How Can I Make Christmas Shopping Less Stressful?
How can I make Christmas shopping less stressful?
That is a question many people are asking around this time. Are you delaying Christmas shopping? Are you dreading making a list and checking it twice? With Thanksgiving coming up soon, it’s tiiiimeee *in my Mariah Carey voice. Here are a few tips to help tackle the task of Christmas shopping and make it an easier process.
Create an ACTUAL List
I know a lot of you out there may develop a list and just “store” the list in your head. That is the worst place to keep it because it is likely that you will forget someone or double shop for a person. Every year that i did a “mental shopping list”, I always forgot at least 2 gifts. You need the list to be either digital or in a notebook so that you can refer back to it through the Holiday season and check off as you go.
The list should include who you are shopping for, their interests/hobbies/things you think they would like, and budget for that person’s gift.***
Spend a good amount of time creating this list as it will help you make wiser decisions quicker. Think of it as the reference map.
Check the list twice
This is where you double check your list. Did you come up with a gift idea for every person on the list? Having at least one idea for the gift will give you a starting place. It will also help you avoid forgetting to get something and running out to get something last minute that will bust your budget or may not be the most thoughtful gift. With at least one gift idea listed it will start to get the juice flowing on what to get.
Did you think outside the box with the gift? Are there other creative and/or less expensive gift options for this person? This is not an excuse to give someone an obvisviousle cheap gift in quality but a way to help find a gift that you and the recipient are excited about. For example is there a bunch of small things the person likes you can combine to make their gift? I mostly do this with gift giving because I save more money and still give quality gifts. Start with a theme like golf, for example, you can get golf designed things (golf coffee mug, t-shirt with golf joke on it,a golf ball ink pen, etc.) versus buying a whole golf club set which would be expensive and can bust the gift shopping budget.
Sign up for Email
Based on the information you listed on your checklist, start signing up for the email lists of retailers that you will be shopping with. This is the best way to get a heads up on sales and markdowns on specific items. Bonus tip: Join discount and sales groups on Facebook. There are groups that will alert you daily to regarding sales or huge coupons on products. Search groups like the “amazon coupon”, “coupon boutique”, “deals”, etc in order to find some discount groups. Join local buy and sell groups. This will expand your options for gifts and increase savings. Need more suggestions or options for gifts? Check out my gift guides. They contain suggestions on what to buy for a particular person based on interests and can sometime alert you to when the item is on sale.
Shop Virtually now
As you see items go on sale, purchase them as soon as possible online. You can shop from the comforts of your home and have the items sent directly to you. Black Friday-like deals are happening now because retailers want to beat out the competition. Most retailers also offer price adjustments if items get marked down lower than what you purchased it for. Some retailers even often price matching competitors' offers. Chances are you are getting the lowest cost by purchasing now. With a gift in hand early, you are avoiding the stressful last minute shopping time.
If you havent’t started Christmas shopping, let’s rip the proverbial bandaid off and start shopping now. Its easier to complete your shopping list with the most amount of time to spare. This way you can kick back and enjoy the hot chocolate by the fireplace without the intruding panicked thought of what gifts to buy every 5 minutes.
***Don’t have a Holiday gift tracker sheet? I have one already made that you can get when you purchase Buy More, Spend Less, Save Your Sanity.This guide walks you through each step of holiday shopping in order to give quality gifts with less time and effort. How to develop your list to save time later in the process, the 4 types of gifts and multiple examples of each, what times of the year to save the most money (FYI- It’s not Black Friday), and how to create the “Stay Ready Bin”are all included for your convenience.
Click here to have an easier Christmas Shopping experience.