Do yourself a favor that will pay off about 11 months from now.

In the lull between Christmas and the New Year, while everyone else is still gorging on ham and snoozing through yet another holiday special, head on down to wherever you get your Christmas decorations and load up for the next holiday season before this one even reaches its conclusion.

When the season ends, stores are often left with a surplus of stock in decorations, wrapping paper, trees and other holiday staples. They need to move on from this product, and that means the smart shopper can take care of loading up for next Christmas before they’ve even put up the decorations this year.

Here are a few other tips and tricks for shoppers in and around the Nashville area looking to maximize their money in the post-holiday shopping landscape.

• Know what you need: In the market for a new tree? Running low on wrapping paper? Does that new puppy you got for Christmas need his own stocking? Prioritize what you need, leave out what you don’t.
• Plan ahead: A little foresight can pay sweeping dividends and save shoppers a bundle of money. It’s not just the Christmas decorations and holiday odds and ends that are available at a deep discount as stores move to clear out their stock for the new year; winter clothing, exercise equipment and major appliances can be had at a steep discount. Advertisements and some online research can put you on the right track toward big savings across the Middle Tennessee area from Dickson to Murfreesboro and beyond.
• Be careful: Scammers also know that deals are available after the holidays and may try to trick a buyer with a URL missing a crucial letter or by putting ‘deal’ in the website name. If it seems wrong, it probably is.