Tommy Tindall, Nerdwallet
With Prime Day set for July 8th-11th this year, you may be making your last effort to get a good deal before the price goes up.
Tariffs are the best for many consumers, according to the conference committee’s June consumer confidence index.
But don’t panic.
Instead, “Powerby” says Katherine Black, a partner at Kearney, a global management consulting firm that leads food, drugs and mass market retailers.
That means she looks at rising product categories, buys what makes sense for your needs and budget, and uses sales to preempt your upcoming spending cycle.
This gives you a short list of what to buy (and skip) and some shopping tips, and some ideas on what some of our nerds will be after this Prime Day.
Purchase: Return to school technology
The Consumer Trust Report states that electronic purchase plans are down, but you might want to rethink that.
Prime Day’s power movement is to target school-related things early, Black says.
Your child may not yet want a notebook or a backpack, but if you need a class, you’re probably down by getting a new laptop or Chromebook.
Put student-related headphones, smartwatches, calculators and other items in your radar for sale.
Skip: Summer and Outdoor Products
For now, she’s on the lookout for something summer themed, says Andrea Woroch, a money-saving expert who shares budgeting tips on her website Andreaworoch.com in an email interview.
“You can find clearance sales in summer apparel, outdoor furniture, patio items, beach items, and more. In the second half of August,” she said.
Purchased: Amazon Devices
The main day given is a bargain for Amazon’s own product.
Outside of Black Friday, buying echo devices, fire TV products, tablets and Kindle e-readers is the best time of year.
“But we may actually see prices rise slightly around November as tariffs have a greater effect,” she added.
It appears to be blinking the ring doorbell camera and smart home security products, and is painted all over the homepage.
Skip: Anything that doesn’t feel like a transaction
Prices these days are dynamic. Protect yourself from bad deals by trusting your data beyond the discount percentage you see (for example, “lowest price in 30 days”).
Keepa and Camelcamelcamel are two sites that you can use to check the price history of products sold on Amazon.
Here, the recommended price for the popular Bose QuietComfort Bluetooth headphones is $359 (the current price on Amazon at the time of writing), but you should never pay as they often sell for $250. Prime Day may bring more.
Purchase: Repeated important items
Restocking your essentials is a fun way to get involved in sales without going overboard.
Woroch uses Prime Day to stock the personal care products that we use all the time.
“This includes everything from makeup to hair care products to toothpaste,” she said.
The “Buy Again” tab, which you can find in your Amazon Cart, makes it easy to sift through regular purchases. I’m hoping for the electric toothbrush head and tea tree shampoo with a few bucks left over for sale.
Other ideas from rebuys: pet food and treatments, vitamins, socks, light bulbs, batteries, granola bars, printer paper, razors.
Do it: Be slow to buy this Prime Day low
With a 96-hour sale, there are many opportunities to make buying an impulse, but you can take advantage of the extra days.
“Give it as much time as possible, especially if it’s not on that pre-planned list,” says Ashley Feinstein Gerstley, a shopping and savings strategist at Lakten.
She recommends “the 48 hour rule” (put something in your cart and come back in a few days and suck that urge out.”
Try it at least 24 hours if possible. Because putting the script outside can be a recipe for regrets on Prime Day.
Don’t: Go farther than yourself
All trade wars can make planning your purchase attractive ahead of time. If you’re that good, go ahead and start your Christmas shopping on Prime Day.
But just because many toys are made in China doesn’t mean you need to buy them now, Warch said.
Feinsteinger Stry agrees that this kind of panic purchase works for you.
“We can’t get everything in advance, so when we need to keep buying at a new price anyway, we don’t want to emphasize our budget and buy so many things,” she says.
“Who knows what my kids beg for in October?”
Bonus: What you’re currently saving in your cart
A brief poll around the nerd’s office shows fellow writers keeping their best day in mind. Most people play coolly by placing one or two items in their cart to see prices drop when the sale is hit.
Author Kate Ashford casually looks at the ninja cream ice cream maker. The family of writer Amanda Baroso is ready for Radio Flyer’s Voya XT 2-seater stroller wagon if the discount is sufficient. Writer Anna Helhoski wants Nori Press Travel Steam Iron for his time on the road when the prices are right. Editor Karen Gaudette Brewer may be scattered across table tennis tables for Prime Day, but it may not be. As for me, I’m not sure if the deal is sufficient, but I’m chasing the outdoor griddle (smash burgers are everything I’ve seen on social media).
Tommy Tindall writes about Nerdwallet. Email: ttindall@nerdwallet.com.
The article on what to buy (and skip) on Prime Day, July 8th-11th, originally appeared on Nerdwallet.
