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Today is a bonus post! If any of you are Amazon Prime members, you already know that Prime Day starts July 16th at 3 PM and ends at midnight on the 17th. I’m ALL about simplifying and not buying or purchasing things you don’t need and de-cluttering your life, however last year’s Amazon Prime Day was the whole reason I ended up getting Amazon Prime. The hubs and I signed up for a free Amazon Prime trial to take advantage of Prime Day deals as well as their “Subscribe and Save” program. It was during this free monthly trial that we were able to determine if we wanted to keep the Amazon Prime subscription or not. And we kept it! We mostly use “Subscribe and Save” to get dog food and treats, coffee, and toiletries (paper towels, toilet paper, etc.) delivered every month based on our needs. Being a prime member, with the savings between “Subscribe and Save”, prime member pricing, and free shipping, our savings has easily paid the membership fee. Now that we’ve cut the cable (just happened, but stay tuned for a later post on your options), we will be taking advantage of other member perks such as Amazon shows and movies.

While I am against purchasing items that you don’t need, there are many consumable items that you can get from Amazon delivered right to your door. I normally shop at the grocery store, but toilet paper and paper towels are quite a bit more expensive at the grocery store. I rarely ever go anywhere else, so it’s easy for me to add those items to my “Subscribe and Save” and just have it delivered, especially when prices are comparable. I’ve also done some research regarding the dog food and treats we use, and the dog food prices are the same or cheaper than any other retailer and the dog treats are half as expensive as going to the pet store! It saves me time by not having to run all over town to multiple stores and it saves me money!

We also have a Sam’s Club membership, but most of the money we save from Sam’s Club is on grocery items or home decor (did you see our deck oasis?!?!?). One day Sam’s could have a certain product, but the next trip it could be gone. Most of the items we get on Amazon aren’t available at our Sam’s Club, and some of the items we get at Sam’s Club (like razors or shower soap, etc.) we don’t buy on Amazon or they aren’t available through “Subscribe and Save”.

One other thing that has been amazing with Prime is that you get access to “add-on” items that are super discounted in price! An “add-on” item is exactly what it sounds like. You need to buy at least one item to qualify for the “add-on” item’s special purchase price. You can’t buy “add-on” items exclusively. I actually was able to buy a book on my reading list for $5 that would normally retail for $20+! Now, you need to be careful, as “add-on” items are priced as such to try and intentionally make you purchase more. Don’t be blinded by the “it’s such a good deal so I have to get it” mind trick if it’s something you don’t really need or want. Also don’t be fooled into buying more expensive items you don’t need just to get an “add-on” item.

If you’ve been on a shopping ban to reign in your spending but have created a list of items (non-consumables of course) that you have decided you still need despite your shopping ban, then Prime Day might be a good day to save some money on those items. Now, if you don’t trust yourself and think you might impulsively buy a ton of items you don’t really need just because it’s a “good deal”, then definitely STAY AWAY from Amazon. You’ll undo all your hard work.

So how can you make the most out of Prime Day? If you don’t already have an Amazon Prime account you can always sign up for their free trial and be able to take advantage of all of the Prime Day deals. See below for links to your free trial. If you feel like a Prime membership is not worth the cost, you can always cancel your membership after Prime Day or at least before they start billing you.

Now, I have a ton of books that I keep adding to my reading list and my local library does not carry ANY of them. So I either need to purchase them all…or find a cheaper alternative. While I absolutely LOVE having the physical book (it’s been hard for me to let go of my book collection…) it’s not always feasible on my wallet. I’ve recently been using the Amazon Kindle Unlimited and the Audible free trials. I’ve been impressed with both so far and have been able to tackle some of my reading list! If you’ve got books on your list or you’ve been wanting to read some of the books I’ve posted reviews about find the links below. If you’ve already had a free trial of Kindle Unlimited, you can get 3 months of unlimited reading for $0.99! If you’ve already used your free trial of Audible, then you can save on a monthly subscription. To be honest, after my free trial of Audible, I didn’t think it was necessary to continue my Audible subscription, but I am definitely interested in the Kindle Unlimited subscription for $1! You will definitely be able to get a lot of reading (or listening) accomplished… 🙂

If you sign up for a free trial of Amazon Pantry, you can also get $10 off $40 of Amazon Pantry items. These include all your pantry items as well as household staples like laundry detergent!

Now, if you’re a Whole Foods shopper and you’re going to need some groceries this coming week…you are in luck with Prime Day. Since Amazon now owns Whole Foods, you’ll be able to take advantage of Prime Day deals at the grocery store! They are offering Prime members a $10 credit to use during Prime day when you spend $10 or more. They are also offering up to 40% off certain grocery items.

So how can we not derail our goal of simplifying our life by shopping on Prime Day?

1. Make a list of everything that you are going to NEED (not want) or has been on your shopping list for some time. This includes consumables and non-consumables.
2. Do your research! If you are new to Prime, make sure you sign up for a free trial first. Then you’ll need to download the Amazon Shopping App. You need to spend a little bit of time figuring out how to navigate the App and Prime Day deals. It can be very overwhelming on Prime Day as some deals are “flash” sales and go active at all hours of the day for a limited time. Then there’s the deals that are active all 36 hours.
3. Don’t get distracted! There are soooo many deals from Amazon and others that sell on Amazon that you WILL NOT be able to look through every single deal. You can try to scroll through previews of deals to get a hang of the app and how the deals will all go down, but don’t get distracted by the shiny object you DON’T NEED!
4. Create a list and get alerts. Stick to your “need” list and start searching for those items. In the search bar enter “prime day deals” followed by the item you are looking to buy. Once you’ve found the item you are looking for, you can add them to a list. Adding to a list ensures that you’ll get alerts when the item goes on sale and you’ll be able to purchase it then.
5. Take advantage of your free trial. During the 30 day trial I not only bought 1 item on Prime Day (yes only 1 item!) last year but I tried out their “Subscribe and Save” program and other membership benefits. I thought I might as well try it out, compare prices, and buy the product if I was already going to be purchasing the product anyway.
6. Cancel Memberships. If you sign up for a free trial of Prime, Audible, Kindle Unlimited, or Prime Pantry, cancel your membership before your trial expires if you feel that it offered no benefit or cost savings to you! Amazon’s hope is that you’ll forget about your trial expiring and that your subscription will auto-renew. Don’t throw your money away!

What are some items on your “must buy” list? What are your tips to help you navigate Prime without spending like crazy on unnecessary items?