How early holiday shopping can save you money
MINNEAPOLIS -- There's a good chance you're decorating for Halloween or planning out which candy to buy. But others are thinking much further ahead. That's because holiday shopping now might be beneficial for your wallet.
A recent survey found 50% of shoppers start spending for December holidays before halloween.
"There's always going to be early birds who want to take advantage of taking their time, stretching their budget out across several months," Claire Tassin, a retail e-commerce analyst for Morning Consult, said. "Black Friday and Cyber Monday are less and less relevant every year."
Trying to find a good deal is usually a shopper's priority, but Tassin says their search likely won't begin around the Thanksgiving rush.
So will shopping online be a better option that in-person, or vice versa?
"What I recommend is paying attention to prices and paying attention to the fine print. Some discounts will be in-store only or online only, so look for that language," Tassin said.
While there will be deals in-store, Tassin feels online shopping offers more ways to save. You can quickly compare prices across several websites. And install a browser plug-in. They can track price changes or find coupons when you add an item to your cart.
Deals and discounts will be crucial this season. Tassin says most shoppers plan to spend the same as last year, meaning they'll get less for their money because of inflation. So if buying gifts is your priority, you'll need to pull back spending elsewhere.
"We're gonna see tradeoffs when it comes to travel, alcohol spending specifically, so maybe going down a shelf when we're buying our booze for the parties ... as well as is home decor, so maybe just using last year's stuff instead of resetting the tree this year," Tassin said.
Don't be afraid to call customer service if that item you bought dropped in price days, weeks, even months later. Tassin says many retailers will allow you to get a price adjustment.