So I recently posted an image on Instagram stating that ‘I love saving money‘ and it is honestly the truth. Applying money saving tips is one of the things in life that brings me great joy. It could be as little as 10 pence but I still treat it as every little helps. We just entered spring and the weather may not really show it but the dates do so I have 5 simple suggestions that can radicalize your spending habits and in effect help you save more money. Applying these tips have helped me pay off £5000 of debt while being on maternity and living on one salary.
MONEY SAVING TIPS 1: USE CASH
If you really want to save money then it is time to go back in time and start using cash again. Using real money to pay for things increases your awareness of your spending because you have to think twice about what you are doing. Using cash will also reduce your online spending which happens to be a big problem in this generation.
Cash is harder to depart with than a piece of plastic.
Consider having an envelope system when you do your budget.
Don’t let your card do the thinking, let the brain do its job
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MONEY SAVING TIPS 2: GET FREE MONEY
This tip may be for the more confident and frugal person but the aim here is to help you save more money so don’t be shy. There is a movement known as WOMBLING. Supermarkets have price matching wars with each other in order to gain more market share, so Asda for example offers a price guarantee system whereby if your shopping is not 10% cheaper than other supermarkets, they will give you the difference in the form of vouchers to use in store.
So you are still wondering how you can make money?
In order to make money, you need receipt codes
How do you get receipt code?
You will need to treat asda receipts as money on the floor and pick them up. The best place is to go to a big Asda and look for receipts outside. You are not allowed to go though the bins inside so don’t do it. Make sure the receipt has at least 8 items on them. Log onto APG (Asda Price Guarantee) site and enter your codes.
I know people who have made over £25 from one receipt. Tesco and Morrisons offer a similar deal but they do it automatically at checkout and offer it in the form of club-card points. Another way to get free money is to get cashback apps that offer cashback or even free products. Download Checkoutsmart, Quidco, Clicksnap and Shopmium to get started.
MONEY SAVING TIPS 3 : MAKE MONEY TO SAVE MONEY
It’s spring so why not do a spring clean and gather items you don’t need and sell them online. I am going on holiday soon and my frugal nature is to sell as much as I can so I have enough spending money. When it comes to clothes, if you haven’t worn them for more that a year then it qualifies to be sold. Platforms to sell on are Ebay, Gumtree, Vinted, Sphock and Facebook Marketplace. You can make an extra £200 a month selling your old items.
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MONEY SAVING TIPS 4: LOOK OUT FOR YELLOW STICKERS
Supermarkets have recently changed their yellow sticker system. Before, they use to reduce items on the same day of the best by date which lead to items being significantly reduced, but now they reduce their items a day before the best by date which leads to only a little stock of items requiring massive reductions. Most supermarkets follow a system of reduction items of 25% by 12 noon then 50% at 5pm then 75% around 7pm then sometimes as low as 95%. Beware yellow sticker shopping is very competitive and people will push you out of the way if you allow it.
Tips on becoming a yellow sticker pro:
- Be observant – look out for dates
- Be confident – ask for an item to be reduced if it hasn’t been labelled already. Even ask for further reductions if you see fits. No harm in trying.
- Shop at night – you get the best deals at night.
- Look out for patterns- For example, I always get reduced bread from Morrisons on a Sunday afternoon and I get a lot of meat at my local big Tesco on a Thursday night. I usually aim to save over 70% on my shopping.
Have a freezer – it’s important to store a lot of these items in the freezer as it can last 3-6 months longer. Check out ‘How to reduce your food bill forever’ for more tips.
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MONEY SAVING TIPS 5: ALWAYS DO A PRICE CHECK
Develop a habit of adding up your shopping to avoid being overcharged and don’t be shy to voice your opinions. I hear a lot of people say ‘ its just 50p, it doesn’t matter’. It does matter. Imagine you were overcharged by 50p 5 times a week. It add up to about £120 in a year. That money can pay off some of your debt. Also use the app mysupermarket to find the cheapest place to do your shopping. The site does a comparison based on your shopping list.
I hope you found this blog post helpful. if you have anymore tips,please share in the comment section below. I always want to learn new ways to save even more money.
