Saving Money while Shopping with your Discover Card

Want to save money this Holiday Season?  If you have a Discover Card, you can earn a 10% to 25% cashback bonus on every online purchase you make during the holiday season. They have over 200 top online retailers where you can shop and earn your cashback bonuses. They also list on their site the retailers rebates, free shipping offers and other coupon codes to help you save more money.

How to get your Discover Card Cashback Bonuses while shopping online:

1. Log Into their site: ShopDiscover.com
2. Link to the retail store where you want to shop. You have to link from their site to get the savings.
3. Use your Discover Card when paying for your items.(Don't forget to use any coupon codes with your order for extra savings).
4. Your CashBack Earnings will be updated with the savings in about 8 weeks after your purchase.

TitanTV - Free TV Listing Guide Website

There are lots of free TV guide websites online.  My favorite is TitanTV.  TitanTV shows cable/television listings(for the USA) in an eye pleasing, adjustable grid.  The grid is color coded to indicate the type of television programs being listed.  You can display 1 to 6 hours of TV programing listings on the grid.  You can expand the grid to full screen by using the "Site Preference" link at the top of their home page.  I personally like the default grid with a 3 hour program listings view.

Another nice feature on TitanTV is the ability to view program listings up to 14 days into the future.  You also can search for programs listed in their TV guide for future airing times and dates.  They also allow you to filter the viewing grid by type of programing.  You can filter the viewing grid by Animated, Children, Comedy, Documentary, Drama, Education, Entertainment, Food, Game/Quiz, Health, Home, Information, Interview, Music, Nature, News, Other, Religious, Sci-Fi, Sports, Travel, True, Movies, HDTV, Favorites and New.  I really like the filter feature. If you just want to see what movies are on TV, just select the movies filter and only movies listings will be shown.


Clicking on listings in the grid gives you more details about the selected TV show.  It lists credits about the show and a gives you a link for future airings.  You can also add that TV program as a Favorite and then use the filter feature to just see when your favorite TV shows are playing.


Another nice feature is the ability to create your own specific channel lineup.  This allows you to list only the TV channels that you watch.  You can create as many lineups as you want.  You have to register with their site to utilize this feature.   


Give TitanTV a try.  If you watch a lot of TV, I think you'll really find the features on their site very useful.

The Khan Academy - Free Educational Tutorials

One of the best educational sites on the Internet is the Khan Academy.  This is a great not-for-profit website for those wanting to learn about Math, Science, Biology, Physics, History and many other subjects.  The Khan Academy currently has over 2,600 educational videos that users can view for free and their video library is constantly growing.

The videos are very well done.  You can follow them at your own pace.  They even have a practice area where you can test what you've learned.  They also have a tutorial section where Sal Khan works through every problem in the College Board "Official SAT Study Guide."

Here's the link to the Khan Academy.  Check out their educational videos to see if you like them.  It's the perfect educational resource for any student trying to learn a new subject. 

Black Friday Shopping Tips!

Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving.  That's usually the day when many consumers start to do their holiday shopping.  Stores open very early on Black Friday and entice holiday shoppers with lots of incredible bargains.

There are many websites that now list the shopping deals of most retailers weeks before they are posted on the store's own websites or before you get the Black Friday advertisements in your local newspaper.  Here are a few of the best Black Friday ad sites:

• Black Friday 2011 (www.bfads.net)
• 2011 Black Friday Ads (www.2011blackfridayads.com)
• Black Friday Info (http://www.blackfriday.info)

The Black Friday ad sites not only list the items for sale, they also post the actual ad scans from the retailers.  Getting this information several weeks early can help you better prepare for this hectic shopping day. 

10 Black Friday Shopping Tips

1. Check first to see if stores are selling their Black Friday deals online.  Many stores put the items up for sale on their internet sites on Thanksgiving or early Friday morning.  Many stores also offer free shipping.  Buying online will allow you to sleep in on Friday and save you the hassle of fighting the large crowds. 
2. Research the items being offered for sale online. Compare online prices at retailers with the Black Friday ads to see if you really are getting a good deal.  Also check online reviews to see if the item is of good quality.
3. Check the store's shopping hours.  Many are opening earlier than last year.  Also check the time when early bird sales end.
4. Get to the stores before they open.  Some sale items are in limited quantity. So to have the best chance to get the item you want, you'll have to get there early.  Plus, the faster you get into the store, the quicker you'll be able to leave and go shop for bargains at another store.
5. Wear comfortable clothing and shoes.  You'll have to wait in line to get into the stores.  And you'll probably have to wait in line to check out.  It will be a long day if you plan to shop at many retailers, so dress appropriately.  
6. Check for online coupons.  Many retailers will have special online coupons that you can use at the store.  So check out their websites and print the coupons out.
7. Buy only the items that are on sale.  Black Friday is the day to get deals.  Don't waste time or money shopping for non-sale items.
8. Hide items that you purchased in the trunk of your car.  Don't entice thieves to break into your car by leaving lots of shopping bags in plain site.  You might even want to take expensive items home, before you continue your Black Friday shopping.
9. Pay with credit card.  Many credit cards offer purchase and price protection and offer cash back rewards and benefits.
10. Probably the most important tip of all..... Buy only items you really need.  It's not a bargain if you don't need it or won't use it.  It's OK not to shop on Black Friday.  Plus, you might find even better deals after the holidays are over.