Are you one of those holiday shoppers who is convinced that you do your best work under pressure? Perhaps you always feel as if the holidays just creep up on you! No matter what, facing the task of last-minute holiday shopping can be stressful—and expensive. However, with a little time and a little planning, you could end up scoring better deals than everyone who finished crossing names off their list back in November. Make your last-minute shopping missions successful and affordable with this advice.
Do Your Research
Even though you’re shopping late in the game, resist the urge to run into a store and grab the first thing you can find. If you have some gifts that you want to get, spend a little time researching pricing in different stores. During the end of the shopping season, stores usually offer their deepest discounts and may have additional incentives, like increased loyalty points or free gift cards with purchase. Spending some time finding the stores with the best deals for the items you want can save you a significant amount of money while allowing you to get exactly what you want for your family and friends.
Take Advantage of Points
The holidays are the perfect time to reap the rewards of loyalty points and other purchasing incentives you’ve built up over the year. Tap into your credit card points or cash back, cash in on loyalty point coupons from your favorite stores, and make use of your cash back from any rebate site memberships you have. These incentives will help you boost your purchasing power without having to dig further into your bank account.
Get Creative
The best holiday gifts come from the heart, so think of using your talents rather than your cash to give holiday gifts that really count. For instance, mixing up a few big batches of your favorite portable foods and presenting them in some nice baskets or decorative bags is a cost-effective way to check off everyone on your list in a small window of time with gifts that feel personal and thoughtful. Tap into your talents instead of your wallet for gifts that your friends and family won’t soon forget.
