Target 101: What You Didn't Know You Needed to Know

During this time of quarantine, we are all trying to stay safe and healthy. However, that’s not stopping us from missing shopping at our favorite stores. Hopefully, if we stay vigilant in keeping ourselves and others safe, we’ll be back to it soon enough. In the meantime, I’m going to give you some of my tips and tricks for successful shopping at one of my favorite stores and probably yours too… Target.

So – Everyone knows that when you go into Target with the intention of getting just one thing, you end up buying way more. I’m just as guilty of it. Let's face it. It's inevitable. Over time, I’ve had to figure out ways to ease the pain in my pocket. Luckily, Target has given us plenty of ways to do just that whether they know it or not.

First things first. You need to download the Target app. I know you’re thinking it’s just more clutter on your phone, but it is more than worth it. Here’s why. 1) On the Target app you can pre-shop for the things you need on the app before you go into store and put it in a “shopping list” of sorts. The reason you would want to do this is because Target price matches against its online advertised prices in the store and, many times, items are much cheaper online than in the store. 2)If you don’t want to take the time to make a list, there is a scanner tool within apps. So, you can scan items as you go, and check to see if they are cheaper online than in the store. Once you get to the register, show the price difference to the cashier and they will change the price. 3)Target recently launched Target Circle, which provides additional discounts outside of the ones that you find in the ad paper. You can find the offers on the app and save it to your wallet to be scanned at check out or, you can scan items as you shop within the store to see if there are any additional discounts and then save it to wallet. 3)If you sign up for Target Circle, every time you purchase items, whether it be online or in the store, you can build credits that be applied to future purchases. Just make sure that, when you get to the checkout counter, you pull up your app, open your wallet, and let them scan the barcode. That way you can either earn more points or apply your current credits. How great is that!!!

Next, you need to know where to look. Usually in every clothing department there are clearance racks with discounts ranging from 30%, 50%, and 70% off. Make sure you pay attention to the tags for pricing and even go to the price scanners that are available there in the store to make sure the items aren’t marked down for a lower price or have been incorrectly tagged. For all other departments, most clearance items can be found on the end caps. Usually they will have clearance signage on the end cap, but I like to look at all of them just in case something has been misplaced. Also, most weekly sale items and featured on the end caps, so you are likely to find some discounts there anyway. Don’t hesitate to look for clearance labels down the aisle also. Sometimes, when items are first marked down, they leave them on the aisle among the regularly priced items. So, just be on the lookout for those red clearance labels as you shop. Also, take note

that clearance items are not uniformly marked down in every store. Stores may vary in what they choose to mark down. So, if you see a good deal, take it.

Last but not least, Target offers a lot of great shopping options that are especially beneficial to the time we are in right now when we are all trying to self-isolate. On the app, you can go ahead and pre-purchase your items, then select to either do in-store pick up, same day delivery, or drive up. All of these services are free. Just be sure, that when you are setting up your app, you select the Target store of your preference. That way, as you shop on the app you can narrow down your search to items available in your store by simply clicking a button.

I honestly could go on and on and, maybe one day, I’ll have time to do just that. I know these tips have already saved me soooo much money and, helped lots of other people that I’ve been able to share them with. Hopefully, this is more than enough information to get you started on your next Target shopping spree. Happy Shopping!