Do It, Do It

So this is Part 2 of the Side Hustle round up. For this part, the focus will be on hybrid jobs- those that you can get online but that require real world effort. This will include jobs allocated by apps- such as Lyft- and more artistic venues- like Etsy.

App jobs are the big boom here lately. The first major two being Uber and Lyft which allow you to whistle up a random stranger and get in their car.

YOU could be that stranger! From my understanding, Lyft seems to be the preferred company to work for as far as worker satisfaction goes. Due to number of users however, Uber drivers tend to make more money. The popular way to use these apps is to drive for both services so that you are able to pick the better paying trip nearest you. Forbes has a pretty good article discussing the pros and cons of both companies.
For these jobs you will need:

A) a car (duh) that is clean and has enough space for passengers- the type of fares you get will be determined by the car you have
B) a driver's licence
C) car insurance
D) to pass a background check
E) Android or IOS phone
F) 21-23 year of age (depending on state)

A somewhat newer app job on the scene is Shipt, which is a way for customers to order groceries and have them delivered to their home in no less than an hour. As a shopper, you will go to the customer's store of choice and grab all their goodies, making substitutions for items not in stock, and texting them questions as needed. You are paid per trip as well as tips for a job well done. I myself am in the process of getting hired and have completed the online interview. So far the company seems friendly and fun to work for. There is an emphasis on delivery with a smile and excelling in customer service along with critical thinking when it comes to making decisions on the groceries. (such as "The customer has requested 1 pound of brand X free-range ground turkey meat, there are two packages of brand X remaining, one for 0.92 pounds or another for 1.03 pounds- which do you buy?"). I will post more about working for the company if I am hired.

This job is appealing if you want the flexibility of an app job but not the hassle of transporting several people (likely drunk) all over town. And as an extra bonus, all Shipt workers get a free membership to get their own groceries delivered. They do require proof of insurance and a virtual job interview, if you pass the initial qualifications- they will email you requesting additional information for the background check. If you live in the Mobile, AL area, they are currently taking applications for when they go live in the there.
Shipt requires:

A) a car 15 years old or newer
B) a driver's licence
C) car insurance
D) to pass a background check
E) insulated grocery bag or cooler
F) that you wear a Shipt t-shirt while working (will be provided when hired)
G) that you are able to lift 25 pounds
F) IOS 8 or Android 4.4.2 minimum phone
G) 18 years of age

Another type of hybrid job is order based. Websites like Esty allow you to post your crafts and sell them all over the world! Most post a hodge-podge of things they've bought and things they create but if you are crafty, you can make moolah. I can't really post any stats on this as prices for items are self-determined but I will say to post a few things to sniff out demand as you could have a hot-seller or a dud.
Etsy requires:

A) stuff to sell
B) internet access
C) ability to mail said stuff intact

Lastly, if you are so lucky as to have access to a 3D printer, you can post your machine on 3D Hubs and those who have items to print can pay you to print and ship them. Again, stats are difficult to give as price can vary person to person and by distance and material but most orders range in the 2-3 digits.
3D Hub Requires:

A) 3D printer of a reasonable quality (If you built it yourself, you must provide a micron quality)
B) a computer
C) 3D modeling software
D) 3D slicing software
E) ability to mail printed objects intact


Questions? Comments? Anything I missed? Say so below!

Do The Hustle

I've spoken before on the ability to make a bit of spare change in your spare time by doing little jobs here and there online. Since then, a new term and quite a few more opportunities have sprung up to make a some cash (legally). That term is now- the "Side Hustle".

This post is going to focus on digital-only jobs, for jobs that force you out of your comfy computer cave- see my upcoming post "Do It! Do It!"(Yes that title is dumb, yes that is the only other lyric in that song, and yes, I obsess about sticking with a theme)

Now the jobs I spoke of before were of the chump change variety. ChaCha paid ~$0.02/question depending on your role. Notice my use of the past tense there. The CEO has rather recently run off to Hawaii leaving the few remaining Expediters high and dry (and the last of their earnings unpaid). I myself was lucky enough to have given up on working with them before the end. While I made a decent amount of money at first, the number of questions coming in gradually started to taper off. Only to be expected with the rise of the smartphone.

Amazon Mechanical Turk is still going strong. Recently, many of the jobs are coming from rewards apps farming out the many many photos of receipts submitted to prove that an incentive item was purchased. Those jobs have been paying from $0.05- $0.15 per hit with bonuses for extra long receipts. Pinterest has been using AMT as well, listing jobs that are about checking that groups of pins are related, or for what category a pin falls under. Those are paying about $0.20-$0.40 per hit. The highest paying per hit (that are legit) tend to be the psychology surveys by various universities. They can pay $1-$2 per hit! But the better your qualifications, the better jobs there are available to you. So if you get better qualifications than myself, your experience could be different. While I doubt anyone could make a living off Turking, I still think it's a handy way to make a little cash in your spare time, between classes, in waiting rooms, or while vegging on your computer.

Audio transcribing is also a good way to make a buck. If your skills include listening and typing- give it a go! You need to have a good grasp of the language in which you are transcribing- able to read and write on at least a high school level. The more extensive your vocabulary the better. Most websites will require you to take a basic grammar test before letting to take a crack at the audio. I also recommend having a reasonable quality headset for listening. Built in computer speakers really are not adequate in my experience. Sound-isolating headphones are best. Obviously don't run out and drop a $100 bill on a pair of headphones if you don't already have a pair but if you can snag a a pair for about $20 and are going to transcribe a couple times a week, they would make for a good investment.

Wanna transcribe? Try it HERE

On the prospect of writing, there's innumerable opportunities to write online. You could do like me and write a blog. (I returned from my long hiatus to find that I had accumulated almost $30 in ad revenue, not bad considering my low traffic). Blogger has been an excellent platform to work with but there's plenty of other sites to use. You can also freelance articles for established websites like Cracked which is always looking for new funny people to generate laughter and likes for them.

If you have a good grasp of the rules of language but aren't really the creative type, perhaps proofreading is for you. If you're a student, you understand how valuable a second set of eyes can be. (And if you read the comments section of any website, you know that proof reading is sorely needed!) A website that comes highly recommended (though I've not used it myself) is Fiverr.

And if you are the creative type and you aren't shy with a camera, YouTube might be for you. Like Blogger, you can monetize your videos with ads. So long as your video gets plenty of views- you can get paid. Now, bear in mind that it takes a LOT of views to make a decent chunk of change. Pro Tubers invest a lot of time, energy, and capital into their videos. The polished look of the videos uploaded by the likes of Hillywood, Cute Polish, and CinemaSins does not happen in one take or without skill. That isn't to say your videography on stinky cheeses cultured from human bacteria won't get watched, just that you shouldn't expect to become a millionaire from something that looks like found footage. Except for ya know when that happens with horror movies.

Welp, this post grows long and my eyelids grow weary (please forgive any late night typos!). Part 2 should be ready for public consumption later this week. Farewell, my savvy savers!

So, It's Been Awhile...

Wow, to be honest I somewhat forgot about this blog. I had been planning to revamp it a while back ("Guess Who's Back" post) and then life happened- as it does.

Quite a lot has occurred in my life in the interim. I'm not currently enrolled, although I have yet to graduate. Heath and financial issues are mostly to blame- along with a bad case of inertia on my part. I had a hard time justifying tuition when I still am not certain what I want to pursue as a career.

I am hoping to return to school soon, (partially why I remembered "hey, don't I have a blog?") though I haven't decided if I will continue my former major or not. But I have become employed at a software company full time (as opposed to my retail job of the past 6 years) that offers tuition reimbursement offering me a compelling reason to return. There's still the issue of fitting my classes around work, but at least there's set hours that I will be working as opposed to working any time of day for any number of hours, potentially at the drop of a hat. Plus I have Paid Time Off now! Still wrapping my head around the concept of not going to work and still getting paid.

I am also in the process of buying a house. OMG it is stressful and annoying! It would probably be a lot easier if I wasn't buying it by myself. The financial world is hella against the single ladies. Last couple of years I have been living with my sister and her bf and paying him rent money, so I haven't had to deal with bills in a while. That combo'd with my recent uptick in income meant that I haven't been couponing as hard as I used to.

The Stingy Student is going to reassert herself quite soon. In a way, she has already, I'm saving up for my down payment right now and every time I think of spending a dime she smacks my hand. Helpful, but a smidge annoying.

So, if I have any readers left at this point, hey- it's nice to see ya. I'm going to be posting new and awesome ways to handle your fledgling finances. Very likely, a bunch of stuff about my house buying experience as well. So TTFN, see ya again soon.

Earning Tip no.1

This one isn't so much about couponing as it is about getting money. It can be difficult to earn a living while taking classes, especially if you are taking classes full time. So to pay the bills you have a part-time job that fits into your school schedule. You get descent hours, 20-30 a week- more if you're lucky and someone calls in sick- depending on the season. But as much as you stretch your cash with coupons you could probably use some more income that doesn't require loans, illegal activities, or selling your soul / major body parts. You think a second job is out of the question because of school right? Not necessarily, you can earn cash in many ways to supplement your primary income that do not require any of the aforementioned atrocities.

Online jobs:

It used to be that in order to work online you had to have mad skills with a computer. While that does help, there a jobs now where the average user can earn a little extra income. I will list a few I have experience with.

-Amazon Mechanical Turk (skill level: 3/5)

Amazon's "Artificial Artificial Intelligence", In this job you are matched with tasks to perform based on your level of expertise. The longer you work for them the more they allow you to do. The tasks are menial jobs that are too easy for the company to be bothered with but require human intelligence and thus cannot be shucked off to a CPU. The harder the job, the better it pays. Sounds pretty boring but some of the tasks are entertaining and best of all you can PICK the ones that interest you and ignore the others. Also many companies will reward good work with a bonus payment. I once received such a payment because the reviewer thought that my answer to a question was funny! There are universities that post their psychological studies for Turks to complete for their research that tend to pay well as well as websites that post topics to write articles for. You can request payment from Amazon at any time so long as you have earned more than $5.00 and have it deposited into any checking account you have on file. Or if you don't have a account to send it to you can use the balance to shop on Amazon's site. For books, of course.

https://www.mturk.com/mturk/welcome


-ChaCha (Skill Level 1/5-3/5)

If you've ever wanted to ask a stranger "Should I wear a blue shirt or a red shirt today?" You've probably used ChaCha (and were probably told to wear the red unless you work for a guy named Jean Luc Picard). ChaCha is a text-based service that sends answers from real live people to you. In order to get so many real people, ChaCha is willing to outsource a little. You can work for ChaCha as a Guide as freelance work. (i.e. you work for them but you aren't an employee, you're not responsible to them nor they to you). There are different jobs to choose from:

Vetter

Vetters are an integral part of the world’s most unique Rapid Response information squad, spinning out answers in real-time to millions of people on the go!

The action is always fast and exciting for Vetters, whose main task is to match incoming questions with the best available answers. Tap into menus of facts, jokes, news, trivia and more as you keep ChaCha users across the country plugged into the information they need. Whether you’re an early bird, mid-day worker or night owl, there’s never a dull moment!

Expeditor (me)

As part of the world’s most unique Rapid Response team, Expeditors answer questions, real-time, for people on the go. With over 1 million questions coming in each day, you cover a lot of territory … and get to connect with people all across the U.S., sending answers directly to their mobile phones!

Be ready to dish out advice on love & relationships, or tips on which movies to see. Whether ChaCha customers need a phone number they left back at the house, a fact to settle a bet, or a quick joke to lighten their day, you've got menus of great stuff to choose from. The pace is quick and the questions are always lively!

Generalist

Generalists are the ChaCha version of the know-it-all, the renaissance man/woman, or the resourceful friend everyone calls. You are able to comprehend, research, and answer any question thrown at you, regardless of subject matter.

Though you possess many of the same attributes as a Specialist, you enjoy the thrill of the unexpected, and possess the Internet search skills to make you seem like an expert even when you’re not. You are resourceful with a capital “R” and enjoy helping customers while continually learning new things.

Transcriber

Transcribers are the Guides who make ChaCha’s voice answer service the absolute smartest one anywhere. As a Transcriber, you listen to the voice questions that customers call into 1-800-2ChaCha and convert them to text questions.

You’re knowledgeable about people, places and things, and have sharp ears to interpret even muffled questions (possibly from a crowded subway or noisy restaurant). In other words, you’re far better than any computer at deducing what our customers are asking, and correctly interpreting nuances and names. (Note: This is not like being a telephone operator — you hear only recorded audio.)

Each job has a different difficulty level and pay. The harder it is, the more you make per question. There are also competitions and bonuses. It is a great job for students as you can log in from any computer (with Modzilla Firefox) whenever you want for as long as you want. It's great for killing time between classes. 

It's a little like playing timed trivia to me, only you get real money. You won't break the bank with this job, my pay is $.02/question so I generally make about $20 a week which is enough to pay for a night out at least. Not bad for money made in my spare time. I usually run ChaCha in the backgound on my computer while I do other things. It alerts you with the sound of a doorbell when you have a Q.

The method of payment is better now than when I started. Before, if you wanted instant payment, you had to get a bank account with the First Internet Bank of Indiana, get a ChaCha debit card, and make transfers to that account. The bank also charged a fee per transfer. The other option was to transfer to any other bank account with no fee but you could only transfer if you had $150+ in earnings. Now you can do an instant transfer through PayPal for $1, which is much much easier. 

Here's the application link: http://becomeaguide.chacha.com/

If you want, use my email when it asks who referred you and you will be added to my team. leaora@yahoo.com

I have more options that I want to list, but it is late (no longer Wednesday sorry) and I have homework due in the morning so stay tuned for Earning Tip no.2!

Guess Who's Back?

Hey everyone (everyone, everyone, eveyone....)
Echo! (echo, echo, echo...)

Yeah... It's been awhile.

So I found my old business cards on my bookshelf while cleaning and remembered, hey- I have a blog! Hopefully there aren't any rabid code dogs out there waiting to pounce on me, crazed from their lonely experience on a deserted webpage. But mostly I'm afraid that my readers are angry for my year-long hiatus. I had some family stuff and some school stuff and a little depressing stuff happen that I won't relay on here but I want to let everyone know that I'm back and will be posting more often, not that it is hard to post more frequently than once a year.

I checked my stats and noticed that the page has had some visitors. Poor unfortunates sniffing for scraps when there were none to be had. I'm so sorry! I also had a nice note from Google telling me that if I want to get paid, I needed to give them my tax info.

Anyway, for the next few days I plan to reorganize the site, shake out the cobwebs, and give it a little face lift. I will delete the less favored posts so that the number of pages to sift through will remain at a minimum. I'm thinking up some post ideas and WILL make my next post Wednesday afternoon. As always, if you have ideas or questions feel free to message me and I will include it in my following post.

For now, a couple updates on me.

I am now the proud pet of a cat. Yes, he owns me. I literally had no choice in the matter. An adorable kitten chased my bff (who is afraid of and allergic to cats) into my apartment. For my friend's sake I tossed him (lightly) out the door three times, each time he ran back in before I could shut the door. He was skinny enough to worry me despite the fact he was wearing a collar. I have a soft spot for cats as I grew up with lots of them so I found an MRE with a meatloaf packet and mushed it up for the little guy and gave him the option of milk or water. He ate his fill, almost the whole packet, crawled into my lap and fell asleep. I was super surprised as a stray cat will rarely let a person touch them much less curl up and go to sleep. I didn't plan to keep him considering the cost but my sister came home and announced he was ours. When I asked why she told me to look at his feet. When I looked I finally noticed the fact you could almost count to ten with one of his feet. He is a Hemingway (aka polydactyl, aka mitten kitten) cat. He has a total of 26 toes instead of the usual 18 numbering 8-7-6-5. I did try to find the original owners but like I said, he was in bad shape. The kind of shape that occurs from neglect so it is probably good I didn't find them, for their sake.
His name is Professor Theodore Danger Butterscotch or simply Prof. Butterscotch and no, I didn't name him, my sister did. Who promptly got her own cat who she named Generalisima Fluffypants, a female siamese and very tiny with the normal number of toes.

Aside from that there's not much to tell. I hit the two-year mark at my job. I had my wisdom teeth removed. I've gotten REALLY into nail art (I will probably post some pics on here just to warn you).

I've started writing a second novel despite not finishing the first. The first is a sci-fi time-travel adventure that I love but do not have the time for research on. It's just to complicated for my limited time. You might say that I should make it less intricate but if I did it wouldn't be worth the time anyway. So for now it is on the shelf until I can devote myself to it properly. My new one is a vampire themed novel I've been knocking around in my head for a few years. As I have been rather obsessed with vampires since about the age of 4, there is little additional research to do. And no, it is nothing like and has nothing to do with Twilight. I actually do like the Twilight novel series (I have 1st edition hardback of all 5 books), it was entertaining and got teens reading which is quite an accomplishment. The movies destroyed that. Not only were the movies cheesy and poorly done but most teens will watch a movie before lifting a book and after watching those movies they are unlikely to touch the book. When there were no movies, they had no choice. But now I'm ranting so back to the topic... my book concerns an actual, bonafide, evil-and-I-like-it vampire. The main character is a girl who is not head over heels for the vamp but actually afraid of him like she should be. He kills people and would kill her if given the chance. He is not a tortured soul but a torturer of souls. He is the kind of vampire I miss in modern literature. Most modern vampires if evil are flat characters and if good are whiny little b****es. Annoying.

Anyway, If you've red this far, here is your reward. My life in pics:

Asleep on my book, with his eyes open

So many toes!

The tiny one stares into my drink!

My egg art whim last Easter

My car all shiny and new (the one I couponed for)

Halloween nails

Fourth of July nails

Nails for a wedding

Nails that made me want to eat some King cake

Jack Skellington-O-lantern (with blood spatter nails)

The Furby I got for xmas

My teeny tiny turret (*Are you still there?*)

My hair all done up for my friend's wedding

Prof. Butterscotch meets kitty bank for thinkgeek.com

End of an Era

I am so incredibly sad today because it is the final broadcast of my favorite radio station, 97.5 FM WABB. This radio station has been in Mobile since the 70's and has always been a major part of the community. They revolutionized the way radio stations did contests and helped out those in need. When I was growing up, I didn't even know there were other stations, WABB was the radio to me! I loved listening to Matt and Jay in the morning on the way to school and longed to hear my birthday announced on the air. I listened to "Party Like It's 1999" on New Years Eve 1999, and wondered what it was like to be buried alive as a stunt. I entered the contests and felt my heart race when I dialed them up. I was angry at Hot 104 for trying to call them lame. No station could copy them or take away their loyal audience and I will await their return. (hoping they will even if it is just a podcast or streaming online, or that the new station flops).
You will be missed.

Hello All!

Hello Everyone!

I'm the new coauthor, Singingperson. I've been couponing, sampling, and using sites like swagbucks for the last few years. I'm a full-time college student and need to be able to save money anywhere that I can.

My favorite store for couponing is Publix. They have great B1G1(Buy one, Get one free) deals and they accept not only manufacturer coupons, but competitors coupons as well. My best receipts have been $0.42 cents for 43 dollars worth of food and $2.70 for 94 dollars worth of food. That said, I normally end up saving somewhere between $80-100 dollars and spend about $20 or $30 dollars.

See you all again soon!
-SP

Meet the Coauthor

Next Time on The Stingy Student...

In an effort to make The Stingy Student blog's content more regular and relevant I invited a couponing friend of mine to be a coauthor.

She has been on the couponing bandwagon a little longer than me and in the shopping department she is my sensei. I have even mentioned her before on the blog. You may remember my short post Couponing! on May 26, 2011 where I posted a picture of a friend's transaction, our new writer was the one able to purchase $48 worth of goods for $0.42 (I'm still in awe).

So keep a lookout for her upcoming posts under the username SingingPerson.

Left- SingingPerson, Right-Leaora

Stingy Shopping Apps

This was written last Wednesday but it needed some serious work, I swear! >.<

As you know from my previous post about my Black Friday experience, I have a new android phone. This is the first smart phone I've ever had, so I went a little app crazy. I downloaded so many I ran out of memory, luckily the phone came with a 2GB SD card. I have since deleted many of said apps but I held on to the best and the brightest (like 50 or so, I'm still whittling it down).

After several conversations with fellow couponers about money-saving apps, I promised a few of them I would write a post about how to save money using your phone. Considering how expensive they can get it's awesome to get some money back right?

There are literally thousands of apps on the market. They range in purpose- some are informative, others are entertaining, and more than a few are just plain ridiculous. But there are rare, diamond in the rough apps, that can save you a lot.

Shopkick

It's the app putting a spin on the phrase "shopping for kicks"!

Shopkick is probably the most well-known shopping app. It is a rewards app that gives you points (kicks) for shopping. It uses the GPS in your phone to locate you inside sponsoring stores. Stores such as Best Buy and Old Navy reward you for simply walking inside the building while others give you points for scanning barcodes or QR codes on select items in store. This is great because you don't actually have to buy anything in order to get points.

Should you find something you wish to purchase Shopkick has more rewards in store. Depending on the store, you can use a linked Visa card (debit or credit) or give your phone number to the cashier in order to get additional points. Better still, Shopkick has special coupons and deals for users. Saving you dollars as well as earning kicks. There are additional bonuses for iPhone users.

So the burning question is, "What do kicks get you?" Well there's quite a bit to choose from! Rewards vary from Facebook credits (25 Kicks/credit) to gift cards (iTunes, Best Buy, Coach, and more) to a 4GB Xbox with Kinect (75000 Kicks)!

Join Shopkick!


Checkpoints

Check in, check out, Checkpoints!

Checkpoints is very similar to Shopkick, but not as well known. I learned about this app quite a while ago from one on my coupon sites, back when I was just getting into the whole discount scene. 

Just like Shopkick, you get points for going inside stores and scanning items. The difference being that you get less points per check in but more stores to get points from. Also checking in is easier than on Shopkick as the GPS locator gives you a bit more wiggle room on where you are but the trade off is having to wait a certain amount of time between stores to get points. 

Other advantages of Checkpoints is that it can be linked to other loyalty programs. Currently you can connect with Alaska Airlines Miles, Delta SkyMiles, and Swagbucks (I've mentioned Swagbucks before in a prior post). I get the feeling that this program is a work-in-progress so I hope they will add more soon.

There is also a toolbar available to download to your computer's browser to earn more points. You can get it on Internet Explorer and Modzilla FireFox with a Chrome Plugin coming soon.

As for the rewards? Items available for redemption change frequently so you have to check often to see if there's something you like, although some items stay constant. Currently there's $25 giftcards for Starbucks, Amazon, Subway, and Home Depot and items such as an as-seen-on-tv keyboard and a 250GB Xbox bundle with 2 games and a 3-month gold membership to Xbox LIVE for 115000 points.

One last note, when you register your app with checkpoints there is a space to put in a bonus code. If you put in the username of a current user you both get bonus points and the more your code is used, the more points it is worth. A simple search will yield codes but many will no longer be in use (been there, it took me a half-hour to find an active code) and many will claim to get you thousands of points (the cap is 300 I believe) so this is my code and I have no idea how much it will get you: leaora.

Find out more at Checkpoints.com

Smoopa



Getting paid to get a good deal? Heck yeah!

Smoopa is the only app (to my knowledge) that will pay you is cash instead of points. While I love Shopkick and Check Points, cash is cash.

How it works is you find an item that you wish to purchase and scan the barcode. Smoopa will then ask you where you are and what the price of the item. Drawing upon scans of others in the area and the all-knowing internet, Smoopa tells you if the price is good or bad and if there is a special offer.

My favorite thing about this app however is the price tracker. After checking a price, you have the option to "track" the item. You put in the price you want to pay for it and Smoopa alerts you when it falls below that price.

Want to give it a try? Here's a boost, Use code 38366789e7 when you join and get $2 credited to your account.  Find more info on the Android Market or at Smoopa.com.


Some other apps I want to touch on:

Key Ring: Before I found this app, I was considering using a second wallet for just my rewards cards. Key Ring stores the bar codes for all your cards on your phone, making it easy to find and use. For an added bonus there are Key Ring exclusive coupons you can add to your cards on your phone.
learn more



Grocery IQ: This app is the product of Coupons.com, the site we know and love for printable coupons. The app is primarily to make and organize shopping lists but it has some awesome options. You can search through coupons on the site to have emailed to you as well as some you can add instantly to membership cards for stores.
learn more

Grocery Pal: This too is a shopping list app. Where it differs from Grocery IQ is that in addition to coupons (a service provided by Cellfire) you can search through the sales of the grocery stores in your area and add items directly to your list. This makes coupon match-ups a cinch!
learn more

GeoQpons: I was informed of this app while shopping one day. You can search through stores in your area to find discounts. The discounts on the app are typically coupons the store has online most of the time but having it on the phone eliminates the need for printing. And the occasional unplanned splurge.
learn more

Know of any other awesome shopping apps? Feel free to post them in the comments section.

Apps Awaaaay!!!!

New Year'$

Say hello to 2012!

It's a brand new year and I've been noticing that many new year's traditions center around money. So I thought that for my first post of the year I would give an overview of some of these traditions and some money-saving tips for the season.

One tradition that I grew up with was eating black-eyed peas to bring wealth. I absolutely despise black-eyed peas but once a year I gritted my teeth and ate as many as I could stand. One year I carefully ate then one at a time until I had eaten exactly 100 in order to get the corresponding amount of cash during the year (back when $100 was the largest amount I could concieve of).

Another tradition I heard of only recently was that during the first few days of the year you shouldn't make any frivolous purchases because you would be doomed to debt for the rest of the year. I think this is more of a correlation effect than anything else. The kind of people who would make such purchases are the kind to make such purchases throughout the year. Correlation doesn't prove causation.

Lastly is making resolutions. This is the only tradition I put stock in. If you can actually resolve to save more money or to earn more money in the coming year, typically you will. As with any resolution though it needs to be reasonable and you need to keep it for more than two months. Try to tell someone to keep on track.
On that note, my own resolution is to focus on my writing. I have decided to call it Writing Wednesday. One day of my week that will be dedicated to working on my novel, blog, diary, or my other miscellaneous musings. That isn't to say that I won't be writing while multitasking, but the other tasks will probably be more relaxing such as soaking in a foot bath while wearing a spa mask, etc.

But back to the money, it is probably tempting to shop right now with all the post-holiday sales and clearance events. However I recommend attacking the deals the same way you go about shoping prior to the holidays: know what you want, what you are willing to pay, and don't get anything else.
That's all I have for now. Hope everyone had a safe and happy holiday. Thank you so much for putting up with an inconsistent blogger.

Stay stingy, my friends.
:P

My First Black Friday

This is a draft I found lying around from December, after a bit of a touch up for my Writing Wednesday I deemed it blog worthy. Enjoy

So, I did a little Black Friday shopping this year. Emphasis on a little. For one, I was working that day, for another I can't stand crazy crowds. (makes me want to scream or puke or both) So at midnight I drove up to the nearest Target. When I got there, the line wrapped around the building despite the 30 degree temperature.

As soon as my sister saw the parking lot she drove off with a good luck text. And I admit I was a little intimidated myself but I needed a new cell phone badly. I had reactivated a four-year-old phone after my two-year-old one bit the dust. After some research online I discovered that Target had the LG Optimus V (Virgin Mobile) for $49.99 in lieu of the normal price of $149.99. I had put a lot of thought (aka drool) into purchasing an Android phone and $49.99 was about as low as I could get for a new one. So I parked in a spot too small for the SUVs that were trolling around (people double parked in order to block out other shoppers, but couldn't stop my little Aveo) and waited in the warmth and security of my car until the line got into the store. After the half-hour it took the shoppers to disappear, I strolled into the store and made a bee-line for the electronics department. It wasn't easy considering the shear number of people just ambling around talking on their cell phones and looking at products that weren't even on sale. I channeled the dodging abilities I developed from years of having to quickly navigate the crowed halls of my high school and was able to expertly duck and weave my way through the crowd  without mishap. Just as I was patting myself on the back for making it to the electronics department I spied the empty peg-hook where my phone supposed to be.

After an internal dramatic wail, I cast my eyes about for an employee. I doubted I would find one but I tried anyway. After a few minutes I snagged one as the flow of traffic threw him past me. After thanking him for even trying to help, I asked if there was any way he could check in "the back" to see if there were any more phones lying around. He promised to do so and leaped into another stream of traffic. In the meantime I moored myself to the cell phone shelf to wait and entertained myself by watching the mayhem. After a few minutes he swam back and handed me a very disheveled box containing my phone, informing me that it was the last one. I thanked him profusely again. I believe I said something to the effect of "You are so awesome you are a freaking god". I hugged the box to my chest and waded back into the crowd.

I had entertained the idea of getting an xbox controller while I was there as they were on sale for ten dollars off and I had a coupon for an additional ten dollars off as well as my Target Red Card, one glance at the tower of people next to the xbox display and I did an about-face toward the exit. Sure it would have been a great deal but I didn't think it was worth the time or energy. Plus a man ran by me carrying an xbox like it was a football. The line to the registers was the deciding factor though. there wasn't much of one yet but it was just beginning to grow. I found the entrance to the roped off area leading to the registers and was able to quickly navigate the dizzying path up one aisle and down another. It was only a five minute wait accompanied by a really nice couple before I reached the line attendant. As I only had the one item I got to go to the express lane. I stood a the counter a little while before the clerk noticed me. I can't blame her though, considering how few people would have ten items or less. All together with the promo price, my 5% discount, and tax I purchased my phone for exactly $52.

Connectivity

The internet is up and functioning along with television service. We didn't really need the tv service considering we have Hulu and Netflix, but the internet was cheaper if we had both. And considering the fact I have grown tired of watching the Venture Brothers seasons 1-3 over and over since August, I welcome the service.

Looking forward to blogging again!

Getting the Interwebs

So I had thought we were getting internet as I mentioned in my earlier post however this was not to be. The company we wanted internet from couldn't give us a straight answer as to whether they had service in our area and if so what kind. At one point they said they would send a tech to find out, but he never showed. After a month of being strung along we began looking elsewhere. This gave us an incentive to find the best price. Before we were trying to simply get internet (we are addicts, or at least I am) but now that we've suffered through the withdrawal we might as well shop around. So far we have a really good price on a TV/internet combo that is to be installed tomorrow. If it is, I will post again as soon as it is up and running.

Miss you guys!

                                             Me without internet ^

Stingy Tip no. 8 Keep the Receipt!

Well, Blogger has a new interface so I know I have been gone awhile. I recently realized I hadn't listened to the radio in a long time when I turned to a preset and the station had changed names. Now that my new place is getting hooked up with internet service my posting should become fairly regular. But on to the topic at hand!

Would you like a receipt?

An emphatic YES! There are so many benefits to getting a receipt that I don't even think twice about it. If you ever look at a receipt not only is there a record of what you bought, there is a host of personal info, company info, store info and quite often coupons, surveys, giveaways, freebies, and more. Getting one of these for something you were buying anyway (especially if you got it for free with a coupon) can be better than the actual purchase.

Some of the reasons to get and keep your receipt:

• Security- if the receipt is printed anyway, especially if you used a card, you keep it. An employee is just going to toss it in the trash where any good stalker is likely to rummage. At the very least you can take it home and run it through a shredder (or give it to a couple gerbils that delight in tearing up anything that is paper or plastic in nature)
• Record keeping- If you do the old fashioned way of balancing a checkbook keeping your receipt as a record is a must. Even if you keep an eagle-eye on your bank accounts online some things take longer to post than others so it is always good to know what you have spent to ensure you don't have an overdraft or the accompanying fees. 
• Returns- If any item you purchase doesn't work out the only sure way to get your money back is to have your receipt. Some stores will issue store credit but the receipt allows you to get your money back in the form you gave it i.e. put back on your credit/debit card or cash.
• Proof of Purchase- Cashiers are people, and they make mistakes. They scan stuff twice, miss items, forget discounts, et cetera. If there is something wrong with your transaction and you have no receipt you're pretty much SOL.
• Surveys- Traditional surveys are links tacked on to your receipt that enter you in a drawing for prizes/ money in exchange for your feedback.
• Rewards- sometimes you can enter your transaction number into an online account to get points to use towards coupons or free items.
• Coupons- These can be tacked on the end of the receipt, printed on the back, or spat out of a Catalina. Most of the time they will match a coupon currently in circulation although sometimes they have a higher discount or they will be specific to the store. 
• Freebies- sometime they give you a straight up reward usually in the form of food. :P

Know any other uses? Feel free to add them in the comments area.

Thank you for your patronage, have a nice day!

My Day

 Well this isn't going to be much of a post but I just wanted to mention a couple things about my day today.

I went to Target to shop for some shampoo that I had free vouchers for plus some random things I needed. Upon reaching the shampoo isle, I noticed that the shampoo I had two vouchers for had a special where if you bought four items listed on the tag you would get a $5 target gift card. Naturally the "awesome" alarm went off in my head and I began searching through my coupon binder for other products on the list. I decided to get a Suave lotion that I also had a free voucher for (25% more size), vaseline lotion (that came with a pack of q-tips), and the two suave products I had the vouchers for. I didn't realize that the suave lotion was not included in the special, but I will expound on that later. I grabbed some food that I did not have coupons for but they were on sale. Then I happened by a clearance rack that had several items I had coupons for (more *awesome* alarms). I only got a bottle of Febreeze Air effect as it was the best deal of the bunch.

At the checkout, I used several coupons plus I got $0.05 off for the target bag I purchased and 5% off my total cost with my new Target Red Debit card. I didn't get the $5 gift card at first but I went back and got another Suave product and solved it. In all, I saved $17.35 and paid $5.36 on this transaction.

I also purchased two bottles of lemonade at World Market for $0.34 (the tax)

Basically I bought everything in this pic (including the bag) for $5.70!

For some karma points I gave a Pantene voucher to a couple who were buying the product anyway and left some coupons on top of products I wan't interested in.

Stay thrifty, my friends.

A Little Filler

I know I took another big break from posting. It was mostly due to a lack of internet access over my vacation. It was my first vacation so I suppose it was a good thing over all (For those wondering, yes many coupons were used but not so many that I focused on it).

I have been doing research on upcoming topics for my posts and hope to have a new on up next week. For the time being however a couple of quick updates:

1) This weekend is the tax-free holiday for school supplies in the great state of Alabama. The tax exemption is primarily for K-12 students and is rather limited and very strict. It includes items such as computers not exceeding $750 and clothing not exceeding $30. I find it best to look at the rules and adhere to them rather than to try and loosely interpret them as it will just lead to frustration of you and the sales person who has no control of the tax status of the item. You can find all the info you need (which can be clear as mud) here.

2) A list of topics I am considering:
-Affording a kid (because not all college students are sans family obligations)
-Going green to save green
-Pampering without the price
-Keep the receipt (the value behind the proof of purchase)

3) My favorite! I now have my own business cards! They aren't as pretty as some I designed on my computer but they were totally free and look professional so I can't (and won't) complain. I also have a business card hold I received for free from SaleADay.com so I can keep them on me to give to anyone curious about my blog. (sadly I expect to use them primarily for giving out contact info to my friends but that still makes them useful).

Well that's all for now, thanks for reading and hope to see you again soon!

Stingy Tip no.8 Don't be Late

No time to say hello, goodbye! I'm late, I'm late, I'm late!

While I admit I am a procrastinator and am frequently late myself (I'm working on it), being on time is financially beneficial on many levels.

Numero uno, your job. If you have any kind of job (except perhaps the online kind) showing up early gets you more money. Obliviously if you clock in early and work ten minutes longer than you would have if you had shown up on time you get more money, but there's more money to be had from this simple act. When you show up consistently early your higher-ups are likely to notice- which may or may not lead to a promotion but at least if you change jobs it should get you a good recommendation.

Another benefit of not being late is the relief from stress. As a repeat offender of tardiness I know for a fact that running late can wreck your nerves -if you care of course. You get antsy and agitated. You spend the drive trying to go as fast as you can. Which tends to make the nice police officers not so nice, costing you the money for the ticket, your insurance hike, potential property damage from an accident, and the additional time spent off the clock. To finish off the ball of badness you arrive in a foul mood to work making the customers upset, hurting sales, getting fired, turning into a super villain and destroying the world.
... well maybe not that far, but you get the idea.

Then there's every other appointment in your life. Whether it is a date, dentist appointment, interview, photo shoot, any time that you have paid for that you miss is loosing money. If you have paid for it why wouldn't you use it?

When it comes to tardiness, time is money and when you're early you're on time, if you're on time you're late, if you're late you're broke.

Keep hoppin' white rabbits,

Stingy Tip no. 7 Reap the Rewards

Want new stuff? How about free stuff? One of the best ways to do this is via rewards programs.

Now I know I have mentioned rewards programs before in passing but I thought perhaps I would go a little more in depth. Also, for the convenience of this post the term "reward program" will henceforth be referred to with the acronym RP.

One definition of RP is "a structured and long-term marketing effort which provides incentives to repeat customers who demonstrate loyal buying behavior." (About.com) Most businesses will have a RP of some kind. It can be as simple as a stamp card at your local coffee shop (such as the awesome Coffee Loft in Fairhope), or as complex a points system such as with Best Buy Reward Zone (complex does not mean bad). There's a whole myriad to choose from.
I divide RP into two main groups: real world and digital. Real word are the RPs that are connected to a physical store, even when you manage rewards and can make purchases online. Digital is RPs that exist only in cyberspace.

So what RPs should you use? Any you think are worth the time! Time is money and some rewards do require some effort. Here are a few criteria:

Do you visit the store/website twice a week or more?

Is the store/website a favorite of yours or people close to you?

Does the store/website sell 20 or more products you would like to own at any given time?

Does the RP's rewards sound highly appealing and useful?

Can you earn a desirable reward within a reasonable time frame?

If you answered yes to two or more of the questions, then you should probably join the RP.


One of my favorite types of RPs are for advertising websites. Basically you get rewarded for watching sponsor's ads through the site. Unlike with regular RPs, you are not required to buy ANYTHING -although some give the option. Performing tasks or watching ads earns you points which you will use to buy gift cards or merchandise listed on the site.

Using RPs can get you cool stuff and save you money for doing what you already do, requiring only a little extra effort in order to track your rewards. So what are you waiting for?


Here are some of my favorite RPs



Swagbucks gives you points to search, play games, use coupons and more!

Club Bing
Earn points for playing games like Chicktionary to buy cool things like solar-powered backpacks (I'm not kidding, it's on my wishlist). All by Bing.

Bing Rewards
Again from Bing only you get points from searching for random stuff like you do anyway. It has plenty of gift cards and product to choose from, even subscriptions to magazines, Hulu Plus, and points for Xbox Live.




Inbox Dollars pays straight up cash for reading email, watching ads, using coupons and more. Earn $30 and get a check. The more you do the faster you get the moolah.

Wishing you many happy rewards,

Stingy Tip no. 6 Cheap(skate) Date

So, I apologize for the almost exact month that I have not posted. I was endeavoring to procure additional funds from a new job that will be filed under the "mistakes" tab of my life (and potentially this blog if I can figure out how to add tabs). It ended up costing me time, money, and a whole lot of energy. The only thing I can say was beneficial about it was the exercise I got from the excessive amount of walking it required.

But I promised a post about affordable dating, not a giant vent, so here it is:

Dates primarily consist of Food, Fun, and Fraternization. (I love alliteration! Plus it helps with memory)

Food:
This one is usually the easiest. Restaurants give out tons of coupons; they are betting on the fact that you are more likely to eat there with a coupon than you are without and a little less money overall is better than none at all. It is similar to the philosophy that led to the invention of the gift card. (With a gift card, if the giftie uses less than was on the card the store still makes the amount paid for the card, if they spend more than the card, the store makes even more: win-win)

Anyway, the easiest way to get a restaurant coupon is to sign up for their mailing list. About a week prior to the date sign up for several local restaurants' mailing list and printing off the coupons they send you. Most will be for a free appetizer but some are better. Ruby Tuesday's is the best bet in my opinion.

Other options include finding coupons via an app on your phone, cash back offers though your bank or credit card, and Restaurant.com gift cards (they sell gift cards for less than their value but have strict stipulations that limit use such as "on purchases exceeding $20" or "cannot be combined with other offers").

If you want to let your date pick the place the day of the date, keep all the coupons on you that are likely choices. If you can decide beforehand it gives you more time to plan. Also, if you want to be covert about using a coupon, wait until your date has gone to the bathroom -or make an excuse to go yourself- and slip the coupon to the waiter/waitress.
If you have to present it in front of your date just think about the fact it is less embarrassing to use a coupon than to have to go dutch.

Fun:
This tends to be the hardest to find discounts for. Not that there aren't any, it just takes a little more digging and creative thinking.

The best thing to go with is local attractions; public events, parks, and fund raisers. These are all free-to-see deals where you can get to know each other. Fund raising events may not sound like fun for a date, but events like Relay For Life can have dancing and games plus you feel good for helping others.
Check out the websites for local radio/TV stations as they will generally have a page devoted to discounts for local stores, events, and concerts.

Barring that, the movies and the local mall are good standbys. There are various ways to get free or discounted tickets to a movie theater. Find out if the school you attend sells movie tickets (or have if they sponsor special events at the local theater, such as the "Cheapdate" movie of the month deal at The University of South Alabama where you can purchase tickets for a specific showing of a specific movie for $2). You can also check to see if a local theater offers a student/military discount. Some banks will also have offers. There is the occasional online offer for a free movie ticket, but they are few and far between. They also have many rules about where and when they can be used and have expiration dates. I recommend using these only if they happen to work for your date anyway.

The mall offers tons of options, if you know the stores that your date prefers, repeat the advice for the restaurant coupons. Same principle.

(btw gifts are a good idea)

Fraternization:
It shouldn't cost a thing! Be yourself and try to have fun. If you spend to whole date as a nervous wreck the date will suck for both parties. If you can't help it fake confidence until you feel confident. Like smiling when you are upset it triggers a reaction in your brain to make you happier.

This is a bare-bones outline of a date, it is up to you to fill in the gaps. Us your imagination to make it fun and my guide to keep it within budget.

Till next time :)

Stingy Tip no.5 (for shopaholics)

Don't be so picky!

It is the mantra of many parents when their kids don't want something because it isn't just right. But being picky can save you from yourself if you love to shop. Shopaholics can see an item in a store and instantly they HAVE to have it. Being picky can prevent the cost of an impulse buy. Even if you return an impulse buy it has still cost you the price of gas and the mental stress of regret. Don't buy the item you saw unless you have thought about buying it for at least two weeks.

The best way to get that shopping fix without the price is to plan. If you know that you will be going to the mall, decide how many items you will buy and how much you can spend for the night (including tax, food, and gas). Know about half the items you plan to buy, how much they will cost, and what stores they are available in. Check the stores' websites to find any sales/ coupons that are applicable to your item to get the best price. There are also ways to shop for free. Look for coupons for free items by mail and online. Victoria Secret frequently sends out coupons for a free $8 panty, no purchase required. Not too long ago Bath and Body Works had a print out coupon for a free moisturizer in their new scent.

Window shopping can also be fruitful. Some stores allow you to get reward points just for visiting. Hot Topic has a scanner in stores to get ten points every day you stop by. Or like with Best Buy you can attend private parties for members where you are entered for prizes just for attending. You should join the reward program for any store you shop regularly (or really like)if they have one. I suggest having a separate email address so your inbox doesn't get cluttered.

Happy hunting!


Up next: how a cheap date doesn't need to be a crappy date.