Never Pay Full Price; Using Daily Deal and Coupon Sites

(searchenginepeople.com)

As a professional on a budget, my motto has become "Never pay full price if you don't have to."  Daily deal sites are all over the internet right now, helping me to live by my new motto.  Some of my faves are groupon.com, youswoop.com, restaurant.com and coupon.com.  All these offers and coupons can be quite tempting, even addicting.  I should know, I have purchased more deals online than anyone could ever need.  Here's the thing, these offers have the ability to save you a lot of money, but can also put you in a position where you are actually wasting money.  So through trial and error I've learned how to use these internet deals and offers to my advantage.  Here are a few things I've figured out:

1. Only buy deals for things you were planning to do beforehand.
Just because something looks like an amazing deal, doesn't mean you should buy it.  If you are trying to save money or at least live on a budget, paying for something you weren't otherwise going to use ends up costing your more, no matter how good the deal is.  Better to just wait for a deal on something you have already planned on using.  So if you buy a restaurant coupon, wait to use it for a night when you planned to go out for dinner.  These online deals shouldn't have you out more than you would have been before you discovered the deal.

2. Read the fine print.
There's nothing more painful than being excited to use that mani-pedi offer you bought, traveling to the spa and then finding out that it is only good for Sunday-Thursday and sure enough it's Friday afternoon.  If you're not going to read it before purchasing, at least read it before you show up and attempt to redeem it.  You'll save yourself from not only disappointment but also humiliation. 

3. Please, Please don't let your deal expire! 
Oh so frustrating is the great deal you let expire and now you've wasted your money and did not even get to enjoy the massage or eat at the restaurant.  I now put the deal in my calender a week before it expires and on the day it expires.  If they are small coupons that you can keep in your wallet or purse, then I recommend that as well.  Never will I let a deal expire again.  Trust me, it will put you in a very grumpy mood.

4. Make sure the "deal" is in fact a deal.
Most deals and coupons can't be combined with other offers.  If the bar you're at is having $1 drink night, you'll probably save more money going with that than wasting your $30 of drinks for $15 coupon that can't be combined with any specials.  Save that coupon for another night.  Take a second and do the math before you use your coupon. 

50% off or buy one get one always sounds so wonderful, but as we all know things really CAN be too good to be true.  Do yourself a favor and think before you click.