\u201cWe\u2019re not just seeing consumers buy more goods online,\u201d Bardastani said. \u201cWe\u2019re seeing digital habits become embedded across shopping, entertainment, food delivery and other parts of everyday life.\u201d<\/p>\n
When digital spending is ingrained in your life, it\u2019s easy to blow through your budget<\/a>, since sites have made it possible to buy with one click.<\/p>\n \u201cWith online spending, there\u2019s absolutely no friction and it\u2019s really hard to keep track of,\u201d says Corey Bates, an investment advisor representative at Solomon Financial in Carmel, Indiana. \u201cIf you\u2019re not reviewing your budget and being intentional with your money, it\u2019s really easy for it to slip away.\u201d<\/p>\n \ud83e\udd13 Meet MoneyNerd, SUBSCRIBE FOR FREE<\/a> Convenience comes with a markup<\/p>\n At first glance, being able to shop, DoorDash dinner and stream at home<\/a> seems like a great setup. (Jeeves, bring me my groceries.)<\/p>\n But it comes with a cost. When I use Instacart to buy groceries, I pay a service fee, a shopper tip and a markup on items at the store I usually order from. When I\u2019m short on time, it may be worth it to me, but it\u2019s not free.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re saving some time, but you\u2019re paying for it,\u201d says Martin Lynch, president of the Financial Counseling Association of America.<\/p>\n Being a part of the couch economy doesn\u2019t have to harpoon your budget. In fact, as long as you have a budget and your digital shopping life fits within it, you\u2019re in good shape.<\/p>\n \u201cI think you just need to have rules around it,\u201d says Shampaigne Graves, a women\u2019s consumer expert and founder of Women\u2019s Research Solutions, a market research and sales strategy firm in Dallas.<\/p>\n For instance, she says, you might decide that a restaurant must be at least a few miles away before you order delivery from it. And you can audit your streaming subscriptions<\/a> and keep no more than three per month, or whatever number works for you.<\/p>\n \u201cThese subscriptions are raising prices all the time,\u201d Graves says. \u201cBut we aren\u2019t necessarily checking our statement at the end of the month to see how that really impacts us.\u201d<\/p>\n For Lynch, grocery delivery was worth the price when he broke his leg a couple of years ago. As the person in the family who bought groceries, he felt he could still contribute by doing the shopping online. \u201cI could make my wife\u2019s life easier,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n Review a few months\u2019 worth of transactions and add up fees and tips, plus check your subscriptions. If the number surprises you, make one change to bring it down, like shopping more in person or cooking more at home.<\/p>\n \u201cConvenience has real value,\u201d Bardastani said, \u201cbut consumers should still be thoughtful about which services are delivering value for them.\u201d<\/p>\n
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