Tag: finance

Flipping the script on high prices

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This probably won’t come as a shock to anyone, but prices on most things today are still really high. Sure, a few items have come down a bit, but several others continue to go up, or suffer from shrinkflation. Many of us are constantly on the lookout for ways to save. So, once again various articles, YouTube clips, and memes have popped up to help. Most of the suggestions are tried and true, such as make a list before shopping, check multiple store ads before buying, or stock up when something’s on sale. All are good pieces of advice, but one other suggestion might need to be rethought, which is “do your shopping online.”

The convenience factor of shopping online is definitely a plus, so why would you ever need to flip the script on this shopping habit? Well, sadly, it’s because shopping this way might be costly you money.

First, let me clarify that I’m not advocating getting rid of online shopping. It is convenient, can be timesaving, and often helps with matching up price saving options, with products I’m buying. However, despite all of this, you might also be paying more for some items than you would if you shopped in store. Sorry me items are actually going down in price, but you can only see it if you physically walk into a brick and mortar location. For example, I recently visited a local Target, and saw that the pack of napkins I usually get had dropped in price. Great! I didn’t really need any right then, but I was happy to see that the price was reduced (Not: reduced, as in not on sale or clearance.). However, when I tried to buy it online a week later, I saw it was still listed at the higher price. In order to get the cheaper price, I had to go into the store.

Why, you might be wondering? Well, there could be a couple of reasons. First they didn’t update the website, or second, this was a reduction for that geographic location only (and web prices can tend to be less city specific in the same way). Either way, it remains true that I have to physically shop in store in order to pay less for this item.

What options are you left with then? I’d say they flipping the script we will help, but you’re probably going to need a hybrid approach, which will require you to be more actively engaged in your shopping choices. Occasionally, visit a couple of your local stores, and compare prices (sadly, most retailers these days are usually some sort of dynamic pricing, so there will be differences even between two local targets or Walmarts). Then see how prices online look. Find your acceptable balance between the two, and make your buying choices. Then, be ready to do it all over again next month. 😕

Let’s talk about the lottery vs savings debate

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For any one person who loves to play the lottery, there’s another person who equally loves to chide them for throwing their money away. This is a battle of ideologies.

One says that someone has to win, and if that person is me, then all my fantasies can come true. People who follow this line of thinking will often think of all the ways they’d go about spending, savings, investing, and even giving away some of those winnings.

As hopeful as the first mentality might be, the other way of thinking takes a decidedly more glass half full kind of approach. They will actively argue that the likelihood of that winner being you is astronomically not in your favor. Therefore, by purchasing that ticket you might as well be flushing it down the toilet. Theses people will also follow up by declaring that if you’d put that ticket money in a savings instead, then you’d be better off financially for real.

While both standpoints have their pros and cons, theirs is an argument that will probably never end. However, that leaves us with the question, are either of them actually right? I mean, yeah, you literally can’t win if you don’t play; however it’s equally true that the vast majority of tickets purchased will not result in even a free ticket type win. I guess it ultimately comes down to what makes you happier, the hope of winning, or the knowledge you have money set aside for savings.

I guess one way to test the success of both options would be to run a month long experiment. It would be simple enough. All you’d have to do is 1st, buy however many lotto tickets you normally would throughout the course of the month. Then, once you’ve made your lottery purchase for the week, let’s say you spent $5, you will then also place $5 into an envelope for savings. The next time you purchase lottery tickets you do the same thing, and so on, for a month. Then, at the end of the month look at how playing the lotto made you feel vs. how still having the money in the envelope does. Perhaps this is how we can finally figure out which path works best for us individually.

So, how about it, are you game to try? If you do, please leave a comment below, and tell us how it went.