Saturday, May 30, 2009

Save - A tale about cat litter

Once upon a time, our fair maiden was almost out of cat litter and fretting about how to acquire more in a frugal way. Along comes our hero, FrugalRIMama, with a link to an internet printable coupon for $1/1 Arm & Hammer clumping cat litter.

The maiden was able to take advantage of Stop & Shop's sale price of $6.99 for 20 lbs. and combine four printable coupons (from two computers) with four dollar double coupons from the S&S flyer to get...

80 POUNDS OF CAT LITTER FOR $21.38!!

And the kingdom rejoiced!
The end.

I just went back to the Arm & Hammer site to print more cat litter coupons and they appear to be gone from the site. The kingdom is awash in sorrow for those who didn't ge to print them.

Thursday, May 28, 2009

Give Back - Stonington Food Pantry

The nice folks at the Stop & Shop in Stonington had a donation box set up next to the exit for the Stonington Food Pantry. I love it when stores do this - I am sure that people are more likely to donate if all they have to do is put the food in a box for someone else to handle.

I donated the BBQ sauce, some salad dressing, and some crystal light. It would be nice if more store did this and let the customers know about it. If I had known the box was there, I would have gotten more stuff and donated it. Oh well, one thing at a time!

I love being able to donate more now that I've gotten into the coupon thing. It's definitely a win-win.

Save - Stop & Shop 5/26

Once again, many thanks to FrugalRIMama for showing me "the way of the coupon". Could not do this without her!

I went to the Stop & Shop in Stonington, CT last night for the first time. It's a new store, so it's nice and clean. I got there around 8:45 and it was practically deserted which was great! But enough chitchat! What did I save, you ask? Well, let me tell you! I saved:
$52.03 with 36 manufacturer's coupons - Thanks Karen!
1.05 with MC that S&S doubled
62.07 on sale items
$115.15 Total savings!!!!

I spent $75.27. Not as good as the haul from Shaw's but S&S didn't have as much that I wanted on sale.

What I got: (see FrugalRIMama's blog for links to the printable coupon sites)
(3) Kraft 8 oz dressing @ 3/5.00 - used 3 MC $1.50/1 (even though the coupon says 16 oz or larger, it worked on the 8 oz)
(4) Kraft shredded cheese @ 2/5.00 - Used 2 internet printable coupons $1/2
(3) S&S butter @ 1.49 each
(2) Friendly's ice cream @ 1.99 each
(4) Marie Callendar Steam entree things @ 4/10.00 - used 2 - $1/1 & 2 - .75/1 MC from inserts
(14) canisters Crystal Light @ 2/4.00 - used IP coupons $1/1 & $2/2 to make them all cost $1 each
(2) Crystal Light Skin Essentials 0.00- Used 2 IP coupons - Buy Crystal Light - Get Skin Essentials Free
Got a coupon at the register to get $2.00 off a shopping order WYB 4 Crystal Light. Yea, cuz I NEED more Crystal Light? Sheesh.
(6) Glade sprays @ 10/10.00 - Used 3 BOGO MC from inserts
(4) Kraft BBQ sauce @1.00 - Used 4 IP $1/1 (S&S has this price locked in until 8/06/09, so print the coupons and use them up to get FREE BBQ sauce!)
(4) Renuzit Crystal Deoderizers @4.99 each - Used 2 BOGO MC from inserts
(3) Yakisoba ramen dishes @ 1.00 each- Used 3 - .35 MC from inserts. S&S doubled them so these cost .30 each. These will make a quick lunch for me with a salad. Even if they don't taste that great, I'm trying to eat lunch for as little as possible, so this fits right in. Price is set until 8/6/09.
(2) BallPark Franks @ 3.99 each - On sale BOGO and used $1/2 MC from insert. These are $1 cheaper than at Shaw's, so make sure you get them at S&S.
(2) Hillshire Farms ropes @ 4.39 each - On sale BOGO and used $1/2 from insert.

The cashier must have been new because for the Crystal Light and Renuzit free coupons, she was just entering in amounts willy nilly. At least she was nice and didn't make a big fuss about all the coupons. She didn't get flustered as the line started to form behind me either. I am definitely going to have to get one of those "Pick another check out lane" shirts from Krazy Coupon Lady. Or maybe I'll just make up a warning sign to stick at the end of my items on the belt!

Monday, May 25, 2009

Save - Sale & Coupons at Shaw's 5/25/09

First off, many thanks to Karen from FrugalRIMama.com. Learning from her & her site is what made it possible for me to save so much this week. My grocery cart was overflowing with items this week and the grand total for all of it was $97.41.

Here are the numbers:


Here are the highlights:
8 boxes Kellogg's cereal for .88/box-Used Shaw's coupon $5/8 boxes; (8)manufact coupons $1/1
2 Marzetti's dressing for 2.49 each-(2)manufact coupons $1/1;plus 1.50 Upromise savings wyb 2
2 Deli Selects for 0.00-Shaw's coupon 2 FREE deli selects wyb 5 Coke 12 packs
4 bottles Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce for 0.25 each - (4) manufact coupons $1/1
2 bottles Ken's Marinade for 0.25 each - (2) manufact coupons $1/1
4 boxes Hefty One Zip Qt bags for 0.50 each - (4) manufact coupons $1/1
5 envelopes McCormack's GrillMate for 0.00 - (5) manufact coupons .50/1; Shaw's doubled coupon
2 boxes Ritz Crackers for 2.00 each - (2) manufact coupons $1/1
2 boxes Wheat Thins Artisan Crackers for 0.00 - (2) manufact coupons Buy 1 Ritz, Get 1 Free Wheat Thins Artisan
18 Kraft Easy Mac Cups for 0.56 each - (8) manufact coupons $1/2
12 boxes Wheat Thins/Triscuits for 1.00 each - (12) manufact coupons $1/1
10 cups Yoplait Yogurt for 0.44 each - Shaw's coupon $1/10; (1) manufact coupons buy 6 get 1 free
2 Off Clip On units for 6.99 each (sale price)
2 Off Clip On Refills for 0.00 - (2) manufact coupons Free refill WYB Off Clip On unit

To get some perspective, here is a cost comparison for just the items above:
Non-sale cost: 197.68
Sale cost: 134.04
My Cost: 59.86

Again, thank you FrugalRIMama!!

As always, I made some rookie mistakes. I'm adding them to help others and as a reminder to myself not to do it again!
1. The cashier didn't scan the 2 manufact coupons I had for free KC Masterpiece BBQ sauce WYB Kingsford charcoal, so I paid for them. Cost $5.58 for MORE BBQ sauce when I was already getting some for 0.25 each. So aggravating.
2. The cashier didn't scan the BOGO Ruby Sierra Mist coupon. Cost 2.67 because I wouldn't have gotten one if I didn't have the coupon to get one free.
3. The cashier didn't scan the BOGO Easy Mac coupon and said I had too many $1/2 coupons, so I guess she thought they were all the same coupon. Cost 2.00

There were a couple of cashier errors, though, so it ended up being $1.34 in my favor. It would have been even more in my favor if I had caught the coupon errors.
1. When I got to my car, I noticed that I had been charged $7.59 for something called KEDEM CNCRD GRP. I didn't buy grapes, anything grape flavored or anything for 7.59, so I hauled everything back into the store. Because I had so much stuff the CSA just gave me the money back instead of taking everything out to find out what it was.
2. I bought 5 Grillmates envelopes. The cashier only scanned in one, but she scanned in five 0.50/1 coupons, which Shaw's doubled. So, that was $4.00 off my bill PLUS 4 free GrillMates, which were free anyway due to the double coupons.

If any other coupon people read this, would you let me know how you make sure all your coupons get scanned properly? I find it very hard to unload the cart, watch the prices as they are scanned, bag the goceries, and keep track of whether or not the coupons are going in right. There's no one for me to buddy up with, so I guess I will just have to practice. Still, if you have any tips, I'd appreciate the help!

Earn - Tiny Tip #6 - Be Efficient

Be efficient

Use your time efficiently. Focus your efforts on one or two proven sites. Look at other people's blogs and check to see which sites have actually paid the person money. Then spend your time trying to earn on the site(s) you chose. Participating on multiple sites will dilute your time and make it take longer to get to your minimum payout amount. Even if you have unlimited time to do this, work one or two sites. Once you start to get the hang of the process, THEN branch out to other sites that you learn about.

In tip #5, I listed the sites from which I had received actual cash payments. Below is info on a couple of sites, with referral links, where I have earned credits, but have not yet been paid.

CashCrate I have $4.30 worth of credit with them. They have some free offers, some trial offers, and daily surveys. I've heard good things about this site and will make it one of my go-to sites once I have time to work on offers/surveys again. $20.00 minimum payout.

Opinion Outpost I have $7.50 worth of credit with them which is enough to get paid, but I want it to get higher before I request payment. This is a survey site - they'll send you an email notification to take a survey or you can visit the site to see if you are eligible to take any. If you get an invitation to take a survey, take it fast. Most of the surveys close in a day or less. $5.00 minimum payout.

SquishyCash I have $5.62 & 4 chips of credit with them. Personally, I am not a huge fan of SquishyCash BUT they have a variety of ways to earn: paid to click, daily surveys, free offers, trial offers, and now it looks like they have Squishy Slots, whatever that is. Karen @ frugalrimama.com has made over $400 from this site, so it is probably worth checking out.

Learn from my mistakes!! When I started this adventure in Feb 2009, I signed up for every site I saw. As a result, I have accounts all over the place with various credit and VERY LITTLE ACTUAL EARNINGS IN MY POCKET. Plus, I wan't smart about where I signed up. I did NO research. I signed up for a site that required earnings of $100 before payment would be made. I also signed up for a site that charges a $5 fee to send the payments. (I don't recall which site that was or else I would warn you about it.)

Those are both big no no's. A high minimum payout amount means that site doesn't plan to EVER pay out. And there are plenty of sites out there that don't charge to send the payment, so pick one of those and don't pay them a fee to pay you! I have noticed YouData is charging me a penny or two to transmit their payments, so I am keeping my eye on that to see if itgets out of hnd.

Post #6 in a series of 6 of tips for beginners to earning money online.

Earn - Tiny Tip #5: Research

Research

This tip goes with "Be Efficient" tip #6. Check other people's blogs for sites that have ACTUALLY paid out money to them. Not what they earned and have credit for; find out which sites paid money. Because this is what this is all about. We're not in this to build up never ending credit on some site with no hope of ever getting paid. We want the money!

The only sites that I have received actual cash from are the following: Esearch.com, DollarSurveys.net, and YouData.com. I signed up for tons of sites. As I revisit them, I'll post some details on each.

Esearch - I've earned $4.00 to date on two surveys. I think Esearch sends out a screener survey and if you qualify, they send you the paid survey to take. The invitations come infrequently, but if they invite you to take the survey, you know you have a pretty good shot at qualifying to complete it. (Unlike LOTS of other sites that will tell you 3/4 of the way through that you 'don't meet the criteria'.) I love this site because they pay directly into your Paypal account without having to accumulate a minimum amount.

DollarSurveys.net - I've earned approximately $20.00 from them completing surveys and offers. I love this site because they pay $1 per completed survey right into your Paypal account. Payment is usually about a week after completion. There are some cons with this site as there can be a high failure rate for completing the surveys. You aren't going to meet the criteria and be able to finish every survey and get paid, which ends up being time wasted. But, overall, this is a great site.

YouData.com - This is another site that I love because there is so little work involved and I LOVE the concept. Since Feb 09, I've earned about $10.00 from this site, just from clicking and looking at other websites. For more info, please visit FrugalRIMama's blog. She did a nice write up on YouData.

In tip #6, "Be efficient" I have included a few sites that I would recommend as "starter" sites.

Learn from my mistakes: I CANNOT stress this one enough. Shop around, look for proof of payments, watch out for high payout requirements. Sign up for one or two and then STOP. Concentrate your efforts with those two sites to start. Expand to more later if you want, but start small. Free offers & surveys can take 15-20 minutes each to complete. You won't always get credit for completed free offers. So don't spread yourself thin. Spend your time on one (or two) site(s) to maximize your earnings potential. Visit FrugalRIMama's blog to start your research. She writes up sites, shows the credits she has earned on her homepage and also posts proof of payments received.

Post #5 in a series of 6 of tips for beginners to earning money online.

Earn - Tiny Tip #4: Paypal

Paypal
Sign up. Period. The End.

Each site will have a different options for receiving payments, but many pay via Paypal. Be sure to read & make a note of the fine print when you are signing up at each site. Make a note of the payout method and if there are any fees taken for sending the payment to you.

Learn from my mistakes: When I started this adventure, I signed up for a site that charges a $5 fee to send the payments. (I don't recall which site that was or else I would warn you about it.) This error is included twice to make sure it really sinks in!

Post #4 in a series of 6 of tips for beginners to earning money online.

Earn - Tiny Tip #3: RoboForm

Consider downloading RoboForm

RoboForm is a program you can download to use to fill in forms. You can get a free unlimited trial and after the trial is over, you can have limited usage for free - 2 identities and 10 logins.

If you're planning on doing free offers, this is a MUST have. Just set up one identity with the email, login & password that you want to use to sign up for offers. When you want to fill in a form, you just click a button on your toolbar and Hey Presto! all or most of the form will be filled in for you.

Learn from my mistakes: Some sites, like DealBarbiePays, consider RoboForm to be a "bot" and will not give you credit for offers filled out using RoboForm.


Post #3 in a series of 6 of tips for beginners to earning money online.

Saturday, May 23, 2009

Earn - Tiny Tip #2: Be Organized

Be organized

Use index cards, paper, a spreadsheet or any method you choose, but be sure use some kind of system to keep track of what you have done.

For instance:
Email accounts & passwords
Sites you signed up for along with login ID, email you used to sign up, & password
Payout amount (minimum you need to earn before you can request payment)
Fine print - note any *fine print* such as fees for receiving payments, etc.
Earnings (it's interesting to compare time spent vs. $ earned)
Completed offers - don't waste time completing offers at multiple sites. Keep track!

Learn from my mistakes: When I started, I was signing up all over the place. I was trying to use the same login/password combo at all of them, but sometimes I didn't. What a disaster! I finally started keeping track in a spreadsheet and then my computer died. I had no backup, so it's back to square one for me!


Post #2 in a series of 6 of tips for beginners to earning money online.

Earn - Tiny Tip #1: Start a new email account

Start a new email account.

Your initial entry fee into the world on earning money online is ALWAYS going to be an email address.

You are going to get a TON of spam when you start signing up for sites and offers, so get a free email account from Hotmail, Yahoo, Google, etc.

Post #1 in a series of 6 of tips for beginners to earning money online.

Earn - Earning $ online: Tiny tips for beginners

The Tiny Edition


This is the tiny version of the tips. For more detail on any of the tips, click the link to go to the full post.

So you decided you want to make some money by doing surveys, completing offers, getting paid to click, etc? Well, if you follow my tips for beginners, you can avoid making some of the mistakes that I made and probably be a lot more successful!
  1. Start a new email account

  2. Be organized

  3. RoboForm

  4. Paypal

  5. Research

  6. Be efficient

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions. I'll help, if I can!

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Give back - Kiva.org

Kiva.org is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that facilitates loans from individuals to entrepreneurs or a group of entrepreneurs in developing countries. If you are interested, check out the website or email me with questions, I'm not going to list all the details here.

I joined Kiva in February 2009 and made a loan to a group in Uganda. This past weekend, I got an email notification and saw that the original loan was almost repaid. I could have withdrawn the money but I reloaned it to a group in Bolivia.

The amazing thing about this program is that you can loan as little as $25 to help someone start or expand a business. And its a great feeling to know that you are helping someone. Of course it is a loan, so there is the risk that your money will not be paid back, but I'm willing to assume the risk.
You can check out the site by clickin any of the enbedded links and you can see my lender page by clicking here: http://www.kiva.org/lender/carrie5095.

Save - Cheerios Coupon Sign Up

Cheerios is running a promotion for June. Click below to enter your email address and they will send you $4 in coupons ($1 coupon a week). Cheerios $4 in June

Sunday, May 17, 2009

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