Top 10 Overlooked Discounts

1. Status discounts

• Senior, military, student, child discount

• They are everywhere, but people often time overlook or ignore them
Why?

• Embarrassed : shows their age, embarrassed to ask in general, don’t want
to
draw attention, makes them feel “cheap”
• Or…simply don’t want to bother

• They shouldn’t be ignored

• Some of the easiest and most valuable discounts out there!
• You don’t get spam, don’t have to do anything, don’t have to sign up for
anything,
all you have to do is ASK.

15% off for mentioning you’re a student

Solution:
• Look on the menu or in the store for a sign
• Don’t see one? ASK.
• I have posted lists of discounts on my site to check out.

2. Contests and giveaways

• We see contests everywhere:

But we don’t enter contests. WHY?
• Don’t want to get spammed
• Don’t want to take the time
• Prize isn’t life-changing enough
• The odds are against us.

My husband is the best example
• He wins stuff all the time:

(tickets to events)

• Hotel stays
• Restaurant gift cards
• Cook books

($2,000 guitar)

• Ipod touch

(Ipad)

Solution:
• Be like Nike…JUST DO IT! You have nothing to lose.
• Wayne Gretzky “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take”

As a blogger…
• Hardly anyone enters contests
• Less than .01%
• The odds are better than you think!

3. Texting deals

You see these deals more and more every day

But they often go ignored. WHY?
• Don’t want our cell number out there
• Don’t want to get spammed

We shouldn’t overlook these
• One of the quickest and easiest ways to get a discount
• They coupons are usually really good
• You get them instantly and can use them on the spot

Was in Little Caesars yesterday and saw this sign. I texted while waiting in
line, and
immediately got crazy bread for free.

Solution:
• Don’t be afraid!
• I’ve been doing these for years, never get spam

(we use them on vacation)

(we use them when at dinner)

• I only get texts once or twice a month typically
• They pay a lot and would rather have you on their list than scare you away
by
texting you too much
• text STOP to immediately be removed from list, easy to unsubscribe from.

4. Email lists
Pretty much every company on the planet has an email list you can sign up
for, and
often times sends discounts and promotions.

Why don’t we do this?
• Spam
• Don’t want to sort through so many emails in our inbox
• We feel like we don’t frequent the place enough to make it worth it

You can get great deals!
I love my birthday month. I sign up on every list imaginable and eat for free
for an entire
month

Solution:
• Create an alternative email account
• Or, create a filter in your existing account
• Don’t delete the emails, just filter them out.
• Then always check your email before going shopping or out to eat.

5. Junk Mail
We all check the mail, have 1 pile of bills and letters, and a junk pile that we
immediately throw away.

WHY?
• Don’t want it to clutter our kitchen
• Don’t have any immediate use for it
• Don’t want to hold onto it for when you’ll need it

People pay a lot for mailers, so the coupons are great! You can get awesome
deals.

Solution:
VISUAL: COUPON NOTEBOOK
• Keep all the coupons, even if you think you won’t use them.
• Keep them in a binder and leave it in your car.
• Organize by expiration date
• Flip through it before doing anything
• Clean out the notebook once in a while

Recently we went to an event and I was starving after, didn’t check my email
before
leaving. Grabbed the notebook, found some junk mail

…and found a coupon for the exact restaurant we were looking for!

You’ll be surprised at how much you’ll use them if you hold onto them.

6. Back of tickets

Next time you go to a movie or event, flip the ticket!
• Great coupons are usually on the back

Solution:

• Use them right away, or keep in your coupon notebook

7. Back of receipts
Same thing as with tickets…flip your receipt.

• I would say this is the #1 most overlooked discount.

I used to think they were junk coupons until I actually started reading
through them:

Free entrees? UPS discounts? All great and useful.

Solution:
• Keep them in your coupon notebook

8. Surveys
They ask your opinion on how your service was, and give you a discount code
or will
mail you a coupon, or enter you in a giveaway in exchange.
• Very common in restaurants and fast food

But you can find them anywhere.

People rarely complete the surveys. WHY?
• Don’t want to take the time
• Figure it will take too long
• The discount isn’t good enough.

Not good enough? Isn’t ANY discount better than no discount at all?

Solution:
• They are typically short because they don’t want you to get frustrated and
hang
up…so just do it!
• Do it right away before you forget, or before it expires.
• Do it while walking to your car, on the drive home, or as your brushing
your teeth
that night.

• Just remember that ANY discount is better than NO discount
• Filling out the surveys not only saves you money, but will make that
company all
the better.

9. Gas discounts
Gas prices are sky-high right now. And for most families their monthly gas
bill is right up
there with their mortgage and food bill.

There are gas deals out there, but we often overlook them!

WHY do we pay full-price without questioning it?
• We may be somewhere that offers discounted gas, but we don’t need to fill
up so
we don’t take advantage
• Not worth the time to drive the extra distance to the discount
• Not enough savings to care.

Solution:
Many grocery stores offer gas discounts for shopping there.

If you are shopping there anyway, take advantage! You are throwing away
perfectly
good money otherwise!

Warehouse stores also offer great discounts on gas.
• If you are somewhere that offers gas discounts, TOP OFF your tank. That
way
when you need gas you don’t have to pay full-price.

10. Frequent/Preferred Buyer programs
Many if not most of our favorite places offer stamp cards or reward cards.
These are
great discounts to take advantage of!

*Maverick ice cream example if time

WHY wouldn’t someone?
• Didn’t know it was an option
• Just one more thing to bulk up your wallet.

Solution:
VISUAL: CARDS IN ZIPLOCK
• Take the cards out of your wallet,
• Put them in a bag
• Leave in your car or purse.
That way you always have them with you, but they don’t bulk up your wallet.

By taking advantage of discounts that would otherwise go in the trash, you
will save
your family hundreds each year and be able to do a lot more…for a lot less!