Good morning my friends and welcome.
It is another lovely Sunday and time to drop the usual FYI on my readers….
Ever heard the term ‘spaving’?
What the Hell is ‘spaving’?
It is very simple the sales pitch is ‘spend more to save more’…pretty simple huh?
Do you have subscriptions? Maybe for food or pet supplies or clothes or even marital aids….then you are a victim of ‘spaving’.
The idea has been around for a long time but in today’s economic climate it could be disastrous.
Stores have been enticing shoppers to spend more so they can save more for ages, but in today’s economy, financial experts warn that what’s come to be known as “spaving” can backfire on one’s finances. While the marketing ploy isn’t anything new, CNBC, Fox Business, and CBS News all have stories exploring how spaving is contributing to Americans racking up record amounts of debt.
- Ways we spave: Businesses have shown creativity in the ways they encourage more spending, including store credit cards, spending minimums for free shipping, subscriptions, and the classic “buy one, get one” deals. All are legal, savvy tactics that have proven effective in getting consumers to keep their tab going—and they’re more common than ever: between March 2023 to 2024, temporary price reductions increased by 72% and overall promotions by 15%, per CNBC.
- More debt: But spending to save isn’t translating into savings. Fox notes that credit card balances rose 47% between 2021 through 2023, the steepest increase on record. At the same time, the amount of income going to savings has been decreasing, down to 3.6% in April compared to 32% in April 2020.
- Deal FOMO: Money coach Nicole Victoria tells CBS that stores create a sense of urgency around deals that make them harder to resist. “It’s about loss-aversion, or the perception of loss. You feel like you’re losing money by paying for shipping, and you’ve invested time and resources into filling up your shopping cart, so you’d rather gain something more.”
- Hidden consequences: For many, padded receipts add to credit card debt, which can affect finances and long-term money goals. Incurring debt may tank credit scores, and in turn come back to bite someone who wants to purchase property or items that require financing down the line.
- One suggestion: “The best way consumers can approach a spaving deal is to pretend it’s not even there,” says Kuderna Financial Team Founder Bryan Kuderna, “like they never saw it.” He tells Fox that people can resist the pressure to spend more by making an effort to only “buy what you intended to buy.”
This is one of those times when ‘consumer beware’ is accurate.
Always think your purchases out to decide if it is good for the wallet….will there be any benefit or just a tug on your wallet.
But to give you more information so you will not be trapped in this sneak attack.
https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/spaving-what-is-it-and-how-to-avoid-it-301178242.html
****Keep in mind if it sounds too good to be true it probably is.****
Be Smart!
Learn Stuff!
I Read, I Write, You Know
“lego ergo scribo”
We have never had any ongoing subscriptions, and never will have any. I always make sure it is a ‘One-time purchase only’.
Best wishes, Pete.
Smart move….Sue and I do the same thing. chuq
Cruelist and devilish spave is door-to-door cable salesmen “I’m here to save you money”. My reply ” no you’re not”. “Yes I am ” and me “no you’re not”. Oh you save a few bucks for two months or so and then price goes up even more than with old company. The additional spave is when you accept their “fee” sites. They are free for a short time and the fine print says “you must cancel “free” as end of promotion approaches. Very very few of us poor souls remember that hitch. If you do not all the “free” are added to your bundle increasing the bill even more and usually not able to cancel that unless you cancel service and get a new cable company. But they have the same “free trap” too. Then of course we have the current “election speeches with promises” which re also spaves for votes. There is no escape from consumer spave rip-offs.
We have been bothered by AT&T door salesmen lately…..I have gotten to where I answer the door and say NO right away and close the door. I have no time for scams. chuq
Even spaving is taking a hit. My local drug store used to have buy one get one 50% off. Last night it was buy one get one 40% off. Nah.
It is everywhere nowadays….it is easy money for those using the technique. chuq
Those subscription things can be nasty. I’ve never gotten involved with those but I know people who have and then find it’s damn near impossible to cancel the things. I buy coffee from Amazon because the stuff I like isn’t sold locally. They keep trying to almost trick you into “subscribing” because if you just click the first “Buy” button on the screen you’ll actually be signing up for a subscription. You have to scroll down and click a button that’s out of sight on the main screen that says “one time purchase only”.
The way they package food in the US is incredibly wasteful. When we still had our sons living here it wasn’t too bad but now it’s just me and my wife. You can’t buy food in quantities suitable for just one or two people. I don’t want to buy 8 hotdog buns, I just want 3. I don’t want a dozen doughnuts, I only want 2. And in cases where I can buy suitable quantities, I get charged almost twice as much for the privilege. I can buy a small can of baked beans, enough for 2 servings, but only if I pay literally twice as much per ounce as if i’d buy the large family size.
I have been bitching about packaging for a long time….pricing is another I agree with you….for one or two people it is expensive and stupid. chuq