New York (AP) – Have you bought a new pink dress to watch the Barbie movie? Woolering because my favorite ticktoqui influencer had it? With 90s fashion coming back, what about a new pair of baggy jeans?
Niche trends driven by social media can influence shopping decisions. Participating often brings a sense of happiness and community, but the problem is that when you do it frequently, you don’t spend your money to achieve your financial goals, or worse still, you get debts, said Erika Rasure, chief wellness advisor at financial services company Beyond Finance.
Whether it’s a coastal grandma or a pretty girl’s aesthetic, microtrends can increase prices and take a big blow to an already trained budget Gen Z has a hard time paying off their debts.
If you find yourself spending too much to get involved in microtrends, here are some expert recommendations.
Pause before purchasing
Before clicking “Buy” on the Tiktok shop, Jennifer Seitz, Head of Education at Greenlight, a family-friendly financial literacy app, best reflects it. Pausing before purchasing will help you identify if the item is truly something you want or a fleeting craving.
“With a pause in your schedule, whether it’s 24 hours or a few days, whether it’s a bigger expense,” Seitz said.
Participating in personal challenges is a good way to develop the habit of making purchasing more intentional. Alyssa Barber joined in 2022 No-Buy Year Challengeshe pledged to stop buying non-essential items for a year.
Barber shares sustainable practices with over 370,000 followers on Tiktok. One of her recurring themes is how to stop impulse purchases. Barber said the challenge gave her perspective on how much she spends on things she doesn’t need. Since then, she has changed her spending habits and focused primarily on experiences.
Know your spending value
Taking a value-based spending approach can help you determine if you need to take part in trends you can see online, Rasure said.
For example, if you want to build emergency funds, keep this goal in mind while shopping to help you avoid unnecessary spending.
Quaynh Van, a 27-year-old UX designer from Minneapolis, was surprised by the number of Tiktok ads when he created an account after a four-year break from social media. And while it’s inevitable that she’s affected by advertising, she believes that overexpenses stems from a portion of users who don’t have defined goals.
“When you don’t know who you are or what you like, you’re so driven by consumerism and lifestyle creep because you don’t have any sense of value,” Van said.
Rasure recommends using financial value as a guide to spending decisions. If you don’t know your worth, allocate time to map according to your life goals.
Create a barrier to spending
If your purchase is one click, you can make it easier to use a large amount of money. If you consciously paying for items becomes a little more difficult, you can spend more carefully, Seitz said.
“The action of having to enter payment information rather than a simple click can actually help you stop and think about your purchase,” she added.
To add a barrier, you can remove your credit card details from your computer browser or social media and disable Apple Pay on your mobile phone.
Think of it as an act of self-care
Finance is closely tied to emotions, and often evokes negative emotions such as shame and guilt. But reconstructing them as self-care acts can help you spend your whole heart, Rasure said.
“It can help you create boundaries around what you value spending money on, and it helps you make a deliberate choice, and it feels like freedom instead of limitations,” she said.
Current spending habits will help you with your future financial situation. This mindset can inspire you when you’re trying to overuse the latest trending e- or fashion items.
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If they bring positive feelings to you, it might be okay to get involved in the trend, Rasure said.
Van decides to join the matcha trend, but there is moderation. For barbers, physical media such as old records, DVDs, cassettes and other things are on the list of non-negotiable costs, as they love collecting these items.
“Trends and engagement with them and engaged in them should really inspire that happiness and satisfaction, not the debt that you can go with them,” Rasure said.
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The Associated Press is supported by the Charles Schwab Foundation for education and explanatory reporting to improve financial literacy. The independent foundation is separate from Charles Schwab and Co. Inc. The AP is solely responsible for its journalism.
