My Mom is joining me on the show today?

Hello.

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Alright, let’s jump into today’s discussion.

Price comparison shopping.

There are always ways parents can be involved in helping their kids learn about finances and I’ve had some instances over the last few months where my parents have stepped in to keep me or my siblings from making a quick purchase to stop and think about it and do some research before buying.

One instance is my dad took us fly fishing for the first time back in March. 

I loved it! 

And I came home and right away started filling up my cart with brand new fly fishing gear. 

I wanted to go fly fishing again.

My mom, however, was like, “Why are you buying, new gear? Save your money and search trading sites and yard sales for used gear.

You’ll be able to spend half the money. You don’t  need to buy new, especially at your age.” 

I knew then I needed to think more about comparing prices and options before I spent my hard-earned money. 

So, let’s talk about how to get the most bang for your buck!

(music interlude)

Now, how do you know if you've found the best deal?

First, you need to learn the skills of price comparison.

This means taking the time to research and compare prices of similar products from different retailers. We can easily do this at home online.  

Many websites offer price comparison tools that allow you to easily compare prices from different retailers. 

We use a Chrome extension called “PayPal Honey” that while we shop around online it will bring a pop-up telling us the price comparison difference of this same item across different stories.

Then when we go to check-out, it will try out various coupon codes to see if any will work with our purchase.

Another is Simplycodes. It’s an app and an extension online to pull up coupon codes and deals.

Let’s give a real world example.

Let’s say we’re shopping for a new GoTrax Electric Scooter.

Let’s first search on Google.

You’ll see right away various options from different stores.

Our honey and simply codes widgets show up to the side and will tell us what the price difference is between some stores and Honey will actually tell us the price history of this item over time.

So, don’t just settle for the first price you see. 

Another example is this past week my little brother wanted to buy a new snow cone machine. We found one we wanted on Amazon for real cheap. But when we went to check out, the shipping was almost the same price as the item. I then searched around and found….

Cash Kid:  Now, I’m going to bring my Mom into this conversation to share a few of her thoughts on price comparison.

Welcome to the show, Mom.

Mom: Thanks for having me.

Cash Kid: What are some skills you were taught or learned around price comparison?

Mom: Well, I come from a long line of very frugal women in my life. Until probably my 30s I had what I termed, “Full Price Phobia” which meant I would literally go without something I needed just because I wasn’t willing to pay full price. I’ve grown out of that over the last ten years and we’ll talk more about that later.

I can remember though my Mom taking me grocery shopping and it felt like it took forever as we took our time searching through coupons my Mom had clipped to only get those items that were on sale and we had to have a coupon. 

My grandmother was one of those people who was savvy enough to use coupons and watch sales to go to check out and the store would owe her money. I remember seeing the receipts, it was pretty impressive.

Using coupons grocery shopping like that isn’t as big of a thing anymore so it’s been a shift to buying store brand items to save or buying things when it’s buy one get one free and stocking up.

You like to do that with gum. The Cash Kid loves gum and if our Publix has it buy one get one free, he asks me to stock up.

Buying in bulk at places like Costco and Sam’s Club is a way to save with a lot of house hold items. I’ve done the price comparison on several items of buying a snack we like in bulk at Costco vs. buying several boxes of the same item at a regular grocery store and it’s usually cheaper to buy in bulk.

(when inflation hit hard; I took my grocery list and did a price comparison from a few grocery stores to see the difference and where we could save on staple items the most.)

Cash Kid: You talk sometimes about whether it’s worth the time to save money? What do you mean by that?

Mom: Well, before the internet, if you wanted to price compare, you had to drive around from store to store, which took up a lot of time. But today, we can easily do a lot of price comparison shopping online, especially for large items.

But sometimes, there’s what’s called a matter of convenience and factoring in your time. A small example is it’s summer time and we love watermelon in our house. I mean, we’ve even educated ourselves on how to pick out the best watermelons at the store to make sure it’s really ripe and going to be sweet. 

Last week, we made a last-minute decision that we wanted to get one to take to my parents house to have with dinner. To get one was $10 at our local farmer’s market. Now, I knew, watermelons at Costco were only $6.99. I had been in the store a few days earlier and saw the price but didn’t grab one at the time. But now, it pulled on my frugal instincts, uhhh… three dollars. 

But, in no way would it have been worth our time to spend the extra 25 minutes it would have taken to run to Costco to save three bucks than just get the perfectly good one at a store on the road to where we were going. That happens sometimes where I’ve got a long list of items I need from one store but maybe only a couple of items from another store where I know it’s cheaper but depending on the price (and dragging three kids to another store) it’s better to just get all from one place.

Now parents debate these things with every purchase. We work hard for our money and we want to stretch those dollars as much as we can. 

Cash Kid: Is the quality of an item ever a factor is price comparison shopping?

Mom: Oh yes. And this is something where I know kids don’t like to ask for their parents input sometimes on things they want to purchase, but you need to get their advice.

Especially on a large item.

This also comes honestly with experience. It’s important to learn how to be a smart and conscious buyer.

Do your research first. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. 

I stated earlier how I used to say I have full price phobia. I would buy the cheaper quality item. But, over time I realized if I would focus on buying more quality items, especially staple items like good shoes for instance, it would last me longer and a wise choice.

Sometimes a lower price may seem appealing, but if the quality is poor, you'll end up spending more in the long run. So always make sure to check reviews and do your research before making a purchase.

Now, that doesn’t mean I still don’t try to shop for a deal on quality items. That’s where your tips come in from earlier of shopping around online, and using coupon sites.

When there’s a holiday, it’s usually a good time to get a deal on an item that’s usually not on sale.

Cash Kid: Thanks Mom, I know you could talk about this for a long time, as I get a lot of input from both my parents on purchasing decisions. 

Mom: I felt some sarcasm there.

Cash Kid: Nope, just a little normal teenage eye roll.

So let’s recap some tips here:

Don’t settle for the first price you see.Dont’ rush into a purchase. Do your research and pull up various store sites to compare prices. Search for coupon codes and deals. Check out places like simplycodes.com or the PayPal Honey app.Consider buying used. Check Facebook local trading sites or Ebay.Sometimes buying in bulk is a better deal for families.Consider your time in spending extra time to get the best deal.And try to buy good quality items.

We especially want kids to learn these skills early on in life. It's never too early to start learning how to stretch your money and make smart purchasing decisions. 

What tips do you have for price comparison shopping? We’ve love for you to share that with us by emailing cashkidpodcast@gmail.com. 

Remember, anyone can be a Cash Kid, you just have to learn how to become one.

Cash Kid, Out!

Disclaimer: The information presented represents the views and opinions of the guest. This podcast does not intend to provide personal investment advice. This content has been made for informational and educational purposes only. To make a full and informed investment decision, we advise you to speak with a financial advisor and for kids. Definitely your parents first before investing.