Log on and find that bargain (From Swindon Advertiser)

Log on and find that bargain

3:30pm Thursday 25th September 2008

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WHILE the credit crunch is a grim reality, a trip into cyberspace might make things a little easier.

There’s plenty of help and advice to be had and – as a result of belt-tightening – there are more websites than ever with money-saving coupons and offers.

First of all it’s a good idea to get to grips with your budget and take a look at where your money is going.

The website www.ivillage.co.uk/money/cashflow offers a simple chart to key in your monthly expenses and see where you can cut down.

Take a couple of evenings out and give yourself the goal of saving hundreds of pounds over the year on all your essential bills.

Try to find cheaper gas, electricity, loans, insurance, phone services and other services online.

Then you can turn your attention to your daily spending on bits and pieces.

If you think you don’t fritter your money away, then keep a spending diary of everything you spend for a month. That way you will be able to see what things you spend on that you don’t really need and can cut back on.

Try not to impulse buy or shop which can be dangerous to the wallet and slowly eat into your income. Before heading to the supermarket, write down the items you need to buy and stick to your list.

If you have children – or an extravagant partner – try not to take them shopping with you. They will want items you don’t necessarily need.

Or consider shopping online. Most of the major supermarkets now have their own websites to order from and what it costs in delivery charges (usually about a fiver) you may recoup through saved transport costs.

If you need a holiday, save on hotel bills by doing a house swap. It gives you the experience of properly living in another country or area and also is completely free, helping you save funds to spend on other things. Have a look at a home exchange site such as www.homeexchange.com to get more information about how it works.

If you don’t have a house to swap, swap smaller things on websites like www.swapitshop.com. This way you can get items you need by swapping them for things you don’t need, and you won’t have to spend a penny.

Locally, join the Swindon Freecycle Network http://groups.yahoo.com/group/swindon_freecycle/. You can recycle unwanted items rather than throw them away – and as well offering items, you can request them too.

If you’re looking to make some cash from items in the home you don’t need, sell them on an online auction site like www.ebay.co.uk.

As consumers become more hesitant to spend, shops and businesses will find it harder to meet their targets.

Find restaurants with special offers on www.Toptable.co.uk, often with 50 per cent off food.

Other websites offer voucher codes for online shops. Www.Codes.co.uk has offers on no end of items with money off – from fashion buys to food shopping or discounted airport car parking.

l Do you have any favourite money-saving tips or websites you use to save cash? Let us know. Email jblackman@swindonadvertiser.co.uk.

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