By Good Housekeeping
Everywhere you look these days, sale signs are wallpapering store windows, and email accounts and mailboxes are being deluged with special-discount coupons.
But you need to know the most important bargain-shopping rules for this turbulent economy. Try these five tactics for getting rock-bottom prices:
Stack discounts and store sales
If you’re not combining retailer sales with a print coupon, Web code or other discount, you’re probably not getting the most for your money.
Search the Internet for your favorite retailers and “coupon” before hitting the mall or shopping online.
For fast hunting, bookmark retailmenot.com, couponcabin.com and www.goodhousekeeping.com/family/
deals-coupons/ as your go-to coupon sites.
Save bigger: Join the store’s frequent-shopper mailing and email lists — you’ll receive sale alerts.
Shop in high-income ZIP codes
Avid thrift-store customers know to shop in the fancier parts of town. There, you’re more likely to find well-known brands and good-quality clothing, furniture and other items at a discount.
Learn the sales cycle
Retailers have specific days when they put out new stock and mark down merchandise, so ask the next time you’re in the store.
Many retailers move merchandise to the sale rack within six weeks of the time it first shows up on shelves.
At liquidation sales, the key date to ask about is closing. Right before the store closes, you can reap savings of 75 percent off or better.
Tip for thrift-store shoppers: Most people don’t have time to clean out their closets and drop off unwanted goods at thrift stores until the weekend, reasons Jennifer Sheran of Snellville. That’s why she visits on Tuesdays, when new merchandise fills the racks and the store is less crowded.
Weigh how you pay
At thrift shops, cash typically is the best option. Stores may be willing to offer a discount in exchange for your helping them avoid the pricey merchant fees on credit-card transactions.
But definitely stick with a credit card for liquidators and other places where sales are final, cautions Edgar Dworsky, founder of consumerworld.org, a consumer resource guide. When you pay with a credit card, the Fair Credit Billing Act gives you the right to dispute a charge for items that are not delivered as agreed.
Many cards also offer helpful perks, says Dworsky. Most gold credit cards double the manufacturer’s warranty, adding up to another year of free protection. (And if you buy a product with the Good Housekeeping Seal and it proves defective, Good Housekeeping will replace the item or refund your money.)
Do some post-purchase research
After making a major purchase, look out for price-drop alerts online at sites such as pricepinx.com. They can help you grab the one-time price adjustment many stores offer should the price you pay drop in the store or at a competitor shortly after purchase. So if you buy a TV for $349 and then the price goes down to $319 a week later, the store could reimburse you for the difference if it has such a policy.
