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Shopping for Home Organizing
Products - What Retailers Aren't Telling You
By Karen
Porter,
Editor
EasyHomeOrganizing.com
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.
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