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I was over at the Consumerist and came across this interesting article. Here’s a quick rundown of 10 shopping tips that will ensure you don’t get ripped off at various stores:

• Buying Loss Leaders and Leaving
• Using Credit and Paying it Off on Time
• Saying NO to the Extended Warranty
• Activating Your Own Phone With A Cell Phone Company
• Shopping in the Store But Buying Online
• Buying 1 When its 2 for $5
• Opening A Store Credit Card To Get A Discount, Then Cutting It Up
• Using Websites to Track 30 Day Price Guarantees
• Buying Seasonal Items at Clearance Prices (For Next Year)
• Buy “Accessories” on Ebay Rather Than Paying Huge Markups

Instead of just listing the 10 tips, I’m going to elaborate on them and give you the truth behind this. Before everyone starts complaining that these tips lead to higher prices in stores, just remember, I’m here to save money for the consumer. There are too many businesses out there that are acting unfairly to the consumer. It is my firm belief that every business should cater to the consumer, not their own pockets.

Buying Loss Leaders and Leaving

Every Sunday in the ad section, there are hundreds of deals that are designed to entice you into coming to the store. Most of the time, these items are in limited supply and chances are that by the time you get to the store, the item is already sold out. This is not a bait-and-switch policy because the advertiser has already mentioned in the ad that the item is in limited supply. The goal of the store is to bring you into the store in the hopes that you will purchase other products as well. Loss Leaders are basically products that are priced so low that the store is not making much of a profit on it, if at all. However, the stores are hoping that you will purchase other products that may not be as cheap as the advertised product. My suggestion is that if you can’t find the cheap product you’re looking for, look around at other store locations, otherwise, try to buy it online or forget it.

Using Credit and Paying it Off on Time

If you have any care about your credit rating, never open a store credit card. If you open too many credit cards, your credit rating will go down. So if stores advertise any no-interest plans or delayed payment plans, just say no and pay the price right there and then with your existing credit card or cash.

Saying NO to the Extended Warranty

Extended warranties is a great way for the store to make more money off of you. The store employees are often instructed to “pressure” the customer into purchasing an extended warranty. My suggestion is to always say NO to the extended warranty. Unless the warranty specifically states that they will replace your product under ANY circumstances, then by all means purchase it. That way, before the warranty expires, you can damage your product in any way and then get a new one of equal or greater value. If they don’t offer that, its not in your interests and just say no.

Activating Your Own Phone With A Cell Phone Company

This one is almost pointless too. Unless you have an unlocked cell phone, there is no point in asking the company to activate your SIM card without contract. Most carriers sell phones that are locked to their service and you cannot take your phone to another carrier. However, if your phone is unlocked or you are bringing your own phone that works on their networks, then you can just buy the SIM card (usually around $20 - 35) and receive service with no contract. Companies are starting to get smart about this and they may not offer you certain plan features without a contract. For example, you cannot get Rollover with Cingular unless you are on a contract. If you are forced to get a contract, make sure you get one of the cheaper phones (as in free) and then sell that phone on ebay.

Shopping in the Store But Buying Online

This is my personal favorite. I recommend that you try to make your purchases online as much as possible. Stores often charge you retail prices and you can find the same product much cheaper online. The four major downsides of buying online are ID theft (credit card number gets stolen), waiting time to receive the product, not receiving the product (scam), and having to return the product. However, if you go to a store and check out a product you will have an idea whether you want it or not. Once you made your mind, go home and buy it online. From my experience, Amazon has pretty fair prices and they offer free shipping on most orders over $25. The only downside is that you may end up waiting up to 15 business days to get your product.

Buying 1 When its 2 for $5

This is not a good idea. Sometimes you’ll see deals where they encourage you to buy 2 for $4. However, if you only buy one, you may have to pay unit price. In this case, its actually a better deal to pay for both items since you’ll get more for a lower price. Even if you don’t want both products or need it, it makes sense since you are actually paying less for both products. Unless the product is perishable, I encourage you to buy both. If you’re buying clothes, then you can think about it. However, look to see how much you are saving by purchasing more. For example, say at Gap they have t-shirts on sale. If you buy 2, you only have to pay $12.99. However, if you only buy one, you have to pay $9.99. In this case, for only $3 more, you can have two t-shirts. Now let’s say you can get 2 T-shirts for $16.99 or 1 for $9.99. In this case, you are only saving $3 so its not really worth buying 2. Do your math before buying into these schemes.

Opening A Store Credit Card To Get A Discount, Then Cutting It Up

The simple answer here is NO. Never open a store credit card for any reason. PERIOD.

Using Websites to Track 30 Day Price Guarantees

This is definitely a great idea. Some stores have a price guarantee that says if you find a product cheaper at another store, they will refund the difference, sometimes even more than the difference. PriceProtectr is a good example.

Buying Seasonal Items at Clearance Prices (For Next Year)

No point in buying a product at full price when you know its going to be on sale after a few weeks. If you can wait, then buy the product later or buy it online.

Buy “Accessories” on Ebay Rather Than Paying Huge Markups

Stores like Best Buy are notorious for selling cheap TV’s but then marking accessories up by almost 200% to 800%. My brother used to work at Best Buy and he mentioned that some Monster cables that sold for $100 could be purchased by him for only $35 and Best Buy was still making a profit. If you’re interested in purchasing accessories, buy them online. Don’t give stores any extra money. Save yourself the cash and buy it online. I’m not a big fan of ebay due to scams. I do suggest before bidding or buying, read all the information carefully. That’s why I like to purchase from Amazon directly since I am much more confident that it is not a scam.

Moral is this: Do your research at the stores, and buy online if you can. Save yourself money and always refuse unnecessary sales at stores.

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