When A Sale Is Not A Sale...

One thing you have to be leery of while (savvy) shopping is misleading marketing.  Just because an item is in a weekly ad does NOT mean it is "on sale" nor does it guarantee a great deal.  It does not necessarily mean that NOW is the time to stock up...For example:  A local store of mine consistently advertises Knorr's Pasta & Sides at a "GREAT" sale price of $1.00.  Perhaps it is...for this store.  However, I KNOW, from being a conscientious shopper, that Wal-Mart carries this same exact product at that same price EVERY day (at least they have been)! I also know that with coupons, I can get them usually for .50 or LESS if I time it right...FREE if my store doubles coupons!

Conclusion:  I personally, always buy it at Wal-Mart because that is where I normally shop and where I do price-matching on other sale items.  This saves me a trip or two around town which in turn, saves me gas!

So it really does pay to do your homework here.  I will usually browse at other items while doing my normal shopping all the while making mental notes or jotting down prices of things I normally buy so I know if I'm getting a good deal or not.

Some shoppers actually go as far as utilizing a "PRICE BOOK" so they know EXACTLY when to stock up on an item. The  price point referred to as the "rock bottom" price is the price you want to shoot for when stocking up.   I, myself, have not yet gotten to that level of organization where I am utilizing the price book- not sure I ever will.  But either way, I can still usually tell when...

a SALE is NOT a SALE...and you should too!