Great article in Smart Money that fits in well with recent Retail Day: how and why certain pricing strategies occur.
Here’s a quick excerpt:
Airplane Tickets
When to Buy: Wednesday morning.
Why: "Most airfare sales are thrown out there on the weekend," says travel expert Peter Greenberg, a.k.a. The Travel Detective1.
Other airlines then jump into the game, discounting their own fares and
prompting further changes by the first airline. The fares reach their
lowest prices late Tuesday or early Wednesday.Books
When to Buy: Thursday.
Why: Price compare between major chains Borders
and Barnes & Noble. The former releases its weekly sales and
coupons on every Thursday; the latter, every Tuesday.Cars
When to Buy: Monday.
Why: "Car dealers live for the weekend, which is
when they make most of their sales," says Phil Reed, consumer advice
editor for Edmunds.com2. "On Mondays,
the low foot traffic makes it seem like the weekend will never come."
That dealer desperation, paired with fewer consumers on the lot, give
you more negotiating power.Clothing
When to Buy: Thursday evening.
Why: That’s the day when stores stock their
shelves for the weekend, and when many retailers — including Ann
Taylor, Banana Republic and Express — start their weekend promotions,
says Kathryn Finney, author of "How to Be a Budget Fashionista." You’ll
find great prices and the best selection. "It’s an effort to get people
to shop in the middle of the week," she says.
Cool stuff . . . The rest of the article is an interesting read
>
Sources:
The Cheapest Days to Buy Certain Items
Kelli B. Grant |Kelli B. Grant
Smart Money July 2, 2007
http://www.smartmoney.com/dealoftheday/index.cfm?story=20070702
One more tip:
“Avoid the dentist when he is being served divorce papers.”
Another Tip:
When: to go to the proctologist
AFTER HIS EYE EXAM!
Why: Yea right. ;)
Back when I was broke, I learned to shop at Target on Tuesdays since that’s when they put all the new stuff out on clearance. I also became an “end cap” shopper, since that’s where all the deals were. I still do this a lot of the time just out of habit.
The saving habits picked up from being broke have served us pretty well, though. I think we make up for a good four or five American families in our savings and net worth…
Well, until last week’s vacation in Hawaii anyway! Even then our timing was good, since the tropical depression blew in today…
Here’s another tip – if you’re dealing with commissioned salespeople, always try to make your purchase in the last few days of the month, since most commissions are computed on a monthly basis, and many commissions have escalators that mean that the salesperson will make more money on a sale on the 30th rather than on the 1st of the month. This is a big incentive for them to make the sale, even with a bigger discount. This works particularly well with car dealerships.
Dell – their quarters end a month later than calendar, and their financial year ends the end of April. They seem to give away the farm those last 2 weeks of April.