Frugal Francine's Money Tips: November 2009

Some Black Friday Tips

With all of the Black Friday Deals that you may wake up in the wee hours of the night to catch--use some caution and some common sense.

A lot of "door-buster" sales are just trying to lure consumers in with product markdowns--hoping that you'll spend more money than you planned to spend. My suggestion is to use a list (and Check it Twice...lol).

Take out the cash that you're going to use the day before you go shopping. This way you know that you have only a certain amount of money to spend--and no more. It's often easier to swipe a card versus spending cash, so this can help to ensure that you don't get carried away.

If you have a "shopping buddy" have them get in line while you're still picking up the last few items that you need. This will cut down on those long line waits.

Another tip is to look online for online Black Friday deals to beat the crowds...I know that I'll be looking!

Most of all--happy shopping!

Mystery Shopping Companies: Bestmark

Bestmark is the first mystery shopping company that I ever signed up for shops with. They are an excellent company to work with for shops because they provide you with all of the training that you need before a shop.

The clients that you shop for through Bestmark are often well-known companies and you get to become a part of the customer service evaluation process!

Bestmark's payout turnaround is phenomenal! After completing shops with them, I am usually paid in 30 days or less.

Click here to visit the Bestmark site today!

Are bundles always better?

Recently cable and satellite companies have been "bundling" services together--cable, phone, internet, etc. Most of the time if you bundle together your cable, internet, and phone service you get one bill from one provider at one price--usually around the 79.99-129.99 range.

I would advise anyone who is thinking about "bundling" services to save money to shop around and do some research first. Most of the time, these "bundled" savings end after a certain period of time (usually a year) and the companies hope that you'll forget and continue to happily pay your bill after the "trial period." When you sign up for these services you're seldom told this.

When dealing with the satellite companies make sure that you aren't locked into a contract. Satellite companies are notorious for this. You usually get a lower bundled price than even the cable company has, but after the rate goes up after your "trial period" then you are told to either deal with it or pay the steep fees to get out of the contract.

The best thing to do when ordering any type of service is evaluate what you really need. Ask yourself a few questions:

If you have a cell phone, ask yourself if you really need a home phone also? (though the home phone may only be $10 more dollars a month, that's $120 dollars of savings that you could have kept in your pocket book)
If you want to cancel the service if the rate goes up, can you without penalty?
Add up the services that you want individually and compare the prices, are you saving any money?
Is the cable company cheaper? Is the satellite company? Are you getting the same services that you want at a good price?

Free Pet Saftey Kit

This is pretty awesome! If you're in an accident, whether your pet is with you or not, you keep the kit in your glove box. It tells whoever helps you who you are, who to contact about your accident, and who and where your pets are and who you'd like to care for them. It also contains vet information for your pet in case they are injured in an accident with you.

Check out the website after you sign-up for your freebie. It is an awareness site for people who travel with pets and tells you how to keep them safe in case of an accident.

This is a great freebie for all of you pet lovers out there!

Visit this link for the pet safety kit!

Save on Heat Bills in the Winter

To save on your heat bills during the winter time, buy a space heater or two. If you and your family only frequent a few rooms during the day, put the space heaters in those rooms and run those instead of the heater. At night, put the heaters in bedrooms or double up on blankets.

If it's absolutely freezing, turning on the heater is warranted--but if you can try to keep the heat no higher than 75 degrees.

Try it out for a month and compare your heat bills. Mine went down by 50% this month by using fans (when warm) and space heaters (when cold).

Low Cost Turkeys for Thanksgiving

What would Thanksgiving be without Turkey? It just wouldn't be the same.

Here's some things that will make you smile and make your wallet a bit fuller this Thanksgiving:

If you're a Kroger Card Member and you've registered with them; you may receive a free turkey coupon through the mail. I receive one every single year since I've had one. Check to see if they have your correct address on file so that you can begin to receive even more Kroger Shopper rewards in the mail! A good way to do this is to register your card number on the Kroger Website.
On Saturday November 14, 2009 Wal-mart will be selling 12 LB turkeys for $5.00!!! Get them while you can!
Visit SmartSource for a $2.00 off coupon for a Butterball Turkey-fresh or frozen!

Taking Advantage of Post Halloween Sales

The first two weeks or so after Halloween is a great time to stock up on Halloween candy and accessories. With the holidays coming in full swing, discounted candy is a great thing! Most stores are having 50% off sales right now on everything from Halloween Candy to Costumes to Gifts.

Check the expiration dates before you buy leftover candy. Most candy that is sold during the Halloween season doesn't expire for a few months so you're usually safe.

Stocking up on costumes for the next year (if you have a big family, or just want to pre-buy for the next year) is also a good idea too. You can save over 60% at stores such as Wal-mart, Wal-Greens, and Target this way.

Cheaper Milk Prices

Something that I've discovered that REALLY helps to save money on milk is buying from the local Sam's Club. In my area, the price on a gallon of milk there is often a dollar or more less than the grocery stores. I also find that there are later expiration dates on the milk from Sams.

I know that shopper's clubs such as Sams do charge a yearly membership fee, but if you buy items in bulk often, it is well worth the money. Also, before you get a membership to a club like Sams, check your bank or credit union to see if they have a relationship with the shoppers club. There are often $10 off coupons that the bank or credit union will give you. You can also check the website for the club to see if there are any buy one get one offers.

Another tip, that I've heard about buying milk is that you can often find it cheaper at the local convenience store versus the grocery store. This isn't something that I have tried yet, but it may be worth checking out. I will check it out in the future and report on my findings.

Online Call Center Job

Online call center jobs do exist and they are a great way to make extra income, or work full time! Online call center jobs are jobs that you can do at home in your pajamas if you want to, but I always suggest getting up and getting dressed for them like any other job.

With an online call center job you are usually processing orders or handling customer service issues for companies such as HSN, ShopNBC, QVC, Toys R Us, and more. To become an online call center virtual agent, you just need to know how to learn a new skill, have a pleasant voice, and follow directions well.

Your at home office usually needs to include a computer, landline phone, and high speed internet connection. Most all online call center jobs require that you have a quiet area to work in.

A legitimate call center job that I've had for years is with West. West is an excellent company that is dedicated to great customer service for it's clients. They employ people for various hours--so it's possible to have a job and do this call-center job on the side. They provide training, virtual agent support, and benefits (depending on how often you work).

Visit West today to fill out an application.

Computers and Electronics CHEAP

One of the best sites that I have found for buying electronics at a GREAT price is Geeks.com This site has great deals on computers, mp3 players, dvd, blueray players, video games, and more!

Most of the items on the site are refurbished but everything that I've ordered from the site has always been shipped promptly and in mint condition. On one order that I made on this site, I bought 2 digital cameras as gifts with memory cards and the total order was $63.00.

Check out Geeks.com today!

Writing for Money

One excellent way that I've found to make money is through a site called Triond. On this website you create a profile and then write about anything that you want to. When people click on the advertisements within your ad, then you get paid a percentage of the commissions. It's that simple!

The more views that you get on the site, the more money that you will make. Triond pays out once per month, and if your article is popular enough, you can make some serious cash.

People can comment and critique your articles, which helps you to build up your fan base on the site.

It is one of the most legitimate ways that I have found on the internet to write and get paid for it.

If you're someone looking to break into the writing world and need some clips, this is a great site to be published on!

Legitimate Mystery Shopping Companies

Mystery shopping can be an excellent source of extra income. The question is, "How to find legitimate mystery shopping companies?"

When I began mystery shopping five years ago, it was hard to find legitimate companies. I'd go to search engines and do searches for hours only to find sites that wanted a fee to lead you to mystery shopping companies.

I have realized that there are legitimate mystery shopping companies out there that will pay you for doing work, and there is absolutely no cost involved. Mystery shopping takes a desire to do the job and a knack for following directions well.

For more information about mystery shopping read my article-"Who wants to be a Mystery Shopper?"

Some companies that I have done work for are listed below. Happy shopping!

Bestmark
Market Force Information
Confero Inc.
Informa Research
Corporate Research International

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