Shopping for Home Organizing Products - What Retailers Aren't Telling You

Ever bought some home organizing products that you didn't need? Here's how that happened and how to buy the ones you do need next time...

The truth is walk-in retailers are setting you up---everyone of them from the home goods retailers to the supermarket. They know things like your emotions and senses drive sales a lot better than logic. When you've got cash to blow and you're in the store, you don't want what you need. You want what you want. They know that!

Didn't think you needed that bottle of perfume until you smelled the free sample, right? Manufacturers and retailers hire that lady handing out the free perfume samples at the entrance for a reason. And it's not because she needs a job or gets pleasure from trying to squirt you.

Weren't hungry until you smelled the fresh-baked goods in the bakery or great smells coming from the deli? Thought you were just passing through to get to the back of the store, didn't you? Now you really could go for a quick bite though.

Hey look...there's a fast food counter right at the entrance to the store. Isn't that convenient. You can eat and then take your time shopping for the dinner you plan to make at home.

In a hurry---until you relaxed after hearing the store's sound system belting out your favorite tune? Well, maybe you'll slow down just a bit and take in more of the attractions. Lookie there. Those shoes that just happen to be displayed on that rack in the middle of the store (the one you had to dodge around to get by) are on sale and your size. It must be fate. Not!

Yes, retailers are setting you up to make sales. Can't blame them. Sales are what keep them in business. And it's good for the economy. It's just not good for your personal wallet when you bite at the wrong sale items.

THE PROBLEM - When you relax too much in a retail store, you tend to buy impulsively. And that's usually things you don't need. Or they're things that don't look as good outside of the store as they did inside of it. And that goes for home organizing products and household furnishings that do double duty for home storage needs.

THE SOLUTION - Think before you buy. Yes, it is that simple. First, think about anything you're putting into your cart--whether it's a plastic spatula, a pair of shoes or a cute storage cabinet big enough to hold a 101 CD collection (especially if you only own 12 CDs). Ask yourself things like...

Do I already own one of these?
And if so, why do I need another one?
And why this one and why now?

If you can answer those questions logically and you decide yes, I do need one of these, then ask yourself....

Where specifically do I plan to store this in my home when not in use?
Or if it's a home organizing product, ask where will I put it in my home and what exactly do I plan to put in it (or on it, etc.). How will I use it to organize what item(s)?

When it comes to shopping in stores and buying home organizing products, you can just as easily succumb to impulse purchasing for these functional items as the ones that are less so. You might find the color and shape of that lowboy cabinet equally attractive as the sight of that jelly donut or the smell of that perfume. In fact, home organizing products hold lots of attractions. Color. Style. Beauty. Or it's just plain nifty looking. What a great focal point it'll make in your home. Houseguests will be lining up to ask you where you bought it!

But...

...once you have paid for it, you're not likely to return it. Impulse purchases, like any item, tend to grow on you. And when you finally do tire of them or get bored with them, it's way too late to return them to the store. They're used. And they're adding to the clutter in your home, not helping you to organize it.

However, there are many good home organizing products and furnishings in stores that WILL help you get organized at home. In fact, there are hundreds of such items. Perhaps thousands. The thing to remember is that not every one of these home organizing products is specifically for you and your needs.

Before you buy your next home organizing product, know what you're looking for BEFORE you enter that store. Know the dimensions, purpose and placement of the product in your home. You don't have to know exactly what you're looking for. But if you have an idea for instance, that you want something see-through, on wheels and about X feet wide by Y feet long to go in "that" spot in your kitchen to hold "those" items, then you're thinking logically. And you're less likely to buy the wrong home organization product as an impulse purchase because it appears to be beautiful.

Beauty never helped anyone get organized at home. But buying the right home organizing products can help your home to appear as beautiful as it is functional. And that's because clutter isn't pretty. An organized home is! Learn to shop for home organizing products without getting sucked in by retailer marketing tactics not in your best interest.