Hello, everyone!
I hope you (and your pockets!) survived #BlackFridayWeekend.
It may be tempting to blow through a bank account this Cyber Monday, given that it is often believed that Cyber Monday offers better deals than Black Friday. However, it is important to practice financial self-care to manage your finances well and not give in to the hype.
Surviving #CyberMonday
Without further ado, let's check out 5 ways to survive #CyberMonday and the plethora of deals that'll be coming your way.
1. Perform a Needs Assessment
A needs assessment is defined by Study.com as “a process used by organisations to determine priorities, make organizational improvements, or to allocate resources.” In addition to this, “it involves determining the needs, or gaps, between where the organization envisions itself in the future and the organization's current state.”
This can be applied to individuals, too. Establish where you are financially and where you would like to be in the future, then assess whether the purchases you wish to make on Cyber Monday will prevent you from achieving your financial goals or help you to reach them.
Ask yourself if you really need to buy that item. Will you be able to go about your day-to-day activities without that item? Will you need to incur debt to purchase the said item? If you've answered yes to any of these questions, you probably shouldn't buy it.
2. Plan Your Budget
After you have identified the items you do need, it is time to compile a budget.
Simply put, a budget is “an estimate of income and expenditure for a set period of time.” A budget can be set for any period of time: a week, a month, or even a year.
It is important to set and stick to a budget to avoid spending more than you have. Remember, you can amend your budget to reflect deviations from the plan.
Create a list of all the items you need to buy. You can do this on a notepad or on the notes app on your phone. It's important to do this so you don't impulse-buy (even on deals) on Cyber Monday.
3. Shop Online
Shopping online has its pros. You avoid the huge Cyber Monday crowds scouring for deals, and you can get better deals online (promotional codes, increased discounts, etc). Some websites even have free shipping. This will help you save even more money.
4. Know Your Options
This ties in with point 3 above. Shopping online allows you to compare prices of similar products at different stores. The result of this is that you can select the best deal for your pocket .
5. Cash is King
Sadly, some consumers find themselves falling into the trap of purchasing #BlackFridayWeekend and #CyberMonday deals on credit. This results in increased debt levels. When the euphoria has died down, many consumers are often left with buyer's remorse.
It is best to opt to take advantage of deals with the cash already saved. What if you don't have cash saved up? Rather opt to prepare for the next year; plan how much you may spend in the following year and draft a plan to execute your savings strategy.
Final Thoughts on Surviving Cyber Monday Deals
While Cyber Monday can be a great time to get deals online, it can also lead you to making bad financial choices. To survive the onslaught of Cyber Monday deals, I've shared some key things to keep in mind.
From performing a needs assessment to opting to only make cash purchases, these tips will help you make the most out of your Cyber Monday shopping experience. Plus, the money you don't spend is the money you save as a student.
Are you planning on shopping this #CyberMonday? What are you planning on buying? Do you have other ways you're planning to survive #CyberMonday? Let me know what you think of this blog post below!
eishstudentbudget was started in 2015 by a South African university student who is passionate about saving and making money and wants to educate others to do the same. The mission? To educate university students on their finances. Take the 'eish' out of student finances!
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