ShareThisI love saving money on a good deal almost as much as I detest cutting coupons. I say "almost" because, frankly, my laziness wins out when it comes to cutting, storing and organizing those little devils. But now that coupons have gone high-tech, I've learned to save again.HOW IT WORKSIf you have the Internet on your cell phone, you can go with a company like Cellfire.com, which sends deals specific to your location. Download the service, type in your zip code, and you're good to go. A car-rental double upgrade, free chili-cheese dog, or 20 percent off goods at a favorite retailer are yours for the taking.Be aware that deals change depending on location. A free entry into your local aquarium won't necessarily be valid for local aquariums across the country -- but let cellfire.com know where you are going, and you'll find a slew of new deals.TEXT FOR SUCCESS If you don't have Internet on your phone but are adept at text messaging, try a service like text2store.com. You can specify what kinds of coupons are sent to you based on what you like to buy and where you buy it. Sign up, enter "denim" on their Web site, and you'll get a text telling you where jeans are on sale, complete with store addresses.JUST A CLICK AWAYAs Sophia from "The Golden Girls" would say, "Picture this" -- You're driving along and you realize it's your significant other's birthday. Then you realize you haven't gotten a gift to honor the occasion. No fear. You can pull up a coupon on your phone from a retailer like 1-800-FLOWERS and with the press of a button be connected to a representative who will save your bacon via same-day delivery -- all this, at a discount.FROM THE COMFORT OF HOMEBefore you delve into the beautiful pool that is online shopping, poke around and see what coupons you can find. Sites like couponchief.com and dealcatcher.com gather and post all sorts of savings from all sorts of stores, from rugs to athletic gear and sausage baskets to digital cameras. Double bonus: Look for a percentage off and free shipping.Enjoy all the tips I've mentioned, but heed this warning: Watch out for hidden costs and pitfalls. While many services are free of charge (it's the merchants who pay for them), you may incur some costs, depending upon your cell-phone plan. Make sure you aren't being charged for Internet minutes. If you pay per text, be careful with that, too. For online coupons, just use good sense.Happy shopping -- and happy savings.(Helen Malani is the chief shopping expert for Shopzilla.com, an E.W. Scripps company and the largest comparison-shopping search engine on the Web. Got something to say about shopping? E-mail askhelen(at)shopzilla.com. Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, http://www.scrippsnews.net)????????(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, http://www.scrippsnews.com)
High-tech coupons come calling
Submitted by administrator on Tue, 12/18/2007 - 13:58
Paying taxes unites us. It also divides us. People can pay five and even six times more in state and local taxes than other folks in similar circumstances making similar incomes.
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