IS THIS REALLY A GOOD PRICE?
A previous article dealt with looking at bargains with an
eye as to whether you really needed them or not, because
a bargain that you don't need is no bargain at all.
But this begs the question....
....how do you know it's a bargain in the first place?
Knowledge is power: Knowing what things cost
The more you know about what things should cost, the
mightier your bargain hunting will be! You'll be able
to snag the cans of tuna for 22 cents at Wal-Mart,
the extension ladder at an estate auction for $55, or
the 1997 Town and Country for $3,000 off of eBay because
you KNOW that these are good deals! (OK, we didn't get
our Town and Country for quite that little, but you get the picture.)
On the flip side, if you don't know what something
should cost, then you have to take the salesperson's
word for it, or the sale sign's word for it. At that
point, you're guessing -- or worse, being taken for a ride!
Practice, practice, practice!
No, that wasn't a Dr. Ruth impersonation. But the
advice is rock-solid. Frankly, I think that looking
around for the best price on things is FUN. Even if you
don't get the same sadistic enjoyment out of trying to
calculate unit prices in your head that I do, certainly
you would agree that it's a useful skill to know what
things should cost? Am I right, or am I right? ;)
So, for the things you buy every week at the grocery
store, find out what the really good prices for those
items are. Absorb pricing information like a sponge.
Become the prices! It helps if you have a head for
numbers, but a price book and a calculator to figure
out unit cost work just as well.
The reason why you should start now looking at the
prices of things is because you don't always have the
time or opportunity to confirm your instincts when faced
with a possible bargain for something you want. Like when
you're at an estate auction in the middle of nowhere and
your cell phone doesn't work. Or if you're on eBay and
have an auction that ends in 2 minutes.
A check list to get you pumped
- Pay attention to the price of things. Also, start
a price book. Eventually you will know a good
price when you see it, but it's always good to have
a backup. In any case, you must process pricing
information for it to become useful to you at a
moment's notice.
- Use a calculator if you need to figure unit cost,
but try once in a while doing ballpark estimates
in your head. That way, if you see a six-pack of
Milwaukee's Best*** for $5.99, and a 12-pack of Schlitz
for $10.99, you know immediately to go with the
four-pack of Guinness pub
cans because it's a much
better beer.
- But seriously, the math is a lot easier if you notice
that $5.99 is about $6, and that the same number of
cans of the Beast will cost you about $12 instead
of about $11 for El Schlitz-o. Or, seeing that $6
divided by 6 is about $1 per can, and that $11
divided by 12 is some long decimal that you don't
care much about other than it's LESS than $1 per can,
you arrive at the same answer.
- But also remember that price isn't everything. If you
hate Schlitz, it doesn't matter if it's a penny a can.
Likewise, if it's probably going to break/wear out/
disintegrate in two weeks, buying something that costs
twice as much but lasts for a year is clearly a better
deal.
- For things you'll need or want soon, start looking
and researching now. Use the Internet (froogle.com
or mysimon.com or ebay.com) to see what items are
going for. Then be on the lookout for a good price,
because you know what a good price is!
***If you're not of legal drinking age, substitute sodas for the beers.
© 2004-2006 MightyBargainHunter.com. All rights reserved.
Back to main site
Contact Me
|
