Zazbot Discount Shopping

Zazbot.com was originally founded in the hope we could help visitors find the deals they are looking for. What kind of shopping was not specific. The same process is used when looking for Bobcat skid steer attachments, air hockey tables, or computer printers. The same basic principal is applied when shopping for anything - online or off line.

The title of this post is a little strange when you consider the Zazbot.com is a shopping web site. Shopping is something we all have to do, and we want to find a good deal, but it shouldn’t be your main past time.

Discount Shopping Cons

When you’re looking for “a deal” it can be a slippery slope, as your quest for saving money may take you to the ugly bargain bin of poor quality. As a matter of fact, we always suggest that our visitors/shoppers simply leave their money in their pocket if they can’t afford to buy something of quality.

The problem with looking for the lowest prices possible, is you will inevitably end up buying pure junk. The product usually falls apart within a few months, and no-one is satisfied with the purchase. So when you are considering a “bargain basement” product, be very objective about whatever you’re looking at buying. Often the product is crap right out of the gate, and that’s precisely why it’s languishing in the dusty bargain bin, in the dark and musty bargain basement at your local pawn shop. Yes, I know…..many would disagree with my theory on this, and they would be quick to point out that you CAN find good deals in these bargain bins, and there are cases where extremely valuable antiques are found and sold for tens of thousands of dollars. I agree, but this is a RARE scenario!

How do you Begin to Afford High Quality

There is one fool proof way you can afford to buy high quality goods (and services). Some would say this is off-topic, but it really isn’t. You need to learn to earn more money and shop less.

If you wake up and discover that you are one of those people who values high quality products, you have to make a plan in order to sustain this lofty attitude. There is only one way to make sure you own high-end merchandise - you need to earn more money, and stop wasting the money you have on garbage items that hold zero value.

Below is a list of action items for shoppers who want big quality, and don’t have a big budget:

• the first step is to stop spending money on anything unless it’s a product you really need
• if shopping for merchandise is a hobby, find other things to do. Find a new hobby.Don’t spend hours of your week simply wandering around shopping malls drooling over the stuff you want to buy. Take up reading and exercising so you can improve your brain and improve your health.
• take a good close look at your monthly bills, and get rid of the services you don’t really need. Be brutally honest with yourself on this. Don’t use your cell phone if you only use it for yapping with friends. Use it when you really NEED to. If you don’t really use your computer for anything except email, get rid of your monthly Internet costs. Get the unnecessary monthly costs out of your life. (this includes cigarettes and alcohol too)
• get rid of any department store credit cards you have and get a handle on your personal finances period!

Once you have stopped the financial bleeding (so to speak) , you can now move on to earning more money.Take a good close look at the skill set you have from all your life experiences, and start looking for a way to make more money with your talents. If you really look at your skills closely, you will discover that you deserve to make more money in your job, or in your business.

Buy Less and Buy Better

Once you have learned to stop wasting money and how to earn more money, you will have dramatically changed your life for the better. You will now be able to afford high quality stuff. Your purchasing power will increase to such a high level, that you will be able to afford products that last a decade, and not just one month. You can afford to get the extended full warranty, and the irony is…..you don’t usually need too exercise your warranty when you own upper-end products.

You need to stop being a shopper, and start being a liver (as in living well). Stop focusing on tangible goods, and start focusing on what’s in on your mind, and in your body. Let’s face it. It’s in your nature as a modern human being to buy products and services on a frequent basis. You don’t need to make shopping your past time. This is how people ruin their credit ratings. Try and clean up your life to the point where you wake up each morning and be grateful for the all of the things you have. Avoid thinking of all the things you think are lacking from your life. Focus your day on helping others, and doing a good job at whatever you do for a living. Don’t even think about shopping unless you discover that there is some product you actually need to make your life more productive and enjoyable. Don’t even think about buying a product that you would only use every six months. Buy products when you know you will use it every day!!

You’ll end up buying less and buying better. I guarantee it.

New is Not Always Best

When you decide there is something you must buy to better your life and/or your work, consider this. Shiny and new does not always mean high quality. As a matter of fact, new products are often made cheaply as to increase the manufacturer profits. The new world of merchandisers have become very proficient in manufacturing expensive looking products that are made cheaply. You can really see this trend in the automotive business. Shiny new interiors and slick body designs, with fancy options galore, but after driving the vehicle for two years everything starts to fall apart.

Consider all used products, as the product will have been tested by time, and the lemon factor will have already been dealt with. Older items may have been manufactured with more robust materials, and stand up to years of abuse. The plastics, metals, woods, adhesives, etc. may have been far superior on the a model that was manufactured two years earlier.

Consumer Reports and User Reviews

The idea of using consumer reports and user reviews has been around since the dawn of the human trade. Nothing new about it. Word-of-mouth is the original form of consumer reporting, and is still the most powerful form of communication within the marketplace.

Unbiased reports, reviews, and opinions are invaluable when you’re shopping for any product or service. We all know that. However, you would be very surprised at how little most shoppers use these reporting services before spending their hard-earned dollars.

Consumer Report Publications

The tangible consumer reporting products were the first to exist. These were the magazines and books that really revolutionized the way people shop for products. Now, consumers had a way to research their purchases before making their financial plunge. The first leader in consumer reporting was of course Consumer Reports. Long before the Internet started being used for product research, Consumer Reports was doing it in print. (click here to read about the history of the original Consumer Reports publication).

Online Consumer Reports

When the Internet became a house-hold reality in the late 1990s, and into the turn of the century, shoppers started using online consumer reporting technologies. The first of these of course was Epinions. Consumers could now go “online” and share their experiences using specific products. Since web technologies provide for a search function, web sites like Epinions were a huge success. Unfortunately, you have to be wary of these Internet sites that claim to be unbiased. Many of the Epinion style web sites are making profit via commissions as consumers leave their site and buy at a merchant’s web site. Even Epinions itself should be taken with grain of salt sometimes, as the sellers post reviews of their own in an effort to the inflate their product value.

Old School Buyer Beware

When it comes right down to it, the old-school cliche still stands. Buyer Beware! (caveat emptor) No matter how much shopping you do. No matter how much product research you do. No matter who you ask about a specific product or service, you have to ask yourself three important questions:

1. Do I really need this product
2. Is this the best quality I can find for the budget I have (”bang for the buck“)
3. Can I get my money back or make an exchange if this product fails

That’s it. If you look after these three considerations you have it covered.

Tags: discount shopping, high quality, Products, saving money, wasting money

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