Controlling Your Spending Online

So, you had a bad day – all you feel like is a bit of a retail therapy, so you head straight home from work. If you don’t go into the stores, you can’t buy from them, after all. You have your dinner, and then it’s time for some stress relief.

This could mean scrolling through your messages on Facebook, or just generally hanging out online and looking for fun things to watch or learn about. You open your emails and see that Amazon has sent you a link to the book just like the one you read. Or you see that something in your eBay wishlist has gone on sale.

Don’t Get Sucked In

And, boy, is it a great deal. Before you know it, you are off on the eBay spending spree. Did you know that the average person views just over seven pages while they are on eBay? With each page being able to show up to 200 listings, that is a whole lot of temptation for you.

What should you do, though, if you see something that you really need? It is very simple on paper – make a list and stick to that. Do not buy anything more.

In practice, this is a bit more difficult. Those attractive deals you found on the popular eCommerce giant might seem extremely good and, after all, how much difference would a few dollars here or there make anyway?

Limit Your Ability to Spend

Do yourself a favor. Get yourself a prepaid card to use with eBay and load the money that you need for what you have to buy. If you like, give yourself a little extra as a discretionary fund. Set weekly or monthly budget for spending, load it to the card and stick to the plan.

Once the money has been spent, you cannot load more until the next week or month, depending on your schedule.

At first, you will be tempted to add extra money whenever you feel like it. You will need to be firm with yourself so that you avoid doing that. If you persevere, it will quickly become a habit that will stick.

Ask These Questions Before you Buy

When you are about to make a purchase, ask yourself two really important questions:

· “Do I really need this or is it just something I want?”
· “Is this something we use regularly?”

For example, there might be some gorgeous throw pillows that have gone on sale, but you already have more than enough. This is something that you want rather than something you really need.

On the other hand, if you see the laundry detergent you use at a really good price, it would be wise to stock up.

Get the Best Possible Deal

Finding out about the best deals will take a little bit of a research, and this could end up tempting you to buy even more. You could, instead, make your searches more specific, like by typing in something like promo for detergent on eBay or discount voucher for laundry soap.

The more specific your search, the closer the results will be to what you are actually looking for.

Don’t just stop there, though. Check out price comparison and deal websites as well so that you know you are getting the very best possible deal. These sites will usually bring in prices from a range of different sources so you can find the best one quickly.

Ask for Deals

This will usually work best with the big retailers, but it is something that is worth trying out. You could email or contact the distributor of the detergent saying that you would like to try it out. You could ask if they know of any promotions being run on the product.

So, you are not directly asking them for anything more than just an information. They will often provide either a coupon or sample for you just because of this.

Using Your Coupons

Don’t you just love that Extreme Couponing show? I mean, the power of coupons is awesome. Now, if you have the time and energy to devote to all of that, it can work out for you. But you don’t have to go to those lengths to benefit from vouchers.

Using a voucher online is a little more complicated but still very workable. All you need to do is make sure that you have the right code, know where to enter it in before you order and that you use it before it expires.

Shop at the Right Time

This seems a little obvious, but it is extremely important. Don’t ever shop when you are angry, upset, or bored, especially if you tend to be an emotional shopper.

If you have had a really bad day at work, take some time out before you start looking at the internet or the deals on your phone. Make sure that you are completely relaxed before you start browsing.

Lastly, before hitting that “Buy” button, ask yourself this simple question – “Is this going to contribute to my financial future or hurt it?”

Online shopping is a habit that can be healthy or unhealthy, like any other thing. Shop when in the right mood and state of mind, without overextending your budget over useless items.