Is it a bargain or a giant evil plot to take your money!

What if I were to tell you that those 50%-70% off sales are not really bargains but just a giant evil plot to separate you from your hard earned money. Well I’m here to break it to you. Those bargains are not really bargains at all. Sometimes referred to as loss leaders these sales only exist for one purpose and that is to get you primed for an endless round of mindless consumption. You HAVE been tricked.

In most cases the stuff that is discounted the deepest is most likely the stuff that should be selling for that price anyway. Do you get what I’m saying? If these discounted products are so great – Why aren’t people lining up to buy them at full price?

Let me give you an example. You need to quickly pick up some milk at your local mega store and as you enter the front doors, you are hit in the face with a giant 50% off sign. I mean this sign is freakin’ huge, you can’t miss it. So you head on over and check it out. Your eye gets caught on this Icelandic wool blanket, merchandised between the cans of air and bottled water. Regular price on this Icelandic masterpiece is $49.99 and it’s on sale today for only $19.99 that’s a really big discount. Anyone have a calculator? Anyway, how can you resist? Right? At this point it doesn’t even matter that it’s the middle of summer, and you already own a blanket(s) – hey it’s too good of a deal and the other wool blanket you have is from Costco not Iceland. So you buy it and you do exactly what the store wanted you to do. You have successfully become a consumer sucka – buying more than you need, and buying things you didn’t even know you wanted. Also known as impulse buying. Mega Store +1 and You 0.

Pro Tip – If you find yourself in a situation like this where you might be thinking of purchasing something that brings little value into your life. Ask yourself, Do I really need this thing? Wait at least a day and see if you still want to buy the item. If you do, go for it. Chances are you won’t bother and you will have one less item cluttering up your life.

“I’m going to go broke with all these savings” – Said some wise guy on the internet.

So remember this story the next time you see a “Hot Deal”. And remember the only way to truly save money is not to buy useless crap in the first place. Ask yourself WWTMRD (What would the money runner do?)I’ll tell you what he would do. He would leave that discounted garbage at the store and revel in the fact that he just saved 100%. He would then take that saved money and top up his TFSA. Now that sounds like a deal I wouldn’t pass up.