How-to: Shop More While Spending Less

As we wise up on managing shopping budgets and be more mindful on how we spend, there are still some leeway where we can still afford to splurge on things that we need. Here's how:

1) Shop online

You can always make the best bang out of your buck by shopping online. Not only are the goods and items sold online usually cheaper, you can also make price comparisons to make sure you get the best deal.

Armed with the right online shopping credit card, such as the CIMB Cash Rebate Gold card, you also stand to earn 5% cash rebate every month when you make purchases online.

However, if you're the type who enjoys a trip to the mall, you can still get rewarded for your shopping by using cards like the HSBC Visa Platinum, which lets you earn up to 8X Reward Points for every RM1 you spend at Mid Valley Megamall or The Gardens Mall.

2) Buy in bulk

Retailers typically charge cheaper rates per item if you buy more (in bulk, especially!).

Therefore, it is definitely a good idea to buy in bulk or in promotional bundles to save more. Look for goods that have a longer shelf life or are non-perishable, such as toiletries or dry rice that you can keep for a longer period.

Apart from getting your groceries from your usual neighbourhood hypermarkets, you can opt for wholesale ones like Mydin, NSK or Sunshine Wholesale Mart instead, where goods and items are usually cheaper.

It is also generally easier to buy in bulk in these wholesale marts.

3) Purchase house brands

Besides from buying in bulk, going for store brands can help you save too. Based on a survey conducted by Nielsen, these house brands are generally 30 percent cheaper than branded ones. Not surprisingly, also noted from the same survey, more and more Malaysians are opting for house brands as they learn to stretch their money.

Store brands goods are essentially produced by contracted manufacturers for retailers (like AEON, Tesco, and Giant) to sell under their own respective labels. Effectively, the quality of these privately branded goods are comparable to their branded counterparts as they are made using more or less the same ingredients or materials.

With that said, many of us are still skeptical as we have always been fed with million-dollar advertisements about how branded goods are always better (also the lack of awareness and education on the quality of store branded goods).

For a start, you can start with some general, non-consumable household items like toiletries or electronics (which are SIRIM certified) to gauge their quality.

4) Sign up with loyalty programmes

Many hypermarket chains in Malaysia like AEON, Tesco, Mydin and AEON Big offer attractive loyalty programmes. Becoming a member is definitely a no-brainer if you are a frequent patron of a particular store.

In exchange for some personal information and membership fees (some you can even apply for free!), we get to enjoy various benefits as a member. Perks like rewards points, special member prices on selected items and additional discounts from selected merchants are typical for any hypermarket loyalty cardholders.

With the points that you've collected from your frequent visits, you can naturally exchange them for cash vouchers or coupons to help you save more for your future visits.

Interestingly, there are also credit cards that are affiliated with specific hypermarkets that offer extra benefits for cardholders such as cashbacks and higher rewards points earning capabilities. Some notable examples are the Citibank Giant-Citi card, RHB Tesco-RHB card, Hong Leong The Store and Pacific Platinum card and the AEON NEW AEON Gold MasterCard.

5) Use a rewards credit card

If none of the hypermarket-affiliated credit cards appeal to you, worry not, there are also generic shopping credit cards available!

One of the best examples is the HSBC Visa Signature Card. Currently it offers one of the best cashback promotions with up to RM550 cashbacks and above that, you will also get to collect high Rewards Points! For every RM1 you spend for groceries and on retail shopping in participating malls, you will receive 5x rewards points.

If you are a frequent patron of the Mid Valley Megamall or The Gardens Mall, you will stand to earn a whopping 8x rewards points for every RM1 spent!

Other alternatives from the range of HSBC credit cards in Malaysia such as the HSBC Visa Platinum card also offers similar benefits for retail shopping. The deals provided by these cards are so good you might not need to think twice to apply for a HSBC credit card.

It is important that we learn to shop wisely during these tough times as we prepare in expectations of more turbulence to come. *fingers crossed!

Source : articlesbase.com