Optimize your shopping strategy this holiday season

From Black Friday onward, it’s officially the season for deal-seeking, when bargain-hunting senses go into overdrive for gimmicky sales. For Canadians, Black Friday, Cyber Monday and Boxing Day is the holy trinity of price-slashed shopping.

But are we getting the deals we think we are? Let’s put a magnifying glass over this frenzied shopping season and see what checks out.

Lights out on Black Friday

This U.S. shopping “holiday” on the Friday following American Thanksgiving then leading into Cyber Monday arrived in Canada around 2003. Since then, it has slowly been overtaking Boxing Day as the choice shopping date for Canadians.

But long-hyped Black Friday deals are often coming up short. A New York Times investigation found that less than one per cent of the thousands of Black Friday deals were considered good deals.

Indeed, many weren’t sales at all. For example, a Bose SoundLink Mini Bluetooth Speaker II advertised for $219 as a Black Friday deal on Amazon turned out to be selling for the exact same price at two separate times earlier in the year.

Cross-border shopping crossed off your list

Depending on where you live in Canada, cross-border shopping could be an option to getting a sweet deal, since just about everything looks lower-priced in the U.S.   

But before you grab your passport, do what seems obvious but is often lost in the glow of a sale: the exchange rate. Add in state and federal tax, the travel expense of getting down there, the wait and any duty you might have to pay at the border. (On that last note: know Canada’s personal exemption limits before you pull up to the border.)

Braving Boxing Day mall madness

If you plan on subjecting yourself to the brick and mortar shopping madness - come prepared! The app ShopSavvy can help you determine whether a deal is worth waiting in a two-hour check-out line. ShopSavvy, like other money-saving apps, scans the product’s barcode on your phone and loads the price of that item at different online and physical retail stores nearby.  

Shipping news

Just because a price is lower online doesn’t mean you will pay less.

The great scourge of online shopping is undoubtedly shipping jeopardy. That’s when you buy an item online and, unbeknownst to you, it travels from Japan to get to your door. Who do you think pays the duty in those cases?

Or when you slog through three or four pages at checkout, entering credit cards and billing addresses and other confirmations, only to then find shipping is exorbitant and the thing costs less in-store. Chances are you click the buy button anyway.

The point is: digital deals are subject to a lot of the same pain points as their in-store counterparts. Stolen packages, mail delays and goods damaged in transit are just a few more of the follies of online shopping. Here are a few things to know:

• Shipped by. Many online retailers - Amazon, for one - will often ship the items they sell. To get faster delivery, look for what company is shipping the item you buy, and buy as many items you can from the same company.
• Be skeptical of overpromising. If an online store promises to get you a package by Christmas and it seems unreal, it likely is. Check with Canada Post, FedEx or any other shipping company for the latest you can still get packages over the holidays.
• Where to ship? If you live close to the border, and make frequent orders, consider setting up a U.S. mailbox. This is a great way to get around international shipping costs and applicable duties.  

Buyer beware

When it comes to scoring deals, holiday shopping can be a game of smoke and mirrors. You’ll need to cut through the fog by doing research beforehand: know the average prices of what you’re buying, exchange rates, whether the product is routinely put on sale, shipping hijinks and always be sure to price-compare with other stores.