How Shopping Online Saves My Budget
Online shopping is ultra convenient, making it a dangerous trap for many people who derive dopamine from making impulse purchases. (Hi. Hey. Hi.)
But for the lucky few who don’t depend on the brown box on the doorstep for happy feelings, shopping online can prove to be a helpful tool for keeping on track with a budget.
I’ve mentioned before that I hate shopping. It’s true. However when I must, I prefer to shop online, but for different reasons than you might think.
Comparison shopping can save thousands over the course of a year, and having hundreds of choices at my fingertips is a great way to compare price, features, and value for certain items.
Also I know the final cost of my cart before I hit the checkout.
It can be shocking and deflating to check out at Target and realize that your trip out for toothpaste quickly turned into $100 spent, especially considering times of rising inflation and shrinkflation. When I shop online, I’m more likely to remove unnecessary items from my cart than when I’m in a physical store. Maybe it’s my years of working retail or maybe it’s my social awkwardness, but I won’t ask a cashier to put my impulse grabs back on the shelf the same way I’ll shamelessly delete it from a virtual cart or tap “save for later” instead.
Additionally I’ll use tools like Amazon’s “subscribe and save” feature to save a few bucks on routine purchases like laundry detergent and dog treats.
But I use it a bit differently than it’s designed…
As a former marketing professional I know that subscription purchases are sold as “convenient” and “automatic.” I am also keenly aware that these purchase models can benefit the retailers with “forgotten” and “unintentional” subscriptions veiled as convenient.
That may sound cynical, but think back with me. Have you ever signed up for a subscribe and save offer and then just… forgotten you did that? (Yes, me, here.) After noticing this pattern I actively choose to go against the grain shifting these subscription models to my advantage over the retailer’s.
The way the site prompts you to set up subscriptions is to choose a different frequency for each product, then set it and forget it, enjoying your purchases as they arrive. But what happens if I set up my dog’s favorite treats to arrive every three months and he runs out before that three months is up? I can shift my subscription, right? Yes, but… if I don’t do it by a certain time, I’m not getting that discount. And if I don’t need those treats one month and skip them, they won’t be available to ship to me again for three more months.
And after you’ve added 20 subscriptions at the best frequency for each (toilet paper every month and Q-tips every 4 months), you’ve got different items in queue all the time. For me, this was confusing. I wanted the option to choose from everything I routinely buy at all times AND access to the discounts.
A few years ago, after growing quite annoyed with this constant bait and switch, I hacked the system.
I changed all my subscriptions to deliver every month, and I manage them once, removing them when they’re not needed. I’m not buying items I don’t need now because they will be available as an option for me again the very next month. And while it can seem a bit more hands-on and less set-it-and-forget-it, it’s worked surprisingly well. I’ve found myself spending less time fiddling with the subscriptions than before, getting better discounts, and making sure I always have the right items at the right time.
Here’s this month’s example. I have 45 items in my subscribe and save to ship each month at the end of the month. I never need all 45 items. So I hop into my account mid-month and “skip” all the items that I don’t need with a quick click. This month I’m only getting 6 items. All discounted, all still somewhat mindless and automatic. And only what we need.
AND as a bonus, I get my Amazon itchies out in the app when I select my purchases each month. I spend less on the items I need and don’t fall victim to the “oh crap I forgot I had this subscription” feeling when a box of 45 items shows up on the doorstep.
So tell me. Do you use online shopping to your advantage or is it a trap for you? Do you have any subscription hacks that you use to save money? Do share!