Quick and Easy Ways to Become a Savvy Shopper Extraordinaire

How COVID-19 taught me to shop smarter

Before COVID-19 hit, I used to do most of my shopping in stores. I was never a big shopper. When I needed to make some nongrocery purchases, I’d make a list ahead of time, hit up the mall, and target the stores that carried the items I needed. Inevitably, I ended up making one or two impulse buys each trip.

A scented candle here. Or a plush raccoon toy there.

I’d never check beforehand to see if I could get that same item cheaper in another store or to price match with the existing store. It was an impulse buy, after all!

However, with the start of the lockdown, I transitioned to making most purchases online — these would be delivered directly to my home or picked up at the store via curbside pickup. The more I shopped, the more I realized how to shop smarter.

In essence, I learned a few money-saving techniques from weeks of online shopping. I was aware that online shopping had certain benefits, such as delivery to my home and browsing at my convenience. However, I also learned it’s good for my wallet. I’d love to share my strategies in this article.

Finding the Right Price

Once I’ve selected an item for purchase (I’ll leave my selection process of a specific product for discussion in another article), I’ll typically do a Google search with the exact name of the item. If lucky, a few links to stores carrying this item pop up with their corresponding prices. I’ll go through a few of those to see where the better price might be. I’ll also check the Google Shopping tab, which sometimes shows comparable prices (including shipping) for a specific item on several different websites. Note: Some items will appear in a Google search even if the name is approximate and not exact.

These two quick searches are great if you’re in a rush. However, they don’t provide an exhaustive list of all the websites or retailers that sell any given item. I like to also go onto a few different store websites and specifically search for that item. For example, if I’m looking for a specific household item, I’ll search for it on a few websites that are likely to carry it: Walmart, Amazon, The Bay, and Bed Bath & Beyond. For children’s items, I’ll search on Walmart, Amazon, Bed Bath & Beyond, Toys “R” Us, etc.

For example, when I was looking to purchase the VTech Zoo Jamz Stompin’ Fun Drums, the corresponding Google search yielded the following results.

Based on the above quick Google search (highlighted in yellow), I note that the regular price of the item is $49.99, whereas it’s currently on sale at Walmart and Amazon for $34.97 (see sections circled in red). I could also click on the Shopping tab, as circled in blue above, to see if that yields any other results (see below).

Now, if I search by the exact name of the product, the results have a slightly different layout.

You can see the sellers of the item listed in a slightly different format on the right. However, as before, they allow me to conclude that the product is on sale for $34.97.

Before making the purchase, among other things, I’ll also check:

• If the item is in stock
• That the seller is verifiable, if unfamiliar
• For any coupons and promotions, use the Chrome extension Honey, as it’ll automatically do this for you
• The cost of shipping
• The customer service and return policies

Such considerations could help you choose between buying the above item from say Amazon versus Walmart.

Verifying the Seller

On a rare occasion, the item you’re looking for might be available on an unfamiliar website. A few months ago, I was searching for an alphabet puzzle for children that was out of stock or overpriced on my go-to websites. However, a quick Google search showed the item on sale on the Calendar Club website for a great price.

I was unfamiliar with the website and wasn’t sure if it was a reputable seller or not. In that case, I recommend doing what I did, which was to scroll through the website and follow this checklist:

• Is there a physical store location listed? Can Google Maps validate that store location?
• Are there other quality items on this website?
• Are there reviews of the seller or the company? Do they sound authentic?

In the end, I determined that this seller was reputable and proceeded with my order.

In the case of an Amazon seller, I use FakeSpot or ReviewMeta to determine the legitimacy of the reviews. Keep in mind that there are well-known risks of purchasing counterfeit items from Amazon.

Taking Coupons and Promotions into Account

There are a few other factors that I consider besides the lowest price that’s available on the market. One of those is the price of the item after any applicable coupons and promotions.

For example, Bed Bath & Beyond is famous for its 20%-off coupons. Recently, they’ve also started sending out $20 off an $80 purchase, which works out to 25% off items if you only buy for $80. As an aside, I highly recommend buying as close to $80 as possible to maximize the savings from that coupon. Therefore, all else being equal, if an item sells at the regular price for $20 on Amazon and $20 at Bed Bath & Beyond, I’d purchase it at Bed Bath & Beyond after waiting to receive a 20%-off coupon. The discount on a $20 item might not seem like much, but it adds up and is even greater for more expensive purchases.

On a side note, recently, Bed Bath & Beyond has started automated price matching on its website. That is, if an item is on sale on another website, the same price will appear on the Bed Bath & Beyond website. For the cases where you want to buy from a third-party seller but are worried about shipping or customer service, you may get the same price with better service from Bed Bath & Beyond.

Some websites offer discounts when you sign up for their emails. Again, it’s important to read the details of that subscription to determine if your purchase will qualify for that discount.

Before making a purchase, I’ll first let the Honey extension search for available discounts. I also do a Google search to see if any coupons are available for a specific seller — e.g., Sport Chek Canada. On the rare occasion that you score an additional 10% off a $50 purchase or free shipping for an item you’d have had to pay to ship, this extra few minutes of searching is totally worth it.

See below for an example of a search for coupons.

One more important thing to note is the timing of your purchase. Typically, if I’m not in a rush to purchase a relatively expensive item, I’ll monitor the price on a couple of websites. The more expensive the item, the less of a rush I’m in to purchase it. I’ll track the prices of these products over time in order to take advantage of periodic discounts and sales. Other times, an item might show up as on sale even if the price hasn’t fluctuated!

Price Matching, Adjustments, and Discounts

I mentioned before that I noticed that Bed Bath & Beyond sometimes automatically adjusts the price of an item if it’s on sale in another store. For certain products, Amazon does that as well.

For stores that don’t automatically adjust their prices, there is often a price-matching policy that may apply to your purchase. For example, Walmart offers price matching for its online orders. The process is relatively simple once you get the hang of it. Here’s my handy guide:

1. Download the Flipp app. It lets you find items from weekly flyers.
2. Search for the item you want to purchase.
3. Purchase the product as per usual.
4. Fill out the price-matching section with your order details.

The refund will automatically apply to your method of payment within a few business days. I recently saved almost $7.50 on frozen pizza. That’s a couple of coffees that I’ll not pass up! I also take advantage of price matching if I like the customer service or shipping terms of a retailer selling the item at regular price (but allowing price matching) better as compared to a retailer offering the item on sale.

Price Adjustments

Some retailers also allow you to obtain a price adjustment on your purchase within a specified period if the item goes on sale. I once saved about $40 on a wireless speaker at Best Buy by calling them when the product went on sale (about a week after purchasing the item at regular price). Within a few business days, I was $40 richer because I decided to check the price a week after buying it.

Flipp

Flipp deserves a discussion section of its own. I used to be embarrassed to price match items with physical flyers because it was very time consuming and held up the line at the store, which made me feel very self-conscious. Not to mention that searching physical flyers for items you’re buying requires time and dedication.

I didn’t have the former and had no desire for the latter.

However, with Flipp, finding the right price for an item has never been more convenient. After searching for the product I want to purchase, it lets me clip the flyer virtually for when I want to price match. At the store, pulling out the clipped items on the app is quick and easy.

I liked using this app at self-checkout before the pandemic. I didn’t feel like I was holding up the line, and it was simple and convenient to get the customer-service representative monitoring the self-checkout section to do the price match for me.

Nowadays, since I frequent the store very rarely, I use Flipp to search for items I’m including in my Walmart online grocery order and then fill out a price-match form after the fact to get a refund for items being price matched.

Below is an example of a search I did on Flipp to find the best price for a specific brand of pizza.

No Frills had the best price, so once I clicked on the flyer, it allowed me to clip the item, which saved it to the shopping list of the site or the app for future reference.

Corporate Discounts

Now I’d be the first to admit I don’t take full advantage of corporate and professional association discounts. Considering that you can take advantage of discounts offered to your spouse, family, and friends (if they allow you to, of course), there are a lot of possibilities for savings.

My advice would be to familiarize yourself with discounts offered through your employer and any professional associations (such as Perkopolis), and do the same for your spouse and family members (depending on the time you have and your dedication). Often, you don’t have time to search through these websites when you’re in the store or mall making a purchase — sometimes you still won’t for online purchases.

I’ve now familiarized myself with a couple that I do use quite frequently (such as the Ontario Science Centre).

Factoring in Shipping Costs

One of the things I dislike the most is finding the perfect deal on an item and then having to pay for shipping. Some websites offer free shipping on any amount (yay Children’s Place!), while others offer free curbside or in-store pickup, of which I like to take advantage. In certain situations, shipping is free if you purchase over a certain amount. If your item exceeds the minimum and you get free shipping, that’s awesome!

However, if it doesn’t, there are a few things I consider to get me to that shipping minimum.

• Is there anything else that I was considering ordering from a different seller that I could potentially order from this one?
• Is there something else that catches my eye on their website that I’d like to add to my order?
• Is there a birthday or anniversary coming up for which I can purchase a gift from this particular website?
• Are there friends and family that might need something from this website that could help me reach my minimum purchase threshold for free shipping?

During COVID-19 time, I’ve started asking the latter question more and more frequently even if I don’t meet the minimum shipping requirements. After all, a friend or family member might be considering going into the store for a $2 purchase.

Assessing Customer Service and Return Policies

One more consideration I take into account before selecting a seller for my purchase is their customer service and return policy.

• If a mug I order arrives damaged, how easily and quickly will I be able to get the issue resolved? Will I get a full refund? Will I be able to get a replacement item easily?
• Will I have to go into the store to resolve any problems? Or do I just need to print a shipping label, drop the parcel off at UPS or FedEx, and wait for the refund?
• If I need to reach customer service, what options are available? Chat, email or phone? How quick is the resolution? Will I need to be on the phone for an hour or two before being able to speak to an agent? Personally, I like the chat and email feature when pressed for time. I can send off a question or query and can respond at my leisure (especially for email). However, for more pressing or detailed issues, nothing beats a phone conversation.

Over the past few months, I’ve been able to get a better understanding of the customer-service response time for a few sellers that I frequently use and which mode of contact yields the most efficient results.

What about if I order a few different sizes of shorts to try on? I only intend to keep the ones that fit best, after all! Some sellers will allow you to return the item with a printed shipping label to UPS, FedEx, or similar company without issue and without charging for the return. Some sellers would charge a restocking fee or a return delivery fee unless you return the item in-store.

If you’re trying to reduce the number of times you visit stores or prefer the convenience of return by mail, this consideration is important. Some retailers only accept returns by mail for online orders. Others restrict what you can return and within what time frame. Certain items are final sale. You don’t want to be stuck with three pairs of shorts if two of them are way too large, just because you weren’t clear on the return policy. Fortunately, all of this information is found in the customer-service section of the website. There’s usually a subsection for returns and exchanges, which I familiarize myself with before making a purchase.

Conclusion

There are probably many more tips and tricks that seasoned online (and in-store) shoppers can share, but the above are the main ones that I use. I hope this article has been useful and impactful for you and that implementing the above recommendations will save you a few dollars here and there and a significant amount of money in the long run. Thank you for reading, and happy shopping!