Depending on your perspective, technology may either be your ally or your worst adversary as you brave the Christmas shopping minefield. The internet is yelling incessantly. BUY THIS NOW, or this might be your LAST CHANCE.
The desire to get a good price or to make other people happy might lead you to make foolish purchases. You may spend an unlimited number of hours doing research online in order to reduce the amount of money you spend on gifts. Or, using the following Holiday Shopping Tips easily managed technological strategies, you can still save money, time, and your sanity:
Make Sure You Check Three Price Comparison Sites
You can see the average price paid on Amazon with the help of free websites like CamelCamelCamel and Keepa. The Internet makes it easy to compare prices, so you can be certain that you're getting a good deal whether you purchase from Amazon or somewhere else. These websites might be difficult to navigate, but the effort is well worth it.
Keepa is an alternative that does comparable functions while looking for products, and it also offers downloadable software that displays Amazon's pricing history when doing a search from a computer. This eliminates the need to remember to do your search using Keepa's interface.
Please download the appropriate software below for Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Microsoft Edge users. There have been too many instances of firms betraying your confidence via browser add-ons for it not to be wise to remove it after finding what you were looking for online.
You may not want to purchase on Amazon, but these two sites make it seem like you should. Learn from my colleague Geoffrey Fowler's essay on how the proliferation of adverts has made shopping on Amazon a frustrating experience.
To add to the confusion, while searching for some items on Google, you may also get more detailed, although problematic, pricing comparisons. Google's computers generate data on the right and reflect pricing comparisons made at various online and brick-and-mortar retailers.
These Google Shopping results will only sometimes appear. Searching for a broad topic like "flared jeans" will provide no results. We're not too happy with Google stuffing its search results page with adverts and information it has collected, either. Yet, in all sincerity, this does come in useful.
They are not 100% accurate, and they often overlook independent retailers and producers. Still, if you have something specific in mind and are open to other options, it is advantageous to check out all three.
You Can Try the Manufacturer's Website
Nike and Lenovo are just two examples of the many brands pleading with consumers to avoid intermediaries like Amazon, Best Buy, and Foot Locker in favor of purchasing their goods directly from the manufacturer or developer. Many businesses are desperate for business, so they would provide discounts to customers who make purchases via their websites, apps, or email promotions.
When we looked on Monday, a Cleopatra doll by L.O.L. Surprise was available for about the same price of $99 on both Amazon and Walmart. But if you had gone to the L.O.L. Surprise website and used the 10% discount coupon they had available for new customers, you could have gotten the toy for $90. There was also a bonus from L.O.L. Surprise.
As with any option, if you are purchasing directly from the manufacturer has its drawbacks. Shopping from a single online retailer that has everything on your list may save you time and effort. You may also be hesitant to place an order with a smaller business because you worry that it will deliver your purchase at no extra cost or in time for the holidays.
You may have to give them your email address to get the savings, which means you'll constantly get annoyed.
List-Making Sounds Boring, But It Works
None of these strategies will assist you in determining what, if anything, to purchase at all. Sorry! This is when things become complicated.
The host of the podcast and administrator of the online community is Caroline Moss. It was said on the show that the greatest thing you can do to prepare for Christmas shopping is to make a list of the things you want to get in advance. Spending time and money looking for gift-giving ideas on the internet is a waste of both of those resources.
Moss compared the experience of buying online to waiting in line at the supermarket while perusing the display cases of impulsive buys. You seem determined to get hold of anything.
Make Sure You Know What Your Shopping Limits
For the sake of brevity, we will not provide you with a whole list of recommendations for where to purchase.
Follow your passion for saving money by using coupons and price-tracking alerts by researching products in depth. Moss's online group compiled a massive database of promotional offers and deals on the items they wanted.
Suppose it seems like too much effort to try to maximize your Christmas buying; realize that you don't have to. Be easy on yourself and others if you end up purchasing too much or making silly mistakes over the Christmas season. Every single one of us has flaws.
Moss said that during the holiday season, "you can be persuaded that you need anything via brilliant marketing and fantastic prices and offers." It's simple to advise people to refrain from spending money on unnecessary items, but it's far more challenging to put such advice into action.
Getting to the bottom of Elon Musk's Apple beef
Musk, most recently in a series of tweets sent out on Monday, has three complaints about Apple:
According to Musk, Apple has, for the most part, ceased paying to advertise itself on Twitter.
Musk said that Apple has threatened to stop allowing fresh downloads of the Twitter app.
Musk has expressed concern in the past about the fees that Apple intends to collect from anybody who pays for Twitter features such as a verified account.
The tweets that Elon Musk sends out are not always dependable. Apple has not issued a statement or made any formal comment in response. Additionally, it is very improbable that Apple would remove Twitter from its app shop.
Conversely, you should remember that Apple and Google are the ones who determine what your phone can do. These corporations do not try to hide the fact that they have this authority, and they make it quite obvious that the app stores they operate are not completely free-speech zones.
Apple and Google are the only ones who choose which applications are made accessible for download in their respective official app stores for the iPhone and Android. It's possible that when you purchase anything digital, including e-books, virtual weaponry, or subscriptions to magazines like The Washington Post, you're really purchasing it from Apple or Google, and not the firms that are actually selling those items. Apple and Google both deduct a portion of the price you pay for Twitter and other digital items from their own revenue.
There are ways in which you suffer as a result of Apple and Google's near-absolute influence over applications, and there are also ways in which you gain from this dominance.
In general, both Apple and Google will check to make sure that any app you download does not have the intention of stealing your money or your personal information. (In actuality, the safeguards they have in place aren't foolproof.) Finding programs in a centralized location, such as the Google Play store, may be convenient. If you already have payment information registered with Apple, you can use it to purchase a membership to Disney+ from inside the app.
In contrast, there are many techs CEOs like Musk who are tired of Apple and Google's dominance, both personally and professionally.
Apple has been sued by Epic Games, the developer of the popular video game "Fortnite," in an effort to compel Apple to allow third-party app usage without the participation of Apple. This lawsuit is now making its way through the legal system. Apple and Google have been under pressure from authorities in the European Union, South Korea, and other areas of the globe to relax their control over app stores.
To this point, not much has changed. But you should be aware that Musk isn't the only one straining over Apple and Google's full dominance over apps, which dates back more than a decade.
Frequently Asked Questions
Run time-limited sales. Online sales that appear out of nowhere are another way to increase sales during the holiday shopping season. Put together gift guides.
Getting your holiday shopping done early can help you save money. People who shop early have plenty of time to find the best offers and save money. It also lets families spread out their spending over several paychecks and stay away from credit cards.
If you can, go shopping early in the day instead of late, because the shelves will have been restocked overnight and there will be fewer people. By Christmas Eve, many stores will have already started giving discounts, so if you have a specific gift in mind, shopping at the last minute might be your best bet.
There are many deals on the Saturday before Christmas and the days before and after. It's the last day of the year. Most stores have after-Christmas and New Year's sales from Dec. 26 to Jan.