Six silly shopping blunders we all make

Believe it or not, there is a right and wrong way to shop. Here we highlight six of the biggest shopping blunders!

Whether you’re a shopaholic, or you only hit the shops when it’s really necessary, it’s far too easy to shop ‘badly’. And by badly, I simply mean that you’re not getting the best deal for your money. So here, I’m going to highlight six of the silliest shopping blunders we’re all prone to making!

Failing to shop around

According to research from online shopping tool, InvisibleHand, 68% of shoppers admit to buying online without shopping around first, paying an average of £10 more per item as a result.

Shopping around might sound like a hassle, but it really doesn’t have to be. For a start, there are numerous shopbots out there to help take the effort out of shopping around.

Shopbot simply stands for ‘shopping robot’ and these handy search engines allow you to scour the web for whatever item you want and find it at the best price. So all you have to do is type in what you’re looking for, and away you go.

Good ones to check out include:

Alternatively, you could take a look at InvisibleHand. This is a free online shopping tool that helps you to automatically find the cheapest prices when you’re shopping online. It works behind the scenes on your browser and automatically flags up if a product you’re looking for is available at a lower price elsewhere! So you won’t actually need to use a shopbot as it does it all for you.

Rachel Robson highlights four ways to save money as you shop!

Forgetting to use voucher codes

When shopping online, it can be easy to simply click through, make your purchase, and move on. But if you do, you’ll have forgotten one vital step! Okay, it’s not vital, but if you want to save some money, it’s a good idea!

And that one step is to hunt out a voucher code.

Voucher codes can be used on a whole range of items – so whether you’re buying clothes, shoes, camping gear, garden furniture, or groceries, make sure you take a look to see whether you can find a relevant voucher code. Good websites to check out include HotUKDeals, vouchercodes.co.uk, myvouchercodes.co.uk, latestdiscountvouchers.co.uk, discountshoppinguk.co.uk, voucherseeker.co.uk, supermarketvouchers.com, shoppingcodes.co.uk, www.promotionalcodes.org.uk and VoucherHub.com.

Once you’ve found your voucher code, simply enter it into the specified box at the online checkout and watch the pounds get sliced off your bill! And even if you’re not shopping online, you may be lucky enough to find a printout voucher that you can take along with you to spend instore!

Forgetting to use a cashback website

Similarly, when shopping online it can be far too easy to forget to use a cashback website. But you’d be silly to miss out on earning money back for making a purchase!

Cashback websites are easy to use. All you have to do is register on one such as Quidco, TopCashBack, and GreasyPalm.

Then every time you shop online, check to see if that particular retailer is listed on your chosen cashback website. If it is, click on the affiliate link shown. This will take you through to the retailer’s site and you can then make your purchase as usual.

This transaction is tracked, the retailer pays the cashback site for introducing you as a customer, and the cashback site passes that payment onto you. And that’s how you earn cashback!

Rachel Robson takes a look at a great way to earn cash back when shopping online

Ignoring the high street

What with voucher codes, shopbots and cashback websites all helping you to save money online, I wouldn't blame you for thinking that shopping online ALWAYS works out cheaper than shopping on the high street. In fact, according to InvisibleHand, more than half of shoppers believe they will always get a better deal online.

Personally, however, I think you’d be mad to rule out the high street all together! Don’t forget that if you are buying online, you will have to pay a delivery fee in many cases, and often this can be around £5. If you’re buying clothes and then discover they don’t fit correctly and have to send them back, that’s effectively £5 down the drain.

So don’t forget, if you can’t find a voucher code to slice some money off your bill, you may actually find that you can get a better deal on the high street. And at least if you’re clothes shopping, you’ll be able to try them on first!

Failing to use a cashback credit card

Whether you’re buying online or on the high street, it’s important that you pay in the correct way. Obviously you can pay with cold hard cash, or by debit card. But if you can afford to pay off your bill each month, why not use a cashback credit card and get rewarded for your spending?

The American Express Platinum Cashback Card, for example, offers 5% cashback for the first three months, up to £100. Thereafter, you'll get 0.5% cashback on the first £3,500 of spend, 1% from £3,501 to £7,500, and 1.25% from £7,501 upwards.

Note, however, that American Express isn’t accepted everywhere, and of course the top cashback deal of 5% will expire after three months.

Alternatively, the Capital One World MasterCard pays 1% unlimited cashback on all purchases. You’ll also earn a £10 bonus credit every January. However, you will have to pay an £18 annual fee. So to justify getting this card, make sure you’ll spend at least £1,600 per year.

You can find out more in The best reward credit cards.

Make sure you pay off your bill in full each month, or the cashback you'll earn will be far less than the interest you'll fork out.

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Paying with a store card

How many times have you been asked to open a store card when you’ve been out shopping? Hundreds I suspect. Usually the shop assistant will try to tempt you with an offer of a 10% discount on your purchase. But what she/he will fail to tell you is that these store cards come hand in hand with hefty interest rates – in fact, it’s not usual for them to be as high as 30% APR!

So, like cashback cards, unless you can GUARANTEE you will ALWAYS be able to pay off your bill in full each month, I would steer clear of store cards. If you know you can’t afford to pay off your bill in full, make sure you use a 0% on new purchases credit card.

Right now, the top 0% purchases card is the Tesco Bank Clubcard Credit Card Mastercard offering an interest-free period on all new purchases for 13 months. Just remember to pay off your balance in full before that year is up, otherwise you’ll be hit by an interest rate of 16.9%.

So next time you’re out shopping, make sure you avoid these six blunders. Good luck!

This is a classic article that has been updated for 2011.

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