Black Friday has been and gone, but the endless barrage of sellers advertising discounts will not end there, because next up is Boxing Day sales, and then the January sales!
Making the Most of Sales
Like with Black Friday, Which? has found that many products advertised as being on ‘special offer’ have actually been cheaper at other times in the year. Data from PriceSpy, a price comparison site, found that in 2021, only 30% of products were cheaper on Boxing Day than at the start of the month.
Retailers sometimes use tricks like putting the ‘was’ price as the item’s original price when it was released, rather than the price it was at just before the sale price.
However, when used strategically, you can make the most of those Boxing Day and January sales to genuinely save yourself money.
Make a List
Make a list of items you actually need ahead of the sales and stick to it. This way you’re buying items you were going to purchase anyway, but at sale prices.
This can help you avoid impulse buying, where you buy things just because they are on sale and you’re scared of missing out on a good deal.
Consumer psychologist, Dimitrios Tsivrikos, says:
“We’re more scared of missing out on products or services rather than thinking, ‘Fantastic – gaining that product or service will make my life better.’ So that fear drives us to buy unnecessary things.
“In a retail environment this becomes more prominent because people copy each other. From an evolutionary perspective we’re competing, we don’t want to miss out on resources. So the more busy the stores are, the more we’re going to spend because we’re imitating everyone else.”
Products are advertised and marketed to us with the intention of persuading us to buy them, and they can indeed be very persuasive, making it hard for us to simply say ‘no’.
Compare Prices
It’s always worth comparing the price of a product or service among different retailers to get a better idea of whether a ‘deal’ being offered is actually special or not.
Which? also has a few links you can use to check the price history of different products to see whether they are cheaper at other times of the year, giving a better idea of whether a ‘deal’ is genuine.
Another idea is to look at the list we spoke about making and checking the price of the items on it at this moment in time. Then, when Boxing Day and January sales roll around, check the prices again and see whether the prices are much better.
Get Christmas Planning
Sometimes the last thing on your mind once Christmas is over is shopping for the next one, but Boxing Day and January sales can be a great time to get ahead.
Many Christmas-themed items are heavily discounted after Christmas, making it a good time to buy them!
This could include buying things like:
- Christmas crackers
- Advent calendars (be sure to check expiry dates)
- Wrapping paper
- Decorations
- Christmas cards