As quintessential college students, we’re all drowning in the same sea–tuition expenses, loans, books, supplies, transportation, and other school fees. Amidst all these necessary school expenses, it’s also important to have a few spare dollars for personal matters, like retail therapy (my favorite!). However, if you don’t have much to spend, it’s important to know how to make every dollar count. Here are my top tips for how to save like a pro:
1. The End-of-the-Season Sales
With changing seasons comes changing clothes–in other words, everything goes on sale at the end of a season. At the end of summer, stores need to sell their leftover summer clothes (and at the end of winter, stores need to get rid of the winter clothes to make room for spring fashion). That being said, good times to go shopping are at the end of August and in February. If you’ve been eyeing a cute jacket, save your money and buy it later, because it’ll go on sale eventually (I promise!).
2. Holiday Sales
We’ve all been caught in this trap. You see a cute sweater that you just need to have for Christmas, and it’s even “on sale”. You leave the mall thinking you’ve just received a great deal–but have you saved all the money you could potentially save? Advertisers know that the holidays bring a lot of traffic, so stores often advertise “huge sales” before the major holidays. However, this is just a sneaky way to lure customers into buying items before they actually go on sale. The “actual” holiday sales start after Christmas, when customers clear out of the mall. In other words, wait to buy what you want after Christmas–you’ll save a ton of money, and you’ll have something cute to wear for the rest of the winter!
3. Know How to Spot a Good Deal
I’m going to be brutally honest with you–just because the price tag says it’s 50% off doesn’t mean it’s a good deal. My personal rule of thumb is to refrain from buying anything unless it’s at least 70% off or more. Maybe that sounds ridiculous (and perhaps I’m a little crazy), but I haven’t had a problem finding items on a huge discount. Look for advertisements that offer extra percentages off the clearance rack–depending on when you go shopping, most stores will offer 30-50% off clearance items. Another suggestion is to look for items on final sale–that way, you know that you’ll be getting the best possible deal since the price isn’t going to be marked down any further.
4. Check Out the Coupons
You don’t have to get to the level of the extreme couponers on TLC, but it doesn’t hurt to look for additional deals. Coupon sites such as retailmenot.com have both printable coupons and coupon codes for all of your favorite stores. They also list the current sales going on. While I can’t say that all of the coupons work every time, it doesn’t hurt to try!
5. Sign Up For Offers
Most retailers offer immediate discounts (i.e. 10% off your next purchase) just for simply signing up on their email list. By subscribing to email lists, not only can you get exclusive coupons, you’re also the first to know about sales. Some retailers also offer discounts or freebies on your birthday. If you feel overwhelmed by store emails, you can also unsubscribe or change your subscription preferences (there is usually an option located at the end or top of an email).
6. Student Discounts
While you might feel like you’re drowning in a sea of expenses, there are also a lot of great perks to being a college student. Many retailers offer discounts (and sometimes even freebies!) to college students when you show your student ID (you can find a few of them here: http://www.giftcardgranny.com/blog/student-discounts/). If you’re unsure whether a store offers a student discount, don’t be afraid to ask–it doesn’t hurt to try!
Do you have any secrets to scoring deals?