Earn money while you shop

Thanks for all the support. I hope many of you held your loved ones tighter yesterday, and I hope in the future you won’t let money get in the way of your life.

I try to find you easy money-saving tips that won’t get in the way of your life. They’re quick and easy ways to save so you’ll have more money for those big memory-making trips.

There are ways to earn money while you shop, and I’m not talking about those secret shopper scams. Those are not legitimate. This is.  The next time you shop online, take a detour first.  Go to Ebates or another cash-back site, and link to the site you want to shop through Ebates.  That quick detour will earn you cash back based on how much you spend.

During the holidays, I started using Ebates. If I was buying something on Kodak or Amazon, I’d link to those sites through Ebates. Depending on the individual business offer, I’d get a percentage of my order back in cash. It typically averages about 4%.  It adds up.

I learned that earlier this year when my first check arrived in the mail.  Then, I got a Home Depot gift card for signing up for the service.  It’s one of those offers that sounds too good to be true, but really works.

The sites are able to send you a check because they make money too. They earn a commission from the store you shop, and part of it is shared with you.  It works similar to online ads. If you click on one of those, most of the time the referring site gets paid a small amount.  You just don’t realize that’s happening.

There are other sites that work the same way, although, I haven’t used them to know all the ins and outs so read the fine print.  Mr. Rebates is one, and Big Crumbs is another.

Fat Wallet offers promotional codes and cash back options for shopping.  This is a pretty well known site, and I know money-saving consumers that have used Fat Wallet with great success.

It’s all about finding a site that works for you.  It shouldn’t be too cumbersome to use, and should not take a lot of time to navigate.  Also, read the site’s privacy policy. While you’re earning cash and that’s the fascinating part about this, your shopping habits are also being tracked. You earn money based on the size of your purchase.  The sites know how much you spend and where you spent it.  The sites use tracking cookies to follow your purchase. They’re commonly used online, it’s just that you don’t know you’re being tracked. Click here for ways to erase your digital footprint after your browsing or shopping is over.  It’s often as simple as erasing the cookies when your session is over.

If you’re concerned about your privacy, these cash back sites may not be worth it.  If you’d like to make some easy money, give it a try.

Just another quick and easy money-saving tip that will give you more time to make memories that will last a lifetime with your family.

Related links you may like:
Money saving sites
Rules of the road for saving money on deal sites
Erase your digital footprint