Sponsored Message: financial steps toward a better future

The following is a Sponsored Message:

Scenario-you find your dream car and you take all the steps to buy it but then are rejected because your credit score is not high enough. The last thing you want to do is to get a co-signer. You really want to find out how to boost your credit score but you have heard conflicting stories about how to do that. Well at GoldStarCredit they have it all for you there to search for, read about and compare for yourself.

Personally, I really enjoy learning about saving money and setting myself financially upright. I have two credit cards to my name, a credit score above 750, and no debt to my name (although I am about to purchase a home but that is good debt). I found GoldStarCredit and they offer a wealth of financial advice and services for many life decisions such as the best credit card to use, identity theft (very helpful because that has happened to my husband), mortgages, how to repair bad credit, the best loan rates, etc. GoldStarCredit offers a lot of advice about life choices and things we often ask or have to hunt for ourselves. I encourage you to check it out and see for yourself that you can feel financially at ease and you can buy that car you want but just don’t get yourself back into debt doing it. =) Continue to check back to their site as it is constantly being updated.

Updates on two previous posts-Lip Ink and EvReward

Updates:

On a previous post FREE: Semi Permanent Lip Color-Lip Ink!! I posted about a free sample of a lip color that boasts a guarantee that it will not smear off. I have now received my free sample. Four separate times I used the sample color Rosewood as directed. The first time I used three coats which I personally found to be too dark so the following three times I used only two coats which was still almost too dark for my liking. The color did not smear off but came off a little bit with my lip skin which had dried out by the end of the day. I was very disappointed because it sounded like a great product and I was hoping it wouldn’t dry my lips out. It is similar in staying power to the Almay brand I use now so I will stay with Almay since e it is cheaper. I will finish my sample of Lip Ink since it was free (or semi-free since I traded in a old lipstick for the sample). Hope this helps for anyone who is considering buying it.

Also, on a previous post UPDATE: Cash Back/Reward Points!! I posted about a new program called EvReward that searches for the best rate on cash back or reward points for purchases and the site also listed coupons. I told you I would update to let you know if it really worked and it did. If you refer to my post I told you how much my purchase was, the coupon I used and how much the site said I would get back using Ebates. I was semi-skeptical about whether I would actually get my 4% cash back since I was not going directly through Ebates but I did-$1.92, approximately two days after my initial purchase. So, I encourage everyone to use EvReward to get the best possible amount of cash back or reward points for a purchase you will make online-and to save money for coupons they also list.

Don't forget to sign up for free at http://www.agloco.com/r/BBBS4943 (refer to post A New-Internet Craze?...or Just Hype in January)

US Bonds as Online Rewards!

There is another type of reward program that isn't compared on www.evreward.com and that is www.BondRewards.com. With BondRewards you get saving bonds instead of immediate cash. In our culture everything is "we have to have it" and "now"; just look at all the fast food places and their goals of having it to you within 2 minutes or less or picking up an item at the store that you ordered online, instead of waiting for something to be shipped to you (although it does save money! But you know what I am getting at)

Personally, I like the idea of seeing the money in my account and being able to transfer it into my checking or savings. However, with bonds you are "forced" to save the little money you earn off of purchases. Saving is something that the American culture has forgotten about. We (as a general culture) often spend more than we make and end up in so much debt. I believe with this little tool of BondRewards you can learn so much more and make a significant life choice in realizing the importance of saving what you earn. In October 2006 Becky Ford, who writes for the Chicago Tribune, posted her analysis of a multiple amount which can be found here at www.comparerewards.com. She says,

This year, the award goes to BondRewards, hands-down. They offer rewards for 109 merchants on my chart, and for 56 of these, they offer the highest rebate (or tie for the highest rebate). You could assume that if you shop through BondRewards, around half of the time you're getting the highest shopping rate offered anywhere. For 28 merchants they had the second-best rate. And further, as I mentioned in note #6 above, some rates provided by BondRewards may actually be higher depending on your order total. The only thing to keep in mind is, BondRewards only offers one type of redemption: U.S. Savings Bonds

The amounts of the US Savings Bond they offer are $50, $75 and $100. For example the $50 bond costs $25 to buy and is supposed to but not guaranteed to reach face value for 20 years. It could reach $50 sooner than 20 years depending on the interest rate fluctuation. There is a link below to sign up under. Check it out and be sure to let me know what you think!




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UPDATE: Cash Back/Reward Points!!

Happy and Blessed Easter-Jesus is ALIVE!

First off, I apologize for my delay in posting. For the past two weeks I have been working late on a big project at the firm I work at-9, 10, 11pm or even 2am (that was last night or should I say this morning). Today I took off to go to the opening day baseball game for the Texas Rangers-it was so fun but quite cold at 52 degrees F-at least for a born and raised Floridian like me =). Now to business and pleasure.

Here is an update to my post Ebates/Upromise, etc...Comparing Reward Programs! Check this out-this new site offers a great system that does all the reward/cash back site comparisons for you. Just to sum up-on my previous post I listed a website and a well-drawn out chart that listed the top sites that offered the top percentage in cash back/rewards. I also briefly mentioned the differences for 4 top programs.

So now for the great and oh so helpful time and money saving website (drum roll please...): www.evreward.com!! First you type in the store you want to shop from. Then it brings up a screen listing four categories and the programs in which you can get money back or earn reward points. Not only does it show the programs with the top rewards, it also displays (at the top, above the percentages) current coupon codes or deals such as $10 off when you spend $150 at Target.

Yesterday I went online to purchase a wedding gift for a friend of mine and here are the details:

Item(s) Subtotal: $47.89
Shipping: $5.58
Promotion Applied: $4.79
-----
Total Before Tax: $48.68
Sales Tax: $2.59
-----
Total for This Shipment: $51.27


The promotion was the 10% coupon code provided on evreward, so I saved a little less than the cost of shipping and got 4% cash back using their link to Ebates. It may take awhile to show up in my Ebates account but I look forward to when it does so I know that evreward is legitimate (I will post my update in red on this post so check back in a month or so). I chose Ebates because I already use them for other purchases and I don't like my rewards/cash back to be in a bunch of different programs-that just means more for me to keep track of. That is my personal preference but that could change.

Below is a list of the categories and the programs evreward show comparisons for (these are the programs that came up for Target):

CASH BACK REBATES:
-Big Crumbs
-Bounty Zoo (you have to pay a fee so I wouldn’t recommend it)
-Cashbaq
-Citi Dividend
-Coupon Cactus
-Ebates
-Fat Wallet
-Mr. Rebates

FREQUENT FLYER MILES & HOTEL REWARDS
-AirMiles Mart
-Alaska Airlines
-Aloha Airlines
-American Airlines
-Amtrak
-Continental
-Delta SkyMiles
-Hawaiian Airlines
-Priority Club
-Marriott Rewards
-Midwest Airlines
-Northwest
-Goldpoints
-United Airlines
-US Airways

POINTS PROGRAMS
-AMEX Rewards
-Citi ThankYou
-ClubMom
-MyPoints

COLLEGE AND OTHER SAVINGS
-BabyMint
-NestEggz
-Stockback
-Upromise

Here's to saving money while shopping online!!

Happy and Blessed Easter-Jesus is ALIVE!


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FREE: Semi Permanent Lip Color-Lip Ink!!

Okay, ladies this is for you or guys for your wives, girlfriend, or friends who are girls! So I stumbled upon this product that sounds amazing. I personally haven’t tried it but I will be soon-for FREE!! The company is called Lip Ink and they sell semi permanent makeup that is guaranteed not to smear off: lip stains and glosses, eye liners, eye brown color, eye lash tint, and more. Check out their site demo video and commmercial videos that explain how it works in more detail. It does not contain wax like many lip stains do but includes naturaly ingredient that can be found at their website by clicking here.

Personally I don’t wear make up everyday. The most I put on is lipstick or a tinted lip balm. The lipstick is Almay Truly LastingTM Color. I have to put on the color, wait for it to dry and then apply the gloss. However, even though it does last up to a day and a half it will really dry out my lips (chapping and peeling) so that I can only wear it every 2-3 days. The lip balm I use is there and then gone when I eat, drink, or just through the morning. The permanent make-up (tattooing) was not even an option.

I recently stumbled upon Lip Ink. You take off your previous make up (in this case lip stick) with their brand “Off” remover, apply their shine moisturizer, then apply the lip stain (the more layers you apply, the darker it becomes and the longer it stays), then let it dry for 10 seconds and apply their shine moisturizer again and you’re done. Here is a video of the process. Now this isn’t about saving or making money but it is about saving your mind and purse. With normal lipstick, even most self-proclaimed long lasting lip colors, the color is often gone by the middle of the day and needs to be reapplied. That means you have to remember to keep your lipstick in your purse and reapply as needed (and that is shows up when you drink or kiss), but with lip ink, you do it once in the morning and it stays all day. I think the staying power of Lip Ink might save money in the long run depending on your cost of lipstick and how often you purchase it.

I know you are wanting the FREE part, so here it is. Click this link and then fill out your information and then you will be directed to a PDF page (by filling in your information online you also receive a free coupon code for 10% off any online purchase in your e-mail). Just print, fill in the information, include your current long lasting lip color, send by mail, and in 2 weeks from the time they receive it you will be getting their trial size version of the 3 step process for the lip color Rosewood (you can see the color here HERE).

*Note: ends April 28, 2007 or while supplies last


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Helium-opportunites are sky high!

Many of you have heard of Associated Content or even Constant Content, but have you heard of Helium. Huh? I know, I thought it was an odd name too. It is very similar to Associated Content in that you get paid to write articles. The difference is that you are rated by other writers, who are writing similar articles. If there is a topic that 10 people have written you could be rated #2 out of 10, and so on. The better your article is-the better you get paid. What I will be doing is posting the articles on my blog (when they pertain to my blog) and then posting them on Helium and Associated Content. That way there are more opportunities for making money and I’m not putting all my eggs in one basket by just publishing my articles in Associated Content or only a blog. Utilize all the avenues you can! Also, Helium serves a dual purpose: by reading and rating other people’s articles, I get more ideas for my blog and other articles to write-it fuels my writer’s mind. I haven’t found exactly how they determine how much you make but for one article, within 1 day I had $0.12 in my account. Twelve cents is not a lot but the more you publish and the better you write-the more money you will make. There is a referral system that you can make 5% of what a person who refer makes. Send me your e-mail at zloofah@hotmail.com so I can send you an invite (they don’t do referrals by links). In turn you can send invites to others so you can make 5% of what they make too!

You may think you don’t have time to write for a blog even if you use that article in other places such as I listed above, however start by entertaining article topics in your mind. Keep a notepad with you so when you see or think of a good idea or topic you can write it down. Then at the end of the day or week you write out all your ideas as separate articles. That way you set aside that time to do your writing all at once and everyday during the week you just post them on your blog, Helium, and Associated Content. Less stress and more money making opportunities!

Just another way to make money and use your writing skills you were taught throughout those long school years!! (I will post an article about Associated Content soon for those who don’t know much about it).

Try this link below-we both get paid, get links back to our sites or blogs, and are given new material to write about for you and your readers!



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The "Just say no thanks" rule!

I have a tip I would like to share with you. It involves health and saving money. It may sound silly but hear me out. I used to drink soda a lot, especially when I was younger and I went out to eat with my parents. Once I got old enough to go out on my own and pay for my own meal, I realized that one soda (even with the refill for “your money’s worth”) adds a little extra cost to the whole bill, including tax and gratuity. For example, lets say one soda costs $1.75 and you go out to eat once a week for a whole year, that is a total spending of $91. You may think that is not a lot but it is $91 you could have saved. You might go out more than once a week so that means a total cost of more than $91 spent on soda, plus you might buy soda at work, school, or for your home-so it all adds up. So when asked if I would like soda to drink, I use the “just say no thanks” rule. Instead of soda at a restaurant, I ask for water with lemon and I add two packets of equal (the blue stuff-aspartame, which has been shown to have its own set of problems). It adds the flavor I need when I don’t feel like just drinking water and it is healthier than all the sugar and calories from soda. Perhaps you say, “well I drink diet soda.” You would be correct that diet soda does not have sugar or calories, however, research shows soda drinks contain a high amount of phosphorus. Phosphorus appears to conflict with the absorption of calcium so there is a greater risk of osteoporosis and softening of teeth and bones. It also neutralizes hydrocholoric acid so digestion is affected. Diet soda also has caffeine unless it specifically doesn’t include it. Personally, I get headaches if I drink caffeine, probably because my body is not used to it. If you are used to caffeine then you may have withdrawl headaches and want to go back to drinking caffeine. You will have to wait out those headaches because they should eventually stop.

Since diet soda has no nutritional value you should replace it with juice, milk, and water. Make sure the juice is 100%. I have seen ones where they are 5% juice-that to me is worthless. The 100% ones are very concentrated so added water makes it still taste great and last longer.

Check out these sites for more info-don’t just believe me-check on my words.
http://www.oleda.com/oleda_tips/index.cfm?ID=58&Ref=

http://64.233.167.104/search?q=cache:Wsx9Pr_JxlwJ:www.americanchiropractic.net/general_%2520interest/Statistics%2520and%2520Dangers%2520of%2520Soda%2520.pdf+soda+has+high+phosphorus&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=10&gl=us

http://joi.ito.com/archives/2002/10/26/is_diet_coke_bad_for_you.html

http://diet.ivillage.com/issues/ichoices/0,,9gh2w46k,00.html

Try this link below-we both get paid, get links back to our sites or blogs, and are given new material to write about for you and your readers!



Also, you can access this article at http://www.helium.com/tm/214411!


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Similar to Adsense-advertisers pay you!

Blogads.com launched in 2002. It is a program such as Google’s Adsense where you get payed a percentage to advertise. Their website says they receive “30% of your ad fee” which, as far as I know is far less profit they get than most sites such as theirs, which means more money for you-the BLOGGER! The great thing about it is that you can set the price you want to sell your space for. Which means, if you have a higher number of page views/visits a day then you can sell it for more. The catch is that currently you have to be sponsored by a member of Blogads. “If you don't know a sponsor, write signup@blogads.com and [they will] notify you when a sponsor appears in your niche.”

I recently sent out an e-mail to four people who signed up for Blogads. I asked them what they thought of Blogads and if they were reaping a good profit or if it was just taking up space. Only 3 people answered back, 2 said that Blogads weren’t working well for them and 1 said that she makes over $400/month (with ~3000 page views/day and 1700-1800 visitors/day). The 2 people who said the program wasn’t working well for them said that about 1% of his income comes from Blogads but that Adsense, Amazon, and FeedBurner do better for him and the other person said he was unimpressed and hasn’t received many offers.

Now, after you read that, you have to research on your own. Perhaps some of the blogs weren’t doing well with Blogads because of the type of material on their pages or they weren’t updating their site enough or because the advertiser’s content was not interesting to the readers of the site. There are many variables to consider and research. Here is an article about this guy’s opinion of Blogads: DiggersRealm.

*Caution: Remember it could take awhile for the money to start rolling in. *


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Storage Items for Auction

This last Saturday my husband, myself, and my mother-in-law went to a personal storage facility for an auction they were holding. The auction was being held because the renters of a particular unit stopped paying their rent for a specified amount of time and now the items were being sold.

We were excited because we will be needing some items for our future house ,so we went to see what was offered. In the past they have held a huge yard sale with items laying out in the front of the business. This year they did something different. We didn’t expect what was coming. Instead of auctioning off pieces, they actioned off the unit. So, you and the rest of the people there go in the unit and look around-but the catch is you can’t open boxes to see what is inside. Most of them looked like people had moved into a place and this was leftover stuff they didn’t know what to do with and so they rented a storage unit only to stop paying so that someone else could have their trash. Seriously, there were abused recliners and lawnmowers and desks with broken pieces, etc. Some of those items are fine for some people who are good at and know how to fix things up, but the thing is, if you want that one recliner you have to buy the whole unit and clear it out with in 24-28 hours. In clearing it out you could come across something valuable or not so valuable things in a box, but that is along with the items to trash. It would not be a fun process.

I say all that to say that there can be good deals sometimes. Not all storage unit auctions are like this. Call around and find out what they do if people haven’t paid their rent and when they sell it or auction it off. That way you can go and see if there is anything of value. Not many people think about this but it could be a good find. It is also for those people who are good at getting great deals at garage sales. While we were there on Saturday, we were told about a previous unit full of boxes that was auctioned off and turned out to be full of vintage Barbies. The person turned around and made a good profit off of them. However, you take a risk if you purchase a unit full of boxes that could just be trash or clothes. People do like the mystery of boxes and are willing to pay more for it. A small 5x5 (closet sized) unit, full of boxes, was sold for $250!

So, the search continues…

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What personal storage company to use?

My husband and I need to store a majority of our items in a new facility. The place we have our items in now will deliver them for free. So we thought we would get a self-storage unit but for the size we want, the cheapest I have found by calling around to local names and big names is $62.50/month. That is not a bad price to store all our items, however, when we want them in our future home we will have to pick them up and do all that work ourselves. That is not fun since you also have to put the stuff in the new house and arrange it. So my husband and I called a few places such as PODS, GoMinis, Public Storage, and Door to Door. Many of you have heard of P.O.D.S. (Portable On Demand Storage) which is where they bring a large container to your house, you fill it up, you keep it at your house or at there warehouse, and then they deliver it when you are ready. Here is the quote I was given for P.O.D.S. for a 8’H x 8’W x 12’L container.

Initial delivery of POD, the pickup, and 1st month rent (with tax): $ 257.10
Each additional month (with tax): $146.14
Return POD to original zip code (with tax): $110.96

Pretty pricey I would say, especially since it could be in storage for about 8 months or more. This is the total cost for storage of 8 months: $1537.19! Ewww-I could use that money to buy a house not rent a storage space people!!

Then we looked at DoortoDoor. Right now the delivery and pick up of the container to your home is free (usually about $69 unless you are out of their area then it is double that-$138) with Door to Door. Plus, currently there is a coupon you get from their site for 25% off the first month. A 8ft x 5ft x 7ft container (the only size they offer) will cost us $52.70/month (including tax). Now the only issue is the container is a little smaller than what we would like, but we can store the little things that won’t fit in the container at the place where we are now. They do charge a re-delivery fee ($69 plus tax) to your place (our new home) when you are finished with the storage, which is not bad considering if we had friends and family helping us take our vehicles back and forth from a personal storage unit it would cost that much or more in gas depending how far we lived from the storage facility. So $52.70/month for 8 months plus the $69 re-delivery fee the total would be ~$491. Here is a visual breakdown:

Initial delivery of container and the pickup (with tax): FREE
Each month (with tax): $52.70
Return container to area within their zone (with tax): ~$69

Now that my friends is a much better deal. It is still not that great of a feeling to pay $491 just to store our items but you have to do what you have to do! So an estimated saving of $1046.19 for using Door to Door vs. P.O.D.S. Hooray for DoortoDoor!!

*Note: The construction is a fair amount different though-P.O.D.S. is steel framed and Door to Door is all wood framed with both having a tarp around it and stored inside a warehouse. Also, I have read some negative comments on the customer service for Door to Door and great reviews for P.O.D.S., however, I can deal with some customer service issues if it saves me over $1000!!

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To see or not to see...Movie Conscience parents, students, everyone!

So there is a really exciting trailer I just saw on TV! It comes out on Friday. I wait until Friday and I go to kids-in-mind to check on the rating and description of the known issues. Kids-in-mind breaks down a movie rating into three sections: Sex & Nudity, Violence & Gore, and Language. They have a scale from 0 (none) to 10 (extreme) for each of those three sections. That way, right off the bat, you can see if you even want to bother reading the details of a rating. For example, let’s say you are okay with watching a movie that has a rating of 3 or less for language and a movie you were thinking about going to see has a rating of 6 for language. You would know that movie isn’t something you would be interested in seeing. You can also search for past movies by a rating scale. For example you set the scale as a max of 3 for Sex & Nudity, 8 for Violence & Gore, and 3 for Language. It filters all the movies with that rating for you. Then from there you can pick a movie and read the details of the sections for a particular movie.

Now, this is what happened to my husband and me. We were being cautious of what we went to see and then began to get frustrated because Hollywood’s movie producers like to make a good movie bad with just one scene. So, we found a happy medium: ClearPlay. This company (as seen on the Today Show) offers a great benefit for those who want to protect themselves and/or their children from things they deem objectionable content in movies. ClearPlay offers two DVD players: the MaxPlay DVD Player and the ClearPlay USB Player. The DVD players allow filters from their website to be loaded on them and while you watch a movie you have bought or rented, it filters what you have specified. They are very thorough in the sections they break a movie into: “violence, sex, nudity, vulgarity, bloodshed, substance abuse, blasphemy, disturbing, bigotry, dishonor parent, dishonor flag, and mushiness.” The filters for those sections can be either of the following: No Filtering, Least Filtering, Medium Filtering, or Most Filtering.

I have the ClearPlay USB Player because the USB is easier to deal with since I have broadband. If you aren’t sure which one would be best for your internet type and viewing then call their toll free number (1-866-788-6992)-they always have friendly people who will explain everything to you and if they don’t know the answer they will find the answer from someone who knows. We bought the DVD player with a year long subscription to all the filters (past and future ones they would offer) rather than buy each filter individually. The year long unlimited subscription gave us a wider range of movies to watch. It is not difficult to figure out how to load the filters on to the USB and then into the player-my husband figured it out and he doesn’t know that much about that stuff. What happens is the Filter Developers watch the movie and locate the objectionable content, they then prepare the program software to mute, skip, or zoom in on something else at appropriate times. I have watched about 5-10 DVD’s on the player using the filters and most of the time I couldn’t tell if anything was taken out at all. However, there was one movie where I think some things could have been edited out or where they should have zoomed in on something else. You can always call and let them know what you think should be edited out. Here is a long list of the movies or TV shows they currently offer filters for. Remember, with ClearPlay you are more in control than ever with the movies you and your family watch. And as ClearPlay says, “Being a Very Cool Responsible Parent Just Got a Whole Lot Easier.” If you would like to order you can click the banner above or the ClearPlay link here.


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Pinecone Research-easy $5 guaranteed!

OPEN RECRUITMENT: Very cool!! I have been looking for this link for Pinecone Research for a few months. Sign up from the above Pinecone Research link. Usually it is up and then gone in a less than a few days or 24 hours because they fill their quota. They are usually closed to new members, so it is really hard to join their panel. People love working with them. Hurry folks-you have to sign up ASAP. It is a legitimate company that pays you $5 for every product you test or survey you take-even before you take them. It is really easy money-the surveys only take about 15 minutes so for $5 that is really great!! You can sign up here too Pinecone Research!


Read here for more info. Also, here is a great forum to read what others say about Pinecone Research: forum.volition.com or forums.dealofday.com

HURRY-easy money and you get to try new items!!



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Continued...(almost) Free Trial....with Benefits! (part 2)

Please read this post (almost) Free Trial...with Benefits! If you have not already.

So I called to cancel one week after I began the trial, and they tried to get me to stay on with them.

Great fun offered to send me 4 $10 vouchers for anything I would spend money on such as gas, movies, dinner, etc. so I said okay. About 2 weeks after I called I told them I hadn’t received anything and that I just wanted to cancel it because by the time I got the voucher and sent it in for a refund it would be too late and I would have to pay the fee so they extended my free membership until April 2, 2007. Click here for the vouchers and notice that I can only use one $10 refund every 3 months. I should have figured it was some little scam like that but I can at least use one $10 voucher before I cancel my trial membership. That way I have gotten a $10 gift card to Circuit City and a $10 check and it only cost me $1 so my net payout is $19, which is not much, but it was more than I had before.

I called Traveler’s Advantage the same days as I did Great Fun (I think they are sister sites of a parent company thought not sure which one). When I tried to cancel the first week they told me they would send me a buy one flight ticket get a companion one for free. So when I didn’t receive it two weeks later I called to cancel and they extended my membership until April 2, 2007 so I have received the voucher for the free companion ticket and $20 in Exxon Mobile gas cards and only paid $1. So my net payout is $29 plus how ever much that companion ticket would be-maybe $200. We’ll see how easy it is to redeem the voucher. Click here for the flight vouchers.

I will continue to keep you posted on this deal. Write me with questions at zloofah@hotmail.com.

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EXTRA cash back with UPromise

So Upromise is having EXTRA savings for all of March. Go on and sign up and shop through their website. Here is just a sample of the types of increase in cash back:

Target- 4%, Now 5% through 3/31/07
Overstock.com - 3%, Now 5% through 3/31/07
Brookstone - 4%, Now 8% through 3/31/07
Dell - 2%, Now 3% through 3/31/07
1-800-FLOWERS.COM - 10%, now 12% through 3/31/07

For more info on rebate programs and information on UPromise, please refer to my previous blog here.


Don't forget to sign up for free at http://www.agloco.com/r/BBBS4943 (refer to post A New-Internet Craze?...or Just Hype in January)

Mystery Shopping-some tried and true

I really like doing mystery shops. Before I go into listing shops I have done or my husband has done, I want to give some advice. In my opinion, some shops are a waste of time. For example, if there is a fast food shop that does not pay a fee but simply reimburses you for the cost of the food (~$8) then you have to account for the time you spent. Before the shop you had to find the shop (or it was e-mailed to you), then you had to read the instructions and be careful to comply with them all, then come home and spend about 1 hour filling the information out. That doesn’t sound like you get much out of it except for free food-but free food is free food-but it is even better when you get free food and a fee for doing it. However, if you were to do the same restaurant shop every month then you wouldn’t have to read the instructions all the time and you wouldn’t spend so much time filling the report out because you would know ahead of time what you needed to look for and what was going to be asked on the report.

Some companies require you to give your S.S. # which is for tax purposes (they only use it if you make over $600 with them, then you will be sent a 1099 form and have to have the taxes taken out on your own). I am very much against paying for a mystery shopping site, so that is why I am providing these links to get you started. So all in all they usually pay you a fee and reimburse you for your purchases up to a specific dollar amount that was specified by them. Also, many companies deposit your money into your PayPal account so you would need to set one up if you don’t have one already. These companies expect you to comply with all their rules and instructions. If you do not you will never be able to do shops with them again, or be on probation for a few months with them, or get a lower point scale (e.g. instead of being a 5 out of 5 you would be a 2 out of 5 which is not good).

Clicking this link will bring you to a page of certifications. Some companies you sign up for will ask you if you have a certification level. I don’t have any certification but I still have done shops. However, if you don’t have the certification you might not be a first choice for some companies but if you just want to do a few shops then I personally don’t think you need it. Plus the first certification level costs $15. Just something to think about.

What I did is I registered with www.shadowshopper.com for their free month trial. ShadowShopper sends you e-mails from companies that need shops done. Then I signed up for the companies they e-mailed us that needed shoppers. I canceled with ShadowShopper before the end of the month and just worked off of the list of companies I took from the e-mails I was sent by ShadowShopper.

This site is great for discussion and offers some postings for mystery shops: www.lilaslounge.com.

Read here for some great articles: http://www.startupjournal.com/ideas/services/20050208-spors.html

DataQuest, Ltd. 1-800-292-9797 ext. 147 (no website exists to my knowledge; done 3-5 mystery hotel shops at Sheraton hotels, including the Sheraton Yankee Clipper in Fort Lauderdale, Florida: they pay you $25 plus you get for $50 room service, and $50 at the hotel’s restaurant and you are reimbursed tips for the bellman, valet, etc. *NOTE: there is a lot to report on but if the person you are bringing along knows what is expected they are an extra help to you-my husband always noticed things I may not have noticed).

www.satisfactionservicesinc.com (sign up online with them, wait a few days and call-they say not to call but to wait for an e-mail from them but in the 2 + years I have been with them they have sent me probably 2 e-mails. From calling them I have done numerous (5 or more) valet parking shops at condominiums (paid about $10), 2-3 Wing stop (paid $5 plus reimburse food-never would have tried them if it weren’t for this shop and they have delicious flavors of wings), a fun and entertaining water taxi through Fort Lauderdale Florida waterways, 3-4 Original Steakhouse restaurants (~ $5-10-it is a steakhouse with big tv’s that have sports on), an ice cream shop, Miami Subs (~ $5 plus reimburse food), and eyeglass world (~ $10).

www.baidata.com (my husband did a Harley Davidson shop for $19 and a Bank of America shop for $10 and didn’t have to spend money at either of them)


Some others that are similar in style to baidata.com are the following:
http://www.sassieshop.com/2kern/shoppers/LoginShopper.norm.php

http://www.sassieshop.com/2sutter/shoppers/LoginShopper.norm.php

http://www.athpoweronline.com/shoppers/LoginShopper.norm.php

http://www.sassieshop.com/2ipsos/shoppers/LoginShopper.norm.php

https://www.sassieshop.com/2sgmarketing/custom/shoppers/LoginShopper.norm.php?mode=&EmailH=&password=

www.sassieshop.com/2nis

https://www.shopnchekshopper.com/XP2/ (I did an Outback restaurant with them once)

http://www.sassieshop.com/2mysteryshopinc/shoppers/LoginShopper.norm.php

http://www.servicecheckreport.com/shoppers/LoginShopper.norm.php (got paid $7 and went to a movie with my husband and got a free meal)

http://volition.com/mysteryUSA1.html (sign up for these as long as you don’t have to pay-I have signed up for a few but not all because that is a lot-near the middle on the left side of the screen is 2 more links for an alphabetical list of mystery shops)

http://evaluator2.second-to-none.com/evaluator/Login.aspx?ReturnUrl=%2fevaluator%2fDefault.aspx

http://www.mymysteryshop.com/shoppers/LoginShopper.php

http://www.kinesis-cem.com/ShopperSignUp.html (I went bowling and got a free meal)

http://www.jancyn.com/work.php

http://www.gapbuster.com/xec/default.aspx?culture=1033

http://mysteryshops.com/ (their instructions look a little too confusing for me, so I have never done any shops with them before)


Don't forget to sign up for free at http://www.agloco.com/r/BBBS4943 (refer to post A New-Internet Craze?...or Just Hype in January)

Ebates/Upromise, etc...Comparing Reward Programs

Through the years I have heard of numerous reward programs from UPromise and Ebates (coupons offered on their site in addition to cash back) to Jellyfish (the cool thing is it is a search engine so you can compare a product’s price from different stores and then get your cash back on top of that lower price and the referral system allows you to earn cash back when your friend purchases) and MyPoints. Currently I am only using UPromise (you can cash out with them as well but only up to 4 times a year and you have to send a letter and it is a little more trouble than Ebates). I was beginning to wonder which ones were the best so I began to do research, however, I have been saved numerous hours of reading and comparing online by finding this chart that compares reward programs. It even shows the percentage of cash back (or points) for the store you shop from. You need to note that this is from October 31, 2006 so the information will be somewhat different. The analysis is also discussed here. I encourage you to compare when you are about to purchase something online. I would compare the top three on her chart for the store you are shopping through and then look at the site online and compare for the most recent listed cash/points back percentage. It looks like Ebates, FatWallet , and Jellyfish are the top ones! If you have questions you can personally write to Becky Ford (writes for the Chicago Tribune) at comparerewards@yahoo.com.

Not sure you want to trust one person’s comparison, then check out www.probargainhunter.com.

Here is a cool program too: www.mytroops.com. It is like all the other reward programs but you can sponsor a person in the military and they are the ones that receive the rewards like gift certificates to online toy stores or flower shops. There is also an ongoing blog www.mytroops.com/blog/. Or for moms (and dads too) there is ClubMom in which you can earn points as well and share stories and pictures and advice with other moms-a whole network!

Since reading this, it looks like I am going to most of my shoppinng through Ebates (plus the fact that you get $5 bonus for signing up and I do too!) or Jellyfish but I will compare before hand. However, UPromise is good for shopping in person at stores. It is so easy to redeem cash back at certain restaurants, traveling (like booking a flight or cruise or rental car), grocery and drug stores. It is great because I don’t even have to think about it to get money. The reason is because on their site I register my credit and debit cards along with those grocery savings cards you get to put on your keychain. So when you use those cards at participating stores (which are a lot by the way!) then a certain percentage gets put back in your account. The list goes on for the things you can get money back on-moving services (Atlas and Allied Van Lines), mortgage (CitiMortgage), gas stations (Exxon, Mobile), food (McDonalds, Schlotzsky’s Deli), etc.
Good luck and have fun saving money while you shop!

Don't forget to sign up for free at http://www.agloco.com/r/BBBS4943 (refer to post A New-Internet Craze?...or Just Hype in January)

For US, Canada, and Europe: Get Paid to Drive Facts and Info: HERE!

Attn: Americans, Canadians, and Europeans:
Here is another great way to make money. It is car advertisements. Before you stop reading because you don’t want your car to be fully covered (full car wrap) there are companies I will list where you can opt for a magnet or cling on. (Most people need to drive at least 1K/mo and live or work in a big city area that you drive to). Just sign up and if they need a person in your demographics then you’re in luck. Apparently, I haven’t been in that luck but I still sign up anyways just in case they need me or someone can’t do it and I am next in line. Both the car wrap and magnets or cling on’s are done by the company and will come off without damage to your car. Also, some of them offer free cars that all you have to do is insure and pay for gas-SWEET! I would beware and never pay for a “membership” fee to get in a database for the possibility of your car being wrapped. With some companies you have to allow them to install a GPS tracker (not for your personal directions) so they can keep track of where you are going. When you sign up they ask you what day and what time you travel, for example Mon, Wed, & Fri you drive to school and Tue & Thur you drive to work, and on Saturday you drive to the gym, etc. Some companies require a contract for a year (could be more or could be less) and often times the stipulations required you to wash your car twice a month and meet once a month with a representative of the company that wrapped your car. If they ask you to have your car wrapped but you don’t agree with the advertisement you can opt out. The variation in pay, such as $40-120 is dependent upon what the advertiser says.

http://www.mangomoose.ca/ (for Canadians but I don’t see a sign up area, so please call 1.866.939.7274)

http://www.ad-wraps.co.uk/ (for Europeans)
Between £66 & £200/mo and GPS tracker

http://www.ad-wraps.co.uk/free-car-scheme.htm#x (for Europeans)
Free car scheme

www.adsaroundtown.com
All states aside from Texas
Applied on rear or back side windows (not a cling-on)

www.adsmartoutdoor.com
Free Nissan Xterra or a Volkswagen Beetle offered
$350/mo for a car wrap (only available in select cities), GPS tracker

www.drivingpromotions.com
Up to $300/mo & at least 1K miles/mo, GPS tracker

www.autowrapped.com
Free car program offered (no details listed)
From $200-$400/mo for full wraps or $100-200/mo for partial wraps
800-1200 miles/mo and GPS tracker

http://drivers.freecarmedia.com/
Up to $400/mo for full car wrap

www.alienadvertising.com
Advertisement (window cling) is applied by you on only 2 back windows
At least 1K miles/mo and paid $40-120/mo

http://www.ad-wraps.com/
Desn’t give much info about payment or miles

http://www.adwrapsmedia.com/ (looks similar to the ad-wraps.com but not sure)
Free car program offered
U to $400/mo


www.autowrap.com (BEWARE: do not use the listed sites from this link-they charge you a fee which is ridiculous when there are companies that don’t charge a fee)



Don't forget to sign up for free at http://www.agloco.com/r/BBBS4943 (refer to post A New-Internet Craze?...or Just Hype in January)

How to get Gift Cards for little cost to you

Here is an example of what I signed up for that I wrote in this post (almost) Free Trial...with Benefits!



You pay $1 for the trial and get a $25 Visa Gift Card. I did that with GreatFun and Traveler's Advantage.



Don't forget to sign up for free at http://www.agloco.com/r/BBBS4943 (refer to post A New-Internet Craze?...or Just Hype in January)

$500 Gift Card for only $4.80!!! Sweet deal!!

(almost) Free Trial....with Benefits

So I was curious about these free offers and how they work. Some offers require you to sign up for services (free trials, small cost for a trial, or just paying for a service) and/or require referrals (where other people sign up for a service and have to pay-the logistics of all that are too much of a hassle for me so I just go on to an offer that doesn’t require a referral).

I found this link: www.YourTopBrands.com

I signed up for it on Thursday, February 15, 2007. You get a $500 AmEx gift card (GC) (it is less than $600 so you don’t receive a 1099 form and have to pay about 30% taxes on it) and only have to sign up for three services (some offers for the same amount you have to sign up for 6 or more services).

There are 3 pages which have about 10 service choices and from those I did the following:
Page 1: Complete Home w/ free $10 Lowes gift card (30 day trial, no initial cost)
Page 2: PriceStore by Bargain Network w/$25 WalMart gc (be careful because it is a 7 day trial and thereafter is a charge of about $39.80 and it initially costs $1)
Page 3: CallWave (30 day trial, no initial cost)

I called YourTopBrands and asked about how long it would take for those services I signed up for to show on my status page that I had completed them. The representative said the companies have up to 30 days to let YourTopBrands know that I signed up with them. That is the part that stinks because that would mean I have to keep the Price Store past the 7 day trial and pay about the montly cost). However, for fun let us say I canceled all the services at the 30 day mark:

Complete Home: +$10 Lowes gc
Price Store: -$39.80 +25 WalMart gc
CallWave: nothing

The total cost is $4.80 for a $500 American Express gift card. TOTALLY WORTH IT!!!!

Here is a link so that you can read more on your own for YourTopBrands http://www.scam.com/showthread.php?t=13985&page=1&pp=40&highlight=yourtopbrands and come up with your own opinion on whether you think it is worth it. On this link and other forums within this page there are lots of people who have received gift cards, checks, gifts (t.v., PS3, laptop, etc). Honestly, I will keep with the lower dollar amounts so as not to pay taxes on it and as to not sign up for numerous services that would be a hassle to keep track of. Still, it is neat because it is semi-free. The “profit” outweighs the initial cost.

Some other sites that people have had more luck with are:
www.nuitech.com, www.brandarama.com. But it would be wise to read through some of the posts and threads to get an idea of how it all works: www.anything4free.com

Some people have had to wait 5 months before they received what they signed up for. It can be frustrating but worth it. Plus, lets say you spend $100 total on the services you had sign up for (usually about 24 services) and you receive a laptop-you can turn around and sell that and make money off of it or give it as a gift!

Don't forget to sign up for free at www.agloco.com (refer to post A New-Internet Craze?...or Just Hype in January)

Military-Great Banking with USAA

I have got to say that USAA by far is the best bank I have ever heard of. Okay, here is the brief background. My husband was in the military and we had Bank of America Military (supposedly offered better services since he was in the military, one of those wasn't the savings account interest. So after about 1.5 years with them, we switched to USAA because a co-worker of his was using it and always raved about it. Unfortunately, this is opportunity is only for those who have another service with USAA or are currently in the military. So tell those you know who qualify about it. They have the MOST amazing service every. My husband and I have our checking and savings, life and renters and auto insurance, and auto loan through them. They are actually nice and genuine and care. They do not work on a commission so they aren't there to sell you a service, just to help you! It is actually enjoyable to do business with them.

Checking
-Free ATM use worldwide

-Free Deposit at Home

-Free USAA Bill Pay Online

-Free rewards on debit card purchases with no annual fee

-No monthly service fee

-Pays interest on checking account

-Free checks forever

Savings (3 different types)
-USAA Savings: minimum $25 to open & as high as 4.25% APY

-Performance First Index: minimum $10,000 to open and as high as 5.20% APY

-First Start Savings: minimum $1 to open and as high as 4.25% APY

Don't forget to sign up for free at www.agloco.com (refer to post A New-Internet Craze?...or Just Hype in January)

Paid to Read E-mails

I have been with this program on and off since June 2006 $InboxDollars$ .

You have many options with this site: you read e-mails for pay (1-10 cents/e-mail), answer and qualify for surveys, play games, and complete cash offers (does require some pay whether S&H return if you don't decide to keep the product or a $1 fee for the trial, etc-but is worth it sometimes). You have to keep track of the cash offers you sign up for like a 1 Month Trial membership, if you don't want to keep it them cancel before you are going to be charged at the end of the month. I have done 5 offers and have $50.50. Plus, $5 for signing up to begin with. But only $4.92 for "reading" (clicking) 158 e-mails which is $3.11/hour (salary of a waiter or waitress without a tip). But hey, it is mindless clicking of the e-mails and the cash offers are great (just think about the steps ahead of time and if you are going to return it how much will that cost you and if it evens out or you have to pay more for shipping it back then it is not worth it.)


Another I use is Hits4Pay and you get $10 just to signup! It is mindless "reading" again for about 2 cents per e-mail. So I have read 204 e-mails and have $4.08 so that is about $2/hour-which sounds worthless. But you just click and then do whatever you are doing and come back to it. I usually get about 8 e-mails a day. It will take awhile to get a good amount of money but doing it won't take much time! So sign up: Hits4Pay

I wouldn't recommend MatrixMails simply because I get only 1 e-mail worth 1 cent about every 2 weeks. So that is a waste of my time to even have. However, you might have better luck with your demographic or interests. So if you want you can click the above link. Let me know.

Don't forget to sign up for free at www.agloco.com (refer to post A New-Internet Craze?...or Just Hype in January)

Type and Get Paid-finally!!

So I signed up for this site. I will let you all know how it works out in the amount of income it produces. I found out about it from paidopps (refer to right side for blogs I read). It is for new bloggers who may not have a page ranking in google and are just beginning to market themselves, which is where I am at right now. So check it out-it even has an affiliate referral program. Woot! Blogsvertise.com


Also, per paidopps suggestion I have signed up for many paid to post forums including: Mylot.com, ThePost, Betlik.com, and PaidLots.com! Check out her page PaidOpps Blog for more details.


Don't forget to sign up for free at www.agloco.com (refer to post A New-Internet Craze?...or Just Hype in January)

A Small but Useful Tip

Just a tip: I try to be very cautious when things say free this or that. I am sure all of you readers are as well. However, what I usually do to verify if it is a scam or not is check if other people had posted problems with the website or company. I will the following in the search engine box, like google.com, "free money from home, forum" and often times it will come up with people discussing it with either good or bad experiences. Hope this helps to serve a reminder or new advice. (more to come on how I saved myself a lot of money from being a victim of a scam!!)

Don't forget to sign up for free at www.agloco.com (refer to post A New-Internet Craze?...or Just Hype in January)

(almost) Free trial....with benefits!

So on Jan 30, I signed myself up for a free trial of www.Travelersadvantage.com and www.greatfun.com just to get $20 worth of Exxon Mobile gas gift cards and $10 gift card at Circuit City just for paying $1 for the trial at Great Fun. Today I called to cancel so I wouldn't be assessed a fee at the end of the month. Well the lady at GreatFun offered me $40 worth of rebates (the explaination she gave me was that I spend a total of $40 at any place such as gas station or restaurant and turn the receipts in to them and I get money back for that as an incentive) so I figured I would feel it out once I got the rebate forms in the mail. Say I end up being assessed the monthly fee (I think 11.99) and I get $40 rebated that is about $28.01 in free money back to me. We'll see. Either way I have used my $20 in Exxon Mobile gas cards and it works great!!

Now, my only thing I will update is on whether I pay the $11.99 for the rebates. Gotta take some risks sometimes...


Don't forget to sign up for free at www.agloco.com (refer to post A New-Internet Craze?...or Just Hype in January)

A New Internet Craze?...or Just Hype

I just joined AGLOCO.com for FREE. What is AGLOCO and why should you care?! Simply because it is quite possibly the next wave like youtube.com or myspace.com. It has a goal of reaching 10,000,000 members by July 1st and it is well on its way. Hear me out on why you should join too: AGLOCO pays you, as an Internet user, your fair share of the value created while you surf. Usually other people make all the money but being a part of this NETWORK is why you get paid. For example, all the people who post on youtube weren’t getting paid anything but the ones who started youtube did get paid when they were bought by google. This is where the difference is-you get paid for being a part of the community. The bigger the network-the bigger the pay!! But remember it is definitely not a “get rich quick” gimick.

Here is the deal with AGLOCO: you will download a Viewbar (soon to come but right now the focus is building a network) and you control what arrives on your screen and what data you allow to be collected. AGLOCO is a 100% Member owned company which rewards the Members who help build the company (meaning you get some of the money for doing what you normally do!). It never costs anything to be a member. AGLOCO is a newborn but already has a Buzz going and that is why I am helping to increase the buzz. Think about it-we google or search online all the time, right? And do we get paid-NO! and we should so that is why I am all about this. If you google the term AGLOCO you will find many articles about it.

So if you want more please click on my link http://www.agloco.com/r/BBBS4943 to be added to my network and you can build your own and connect off of many others. There is a blog on AGLOCO to read and understand more about it because at first I was a little lost on the actual point of AGLOCO but now I am very excited. Might as well make money while you play!

VERY COOL!

Hey check out the flash banner to the right of my blog or click this link to get there: www.allsat.com/?kbid=17231.

Even if you don't want to click on it to buy the product you should still click on it. It will bring you to my advertising page but near the bottom on the right there is a banner that says $110 per sale. If you sign up through that you can start selling Satellite systems and get paid for it. If you would sign up through the links then I will get credit for it. Thanks so much-this is very cool!! I encourage you to look it up for yourself if you don't believe it is legit. Just google this: "allsat dish affiliate, forum."

Don't forget to sign up for free at www.agloco.com (refer to post A New-Internet Craze?...or Just Hype in January)

Found out some great ways to make money!!

So I am sure many of my readers will want to hear about things I have researched to find out if they are legit. I will be writing about them throughout. It is always a wise idea to research before you buy so the same goes for contests and making money or even jobs and relocating. Try typing in something you have a question about such as "www.goodcompany.com, forum" or "www.goodcompany.com, better business bureau" and you can find out a lot too. You can feel free to e-mail me as well and I'll see what I can do. Here are some things that I am interested in:
1. Spanish: I am listening to Pimsleur's Speak and Read cd's. I have about 40 minutes to and from work so I use it to my advantage. I checked it out from the library. My goal is to be bilingual! It adds to your resume and often times to your salary!!!
2. One of my favorites so I don't get scammed: http://www.ripoffreport.com/
3. Focus groups and studies:
-www.Backpage.com and then you find your nearest city (using this website I found out about and attended a skin test study. They were doing preliminary tests on over 600+ group. I just received my $25 but haven't heard back as to whether I am a part of the next group consisting on 90 women.)

-www.testwiththebest.com
-http://www.focusgroup.com/NewSplash/default.asp

Here is a comprehensive guide as well, that I often refer to for surveys, focus groups, paid to read e-mails, etc. www.amlynn.org/home/ (she keeps you up to date!)

Don't forget to sign up for free at http://www.agloco.com/r/BBBS4943 (refer to post A New-Internet Craze?...or Just Hype in January)