Category: Shopping And Product Reviews

Dec 20 2011

Look Nice Without Going Broke

Are you craving for the newest designer clothes, a pretty tank top, and that pretty dress? All this fashion comes at a price – you choose.

Buying clothes these days is always a choice between the designer-made outfit or those cheap but quality items that you could pull together and express your personality in many different ways.

Most experts contend that clothes can definitely make or break a person. They say that your personality is usually reflected on how you dress up. But it does not necessarily mean that good fashion would absolutely mean expensive clothes.

Hence, you can still make a remarkable fashion statement without having to spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars just for your clothes.

Here is a list of some money-saving tips when buying clothes that would turn other people’s heads to you but would not definitely break your wallet.

1. Do the math

Choosing fashionable clothes can be really tricky, not unless you know how to do the math! So before you buy three sets of clothes that would cost you hundreds of dollars, try to go for the budget-friendly dozen of items that you can even match alternatively.

The number of expensive items that your money can buy is definitely doubled or even tripled when you buy cheaper ones but can still make a good fashion statement.

2. Know what you want

Saving money is definitely based on knowing what you want whenever you spend your money on something. If you know what you want, this means that you have researched the item, have compared them with the other items, you will be able to come up with the lowest price of the product.

3. Drive your way to a “thrift store”

Usually, these “thrift stores” are non-profit organizations. This means that they are usually operating for charity. They give their proceeds to some charitable institutions.

Hence, the prices of the clothes being sold in the thrift store are absolutely cheaper than the ones being sold in the department store. So that would mean many savings for you.

Best of all, you do not only get to save more money, you get to do some charity work as well.

The bottom line here is that when shopping for clothes, do not shop for the brand name, shop for the quality.

Nowadays, you just have to be practical. Better spend your money on more important things than those designer clothes.

Oct 10 2011

Using Sales Rank to Navigate Product Choices

Consumers today are faced with a huge selection of product alternatives and an even larger collection of details on these products. There are many ways to rank or rate products. Customers can leave stars for those products they have bought. Writers can review and rate those products within their topic area. A more real and populist method is to review how well products are doing in the market. While aggressive advertising may initially launch sales, in the age of the Internet a success and a failure are equally hard to hide. Needless to say, a significant population of purchasers force a company to focus assets on a product.

In the age of Internet and mobile social media, word of a disappointing product gets out almost instantly. In turn, when many consumers buy a given product and the buzz remains positive, that product has survived the sometimes brutal social media litmus test. Any consumer with a decent following on his or her social tools should place fear and accountability in the hearts of manufacturers and retail outlets. A simple twitter on a cell phone could start a landslide.

A significant user base also encourages a manufacturer’s support of a product. To maintain positive branding and ensure additional purchases of other products, the manufacturer has a built-in incentive to provide a rewarding customer experience. The effort and expense of reselling or upselling to a current customer is almost always less than the effort and expense of engaging a new customer. Likewise the risks of a disappointed and upset population of customers leads directly to negative word of mouth and economic losses.

A large user base strengthens a manufacturer’s commitment to a product over time. The consumer can be confident that years down the road support and add-ons will still be available. No matter how much critics love a new offering to the market, companies are going to allocate support dollars to those items that give the greatest return in customer satisfaction and dollars: in other words, to those with top sales.

Product ratings and reviews do play a major role in making purchasing decisions. However, they should be taken in consideration of how consumers are voting with their dollars. It is desirable to be in front of the curve on a product, but not too far ahead of others. Sales rank provides a good first tier filter in a product search. Once the consumer has a manageable group of similar products, other consumer resources can be applied for a final decision. This will ensure that the best product will be backed with support for the immediate future and years down the road.