10 Easy Ways to Shop With Your Head

By KEVIN DeMARRAIS

Some holiday shoppers get a rush arriving at malls before sunrise to cash in on the early-bird sales. Others prefer to avoid the shopping center crowds in favor of cyber-shopping from home or office.

With either method, you can get some great bargains, but only if you act coolly and with restraint.

So here are our 10 Holiday Shopping Tips, culled from personal experiences, feedback from readers and advisories issued by a variety of consumer and business groups. Even though consumers have already done a lot of holiday shopping, you’ve still got nine days until Hanukkah and a month to Christmas.

* Use several “bots” to compare product prices at dozens of retailers, Consumer Reports recommends. Better-known sites include BizRate, Google Product Search, DealTime, MySimon, Shopzilla, Shopping.com, Amazon.com and Yahoo Shopping.

If possible, sort by price because these sites often put retailers that pay a fee at the top of the page. And make sure shipping costs are included, because they can add up quickly.

It’s worth checking prices online, even if you plan on shopping at a traditional store, because you can compare products and get a sense of what you should pay.

* “Shop till you drop” may be the retailers’ motto, but a more appropriate directive for consumers may be “Budget before you shop,” the Consumer Credit Counseling Service advises.

Deciding what you can spend before you hit the mall can keep your impulses from getting the best of you. And just like Santa, once you make a list, check it twice and don’t overspend.

* Cash or charge? There are plusses and minuses with each, depending on your financial situation. Pick the one that best meets your needs.

Paying with cash makes budgeting easier and reduces the shock of opening your credit card bill after the holidays and seeing how generous you actually were. If debt or budgeting is a concern, leave your credit cards at home and pay as you go, CCCS advises.

But credit is safer. That’s because most credit card companies go to great lengths to protect you from fraud and have lots of consumer protections built in, the makers of the browser Firefox say. In addition, it’s easier to resolve disputes and make exchanges on credit card purchases.

If you use credit, keep a running tally of what you have spent and deduct it from your checking account balance.

Debit cards have grown in popularity recently, but be careful not to overspend and get hit with a hefty overdraft fee. Also, be extra careful guarding your plastic because you have more financial exposure if your debit card is fraudulently used than you do with a credit card.

* Make sure all online transactions are secure and encrypted, the Electronic Retailing Association says. Check to see if the padlock icon is at the top or bottom of your browser before entering personal information and make sure “https:” including that critical final “s” begins the Web page address. It signifies that a secure connection has been established.

* Know the merchant with whom you’re shopping, and don’t be fooled by a fancy Web site. Check for contact information and be cautious of sites that don’t offer a telephone number, the Electronic Retailing Association says.

Research a company’s reputation and reliability (many sites have consumer feedback) and be careful of a seller with a short history.

* Guard your personal information, whether at a mall or shopping online, the Better Business Bureau of New Jersey warns. Pickpockets and “phishers” will be out in force over the next month, so it is critical for consumers to be vigilant.

* Plan online shopping far enough in advance so you can avoid paying for priority shipping. This year many Internet retailers are offering free shipping, but that is for ground service that can take five to seven days.

Wait too long and you could be forced to pay as much as $20 for priority shipping. The end of guaranteed-by-Christmas delivery can be as early as Dec. 12.

* Look for store coupon offers, even if they are not mentioned on a company Web site. Do this by Googling the name of the merchant and the word “coupon,” BestWebBuys.com suggests. Check also at couponcabin.com, an excellent resource for coupon codes that can save you shipping charges or a percentage off your total purchase, the CCCS says.

* Print and save the order confirmation page, says the founder of BestWebBuys.com. It will contain information you may need to resolve any problems with an order.

* Always check to make sure any wireless network you’re using is secure; that is not always the case with free wireless sites, says Trend Micro, an Internet security company.

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E-mail: demarrais@northjersey.com

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