A Crunched Christmas: Buying Gifts

A recent study by Halifax revealed that the average shopper spends £384 on gifts – and gifts alone – at Christmas, a figure which is nothing short of astonishing. Now with the economic crisis upon us, it's more important than ever to try and slash that figure – while still giving good quality gifts that will be treasured for years to come. It is certainly possible to at least half your usual expenditure without a severe drop in the quality of what you purchase, but it will take a little more work. In this article, I'll focus purely on the gifts you already know you want to buy, not substituting them for cheaper alternatives.

Compare Yourself

There is simply nothing more important than this when it comes to finding gifts. Seven times out of ten, the first internet website you check will be cheaper than a high street selling the same gift – so why not maximise this saving all the more and shop around online. There are several price comparison websites which will help with this, such as Kelkoo, Smart Shopping and Buy Central, but there are literally thousands to choose from. Do consult more than one, as different comparison websites check different stores.

This really can be effective. For example, I searched for the TomTom Go 730 satellite navigation system. If you just bought it from Littlewoods Direct, it would set you back over £300. Using Kelkoo, I found it for £199.99 – a saving of nearly £100. This is why using comparison websites are so important!

Second Hand Doesn't Mean Second Rate

There is something of a social stigma when it comes to giving second hand items as gifts, but if you know someone well and check the item is everything one that's new would be, there shouldn't be a problem. Using the TomTom Go 730 as my example again, I found it on Amazon Marketplace, listed as 'new' in condition, for a further £10 cheaper than the price given by Kelkoo. Most Marketplace purchases list the condition of the item perfectly and also offer protection that if, when it arrives, you don't agree it's in good enough condition, you can return it.

A good place to buy second hand books is Green Metropolis. It's a little more expensive than Amazon Marketplace would be, though cheaper than buying new, and Green Metropolis don't allow books to be listed that are anything less than 'good' in condition. I recently bought Richard Hammond's new book 'As You Do' at Green Metropolis for a third of it's retail price; when it arrived, it was perfect and had never even been read. Green Metropolis also has environmental benefits – see the website for details – so it's impact is two-fold.

Don't Give, I.O.U Instead

There is nothing more annoying than paying a fortune for consumer electronics as a Christmas gift, then seeing the exact same item – sometimes at the exact same shop – massively discounted in the post-Christmas / January sales. So if your kids are asking for a big electrical item – such as a PlayStation 3 – give them an 'I.O.U' for that gift on Christmas Day and then buy it in the sales. Obviously, this requires a bit of patience on behalf of your children, but hopefully the promise of the item within the next few days will settle any arguments, particularly if you point out you couldn't afford it at full price, so it's wait a couple of days for the sale or don't get it at all – I think we all know what the choice would be there!

Discount Codes

When you've found your gift on your website – having used a price comparison check, of course – you might still be able to get a little extra off. A multitude of discount code websites exist, such as My Voucher Codes and Promotional Codes, that display all the current offers available on the big-brand websites. All you have to do is search.

For example, thanks to My Voucher Codes, if I do choose to buy the Tom Tom system from Kelkoo's recommendation of Amazon, I could also get free delivery. Well worth a little time searching the discount code websites, considering delivery would have cost £8.

The above all seem like a lot more work than just buying from the most convenient high street store, but the savings possible are huge. Why pay more when an extra hour spent online could as much as halve your usual Christmas gift spend?

Useful links:

My Voucher Codes: www.myvouchercodes.co.uk
Promotional Codes: www.promotionalcodes.org.uk
Kelkoo: www.kelkoo.co.uk
Green Metropolis: www.greenmetropolis.com
Smart Shopping: www.smartshopping.co.uk
Buy Central: www.buycentral.co.uk
Amazon: www.amazon.co.uk