price is too high, I’ll purchase Diet Pepsi. Identifying comparable brands allows you substitute products when it makes financial sense.
- Know Your Usage. How much do you use over specific periods of time? For example, a roll of paper towels might last a week, while a bottle of aspirin lasts two months. Knowing your usage pattern enables you to know how much to buy, or to time your purchases to take advantage of sales without having to add an extra room in the house to store them.
2. Tour the “Big Four”
Four popular retailers compete nationally for your household expenditures: Walmart, Target, Walgreens, and CVS. There may be a regional or local store where you live that also advertises low prices and gets a portion of your shopping dollar.
Each of the “Big Four” advertises heavily in the local newspapers with coupons and sales; each maintains a website that lists the products they sell and their current prices. Also, each of these retailers has an online storefront as well, with prices that often differ from those in the physical store. Just be sure when you order from the online operation that you take into account any shipping charges.
CVS and Walgreens typically have higher prices than either Walmart or Target, but their weekly price promotions frequently are the lowest in the area in an attempt to get you in the store. In addition, the two pharmacy chains generally have shorter checkout lines, if any, than the bigger retailers. Sometimes, you can have your cake and eat it too.
3. Join Frequent Shopper Clubs
Many retailers offer membership clubs to their customers in order to better understand their buying habits and better enhance the store’s marketing programs. At the same time, members often get exclusive discounts and better terms that are not available to the general public.
Additionally, organizations like the American Automobile Association (AAA) and the American Association of Retired People (AARP) often also provide discounts for shopping at certain stores on top of store and manufacturer coupons and sales. Check with each organization for discounts in your area.
4. Use Coupons
Much has been written about the use of coupons and their effects upon the retail industry. Advocates chronicle savings of 80% or more on everything from cosmetics to pet food. Extreme couponing has become a “mini-industry” in the United States, the subject of TV series and national columnists. If extreme couponing appeals to you, go for it.
However, you don’t have to be a fanatic to save money. Instead, employ a few simple tactics:
- Use the Internet. Electronic coupon sites are easily available on the Internet. In fact, a recent search listed more 773 million references, and sites like Coupons.com and Coupon Network are just a click away. It’s easy to find a coupon for the product you’re seeking, print it (or save it to your mobile phone), and take it to your favorite store. Some people no longer go to the physical stores themselves, preferring to shop exclusively online to reap the savings. If that is your preference, however, you should be aware of the potential disadvantages of online shopping: There may be no returns accepted, delivery can be delayed, and you may incur shipping costs.
- Double Up Coupon Discounts. Stacking coupons – the practice of using a manufacturer and a store coupon together – is the extreme couponer’s favorite tactic, but it’s easy for a casual shopper to employ also. This practice accounts for the claimed savings of 80% or more by some shoppers.
- Use Mail-In Rebates. Saving money while shopping is not limited to the store’s four walls. Manufacturers frequently offer hefty rebates that require nothing more than an envelope, a postage stamp, and a willingness to wait a few days for the manufacturer’s check. Companies offer significant rebates because they know most people won’t take the time to fill out and mail the rebate forms.
- Ask for Rain Checks and Substitutes. The discounts on some products may be so deep that the retailer runs out of stock. When that happens, ask for a comparable substitute product and, if not available, request a rain check. The retailer is legally bound to comply with the offer unless it’s limited to supplies on hand or a certain date.
- Extend the Due Dates. Retailers spend a lot of time and resources to attract you into the store. If you’ve just missed a sale date, explain to the store manager that you’re a regular customer and you would like the discount. Store managers generally have the discretion to reduce prices in order to satisfy customers, so you have nothing to lose by asking.
5. Buy Private Labels and Generics
Large retailers often go to the manufacturers of the products they sell and negotiate an arrangement whereby the manufacturer provides the same product, but under a different name to the retailer. These store or private brands are identical to the advertised brand, but available at much lower prices.
Aspirin was first sold by the German company Bayer in 1897. According to the National Library of Medicine, there are more than 35 brand names by which aspirin is old, not including the various private brands. The product is the same; the only difference exists in the consumer’s mind and the price. Buy store brands when they are available.
6. Purchase in Bulk
Generally, the more you buy of a product, the lower its per-unit price. Store offers, such as “two for one,” “buy one, get one free,” and “buy one, get 50% off,” are found in shelves throughout a store.
The danger of taking advantage of the offer is that you buy more product than you need or could use before the product expires. Share purchases with other family members or neighbors who use the same products in order to save money and share the effort to shop. And always take a calculator with you on your shopping trips in order to make per unit price comparisons.
7. Know How Much to Spend
Few people would pay $10 for a gallon of milk, nor would they pay 50 cents for it. Many would think the latter price is too low, perhaps indicating that the milk is out-of-date, while the higher price seems like price gouging.
You already have a subconscious sense of price fairness for the products you buy as the result of purchasing them repeatedly in the past. Refine that sense by paying attention to store circulars and sales and using coupons so that you know a real deal when you see it.
8. Make an Ally
Store employees are the most familiar with existing and upcoming store sales and product discounts. Introduce yourself to the store clerks and managers where you shop so that you’re more than just a face. Make a friend so that your shopping trips are more enjoyable – the store employees will go out of their way to be sure you get the best prices and service.
