The Beginner's Guide to Shopping How You Vote

You want to get political, but who has time for that? It's so much easier to just buy the brands you have always bought without a second thought as to where they stand on the political things you think are important, right? Don't be ashamed. This is America — land of freedom and distraction. I get it. You're busy. You don't have time to figure out which brands are the good ones and which ones aren't. That's why I created this blog, the Beginner's Guide to Shopping According to Your Politics, or "Shopping How You Vote."

So How Does Shopping the Same Way that You Vote Work?

Greeting aspiring conscious consumer! If you care about where a company stands on human rights, worker's rights, LBGT rights, and not to mention if you care about their stance on the environment, the economy, border control vs. open borders, voter supression vs. voter confirmation, support for Israel, racial injustice, or anything else that makes it easy to tell which side of the political spectrum any given company sits on, then congratulations, you are an average concerned citizen. However, finding out what companies support what, whom, and how is easier said than done and can become a daunting task for just one company, nevermind your entire shopping list.

Shopping according to your politics might sound like the most banal thing you've ever heard of because adulting is hard enough without having to think about the political leanings of where your money is going. Besides, just because you had a difference of opinions with the CEO of your favorite chewing gum company doesn't mean you need to find an entirely new chewing gum, or worse yet, give up chewing gum altogether. Doing all of that can be downright difficult, right? Well as much of a hassle as it sounds, participating in cancel culture is really not that hard. If you take it in stride and follow these steps, shopping according to your politics can be fun and even easy (and certainly better on your conscience).

Beginner Tip #1: Let someone else do the research for you. Who has the time to spend on endless Googling to find out which brand belongs to what larger company and which political party they contributed more to in the last election? Certainly not me! Well you don't have to make all of that effort. It's all done for you in one place, it's a website called "Shop How You Vote" and it makes finding these things out as easy as clicking a few buttons. Just search by name or by category and you will see exactly where they stand in no time.

Beginner Tip #2: Do your research on the fly. ShopHowYouVote.com has their own app that you can download onto your mobile device and take with you wherever you go. Just pull out your phone right there in the aisle of your grocery store, shopping mall, or wherever you find yourself about to swipe that credit card, and you can make an informed purchase instead of and ignorant one.

Begineer Tip #3: Get creative in looking for alternatives. So what happens if you discover that the maker of your favorite brand of Cheezy Pleezys is also a Nazi supporter? (isn't everyone who disagrees with our politics a Nazi supporter?) Well it just so happens that the "Shop How You Vote" search engine has a "search by category" feature that allows you to enter the category (in this case "snack foods") and see what the political leanings of the other brands are, and if you are lucky (that is a big IF), you might find a snack maker that aligns a little bit more with your ideologies.

Sometimes you have no alternatives but to make a purchase from a company that you disagree with (see the definition of "monopoly"). In those cases, it's true that capitalism only thrives when there is adequate competition to present the consumer with choices and cost points that are the best, and when this situation is not present there is little that can be done about it. It may be time to write your congress person encouraging them to break up this monopoly citing anti-trust laws. Or, you can start your own business that provides a decent alternative, while staging a boycott of the monopoly. Until then, don't let one frustrating situation get you down. Continue to screen the corporations that you support and send the strong message that your hard earned money go toward the policies you agree with.

Once you get into a routine, it becomes second nature and you memorize what brands to buy and what brands to not buy. I hope you enjoyed our tips. Keep shopping according to your conscience and we will see you in the aisles!

ShopHowYouVote.com is a search engine that keeps tabs on the political donations and leanings of over 2,500 companies, making it easy for you to hold those companies accountable while you shop. ShopHowYouVote.com is all about making consumer awareness simple. With our free and easy-to-use brand/category/store search tool on our website, Android app, and iPhone app, you can send a powerful message to the many brands you shop for. Are you tired of the mess that our nation is in? Do you want to put your money where your own values are? Then by all means, shop how you vote! Please do us a favor and share this tool with a friend.

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