How To Sell Items On Craigslist!

I recently ran across this article, explaining how to sell items on Craigslist, over on Crystal's (moneysavingmom) site!

I sell items on Craigslist and felt that this was an absolutely wonderful article explaining how to do so! If you are interested in getting rid of things in your home but don't want the hassle of setting up for a yard sale (and to get more money out of the items) you will definitely want to read this article!

You can go here to read the details!

How To Sign Up For Free Magazines: ValueMags

Part II: How to sign up for free magazine subscriptions: ValueMags.com

If you missed my article on how to sign up with Mercury Magazines you can go here to see step-by-step instructions.

ValueMags is the most simplest company to sign up for free subscriptions with. It requires the least amount of input from you.

Step 1:

Fill out your name, address, email address, city, state, zip, and hit submit!






That's It...You are all done!

You do have the option to sign up for more free magazines but they are usually digital magazines that come in through your email. The choice is yours at this point!

Step-by-Step Instructions on how to sign up for free magazines with Mercury Magazines

Step-By-Step Instructions on how to sign up for free magazine subscriptions with Mercury Magazine!


I have had a comment and many emails sent to me asking how to sign up for AND make sure that you are receiving the free magazine subscriptions that are offered online!

This first company that I will cover is Mercury Magazines. They are the most complicated out of all of the companies who offer free magazines.

I plan to cover the other companies as new offers come into my email (so that I can take screen shots for you!) so be sure to check back with me over the next few weeks!

Step 1:
Once you click on the link to get to the Free subscription page you will see this page first. Fill out your contact information. (remember to use an email address that you have specifically set up for getting freebies online)


Step 2 & 3:

Once you fill out your name, email address and country then you must select and Industry (as highlighted in blue below) and then select the appropriate category directly to the right of this column. In this example we have selected Auto/Aviation/Transport AND Boating.

Once you select these two categories you must select your job function within that industry. In this example we chose Business AND Account Manager.

At this point...this page is complete and you will click on the "Continue" button.



Step 4:

Once you click on the continue button you will be taken to this page (pictured below).
IMPORTANT NOTE: The link that you initially clicked on (through my site and for the ELLE magazine subscription for example) is taking you to specifically sign up for one magazine (they will vary each time they are released).

If you notice in the picture below the "check box" for ELLE is NOT highlighted. This simply means that you are already getting this magazine.

Most of the time this company wants you to choose UP TO 3 more magazines for advertising purposes. Sometimes it will allow you to click on continue without selecting other magazines (other than the one you initially wanted) but most of the time they want you to select at least 1 other subscription.

For this example we selected a magazine in addition to the ELLE magazine (you will see a green check next to the one you have selected.


This picture shows what happens if you click on continue without selecting at least a second magazine offer.

Step 5:

Once you have selected the magazines that you wish to receive you will be given a questionnaire to answer based on the second publication that you selected. In this example you will see how many questions you are required to answer. The number of questions vary on the selection that you made as your second magazine.

Once you are done answering the questions click on the "Check Out" button in the bottom right hand corner.




Step 6:

The next screen that you will see is for your delivery information. You will fill it out with your address (no P.O. boxes allowed). At the bottom you will be asked and identifying question. Once you have selected your answer click on submit.



Now you are done! These two pictures below show you the last screen that you will see. Once you see these screens you are finished processing your order!

You have the option to select more magazines if they interest you...but you will have to fill everything out all over again!

How to start your very own local coupon club!

We are fortunate enough here in Cartersville, GA to have our coupon club back up and running!

If you have never been to one...you are missing out on a wonderful experience! If there isn't a group in your home town...maybe you would like to start one of your own!

Everyone there has the same purpose as you do! TO SAVE MONEY USING COUPONS!

Some will know nothing at all and are there to learn. Some will know a wealth of information and be willing to share it with others.

Having a support group is a awesome experience! You can meet once a week or once per month...it doesn't matter! I just know that each time we have one...I can't wait to attend! I have been able to build some wonderful friendships with those who I have met in our meetings and wouldn't have it any other way!

A friend, Ashley, had asked me a few questions as a beginner coupon user. She is the one who inspired this article! She doesn't live here in town with me and doesn't know of any clubs offered in her area! There are many websites that you can meet wonderful people through and receive millions of tips and tricks of the trade but having a coupon club can be a great addition to your online resources! If there is not one in your area...start one yourself!

Here is how you can start your own local coupon club

Where do I hold the meetings?

Church:
This is an ideal place to hold your meetings! They can usually accommodate any number of people in attendance. You will have access to tables and chairs (which you will need). You may even have permission to use items such as projectors etc.

In Your Home:
You could probably handle 5-10 individuals in your home if you would like to go that route! Some may only want a couple of friends over and some may want to open their homes up to the public and have everyone chip in on refreshments or lunch!

Anywhere else:
There is really no limit to the gathering area of a coupon club! Be creative there is something out there for everyone!

When to hold your meetings?

Time is probably going to be the biggest issue for a coupon club. From personal experience holding your meetings once per month on a Saturday suits most in attendance! Our club meets the first Saturday of every month from 10AM until 12PM.

If you are the one spearheading the group...set the time yourself. You can be open to changing it in the future but if you go ahead and set a specific time each month to hold your meetings others can work their personal schedules around it to make sure that they are there!

What about children and the men?

This is completely up to your group! Our local group encourages the entire family to come! (My daughter is 6 and she has her own coupon binder! She has learned well and sometimes she even amazes me with her findings when we are in the store together!).

You may just want to have some friends over but if you go on a bigger level...keep in mind that the family that stays together saves together! I love it when the men get just as interested as the women! Children are just as enthusiastic about clipping and finding coupons in the stores as we are! (I will have to admit that I was in fear the first time I allowed my daughter to clip my coupons...fear of her cutting through expiration dates or bar codes! That fear has far surpassed and she absolutely loves to cut them and we get done faster with her help!)

There are many more lessons that individuals can benefit from your group! In addition to the entire family learning how to save money together...it teaches the values of spending time as a whole...you don't have to go to the playground or to a movie to have fun together...you can also clip coupons and make grocery lists! I like to make it a game for my daughter!

How do I advertise for the meetings?

With practically no overhead costs here are some ideas of how to advertise your meetings...

• Consider putting an ad on Craigslist: When you post anything on Craigslist it runs for 30 days and then is deleted! You will have to post an advertisement each month!
• Create a Flier: You can create a Flier using Microsoft Word. Ask for permission to place your flier on any bulletin boards at work or in grocery stores etc. You would be surprised at how many people will actually look at it! Tip: Make sure that you do something that stands out...a piece of colored paper may not be enough! Maybe ad some $ signs somewhere on the posting???
• Stop anyone you see in the stores with coupons in hand: I always hand out business cards to people that I meet while I'm out shopping! You could do the same with the flier just make a smaller version of it to hand out while you're out!
• Church: Know of any church's that are offering the Dave Ramsey University? You can actually go online to see what church's are signed up and get their contact information! Give them a call and let them know you exist!
• Word-Of-Mouth: In time word of mouth will get out and bring a good number of people to your meetings! Always bring it up in any discussion that gives you the opportunity to do so!

What do you do at a coupon meeting?

It may take a few meetings to see where you stand! Your very first meeting is to simply just meet and greet others like you! You can get to know one another and find out how much each individual knows! Trust me...if you know little yourself I can almost guarantee that someone who know a lot will come!

First Meeting Suggestions!

You can take suggestions in your first meeting on what everyone would like to get out of the club. This will help you decide how to prepare for future meetings!

Taking Notes:

Designating a "Minutes" Keeper would be ideal! This person would take brief notes on topics discussed and this will help aid the club in future meetings! You really don't want to talk about the same identical things over and over each week and taking notes will allow you to better prepare for this!

Guest Speakers:

I guest speak at our local club each month! I choose a topic to talk about and then answer any questions that may come up! Some ideas for guest speakers could be having someone talk about how to play the CVS Game, or coupon resources, or even online resources. Anything goes...there is a ton of information for everyone to learn...you won't run out of topics!

To Clip or Not To Clip: That is the question!

I actually recommend that everyone should already have their coupons clipped and organized! Clipping and organizing coupons can be a long process. It can easily take up your entire 2 hours as everyone will usually talk while they are clipping which makes the process take longer! Having everyone clipped and ready to go...allows them to concentrate on how to use the coupons by giving their undivided attention to the topics discussed at each meeting!


Create A Coupon Swap Area:

Creating a place where unwanted coupons can be available to others in the club is a great way gain access to coupons you need that someone else may not need!

How long should the meeting be?

2 hours is an ideal time frame! Not too long and not too short! You can schedule things in your group down to the minute! You could have an intro for the first 5-10 minutes then have a guest speaker talk about their topic of choice for 20 minutes and allow for questions at the end! You can also make time to have just a general question and answer session!

This really is up to each individual group and can change even within the meetings themselves!

What will we discuss?

There are 1001 things to talk about when it comes to coupons! You can discuss general topics such as how to organize your coupons and where to find them and then go into details on other topics! I suggest that your guest speakers should be ones to teach everyone how to use coupons at a specific store or how to play the CVS/Walgreens/RiteAid games! The topics are endless and the questions will be plenty! There won't be a dull minute...I promise!

Structure to your group is key to keep every one's interest!

What else can we do?

Donating Your Finds:

I love the idea of coupon groups "Adopting A Cause". Whether this means to give a seminar on how to use coupons to benefit a local non-profit organization or to take on a local shelter and collect donations from your members each month!

I personally have adopted quite a few causes...I donate individually whenever I can to shelters and families in need! Many times there are coupons out there for items that are "free" or close to it! These are the items that are easily donated!

You could also give everyone a $20 challenge throughout the year! See how far they can make $20 stretch and all of the items can be donated to a local homeless shelter!

The possibilities are endless!

Other Things To Consider Adding To Your Meetings!

Field Trips: (without the school bus!)

Each time my group meets I have offered and plan to continue offering Shopping Field Trips to a local grocery store! After January's meeting I offered to have them follow me over to Publix. Someone can tell you that they get $100 worth of groceries for $10 but to ACTUALLY see it yourself makes an everlasting impression! I usually have audiences when I go shopping most of the time but It is so much fun to actually take everyone around the store and show them how I shop each week! I gave great tips on how to look for things that aren't advertised among many other tips!

We even had one lady ask us what we were doing! We told her and hopefully just got ourselves another member! She actually stopped us during my explanation of purchasing a box of Kellogg's Smart start that was $3.99. I had a Kroger coupon for $2 off and a manufacturer's coupon for $1 off. These 2 coupons made the cereal .99. The lady that had walked up to us said that she was definitely interested in learning how to do that...but what I think actually sold her on the idea of using coupons even more was the fact that the box of cereal had a full-price rebate on it! After telling her that I was paying .99 for the cereal but getting $3.99 back in a rebate and therefore profiting from purchasing the cereal...she was convinced!

If you or someone at the meetings is willing to take part in this I highly suggest it! It really is a lot of fun!

Again, starting a coupon club can be a very exciting thing to do! In the beginning there is a lot of work to do but it gets easier as others chip in to help you out! I truly hope that this article has inspired some of you to start your very own coupon club! Good Luck!

If you have any questions about starting a coupon club in your area please don't hesitate to contact me! I will gladly help our in any way that I can!

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If you have a local coupon club in your area please leave a comment with the contact information! This will help anyone who is interested in attending one in your area!

Food Storage: Vegetables

Storing Vegetables

I thought that it would be helpful to find a site that had food storage information to share with you in case there were items in question.

You can print the chart right from the site if you would like to have a copy of it!

Veggetable Food Storage Chart (For Printing)

Here are the vegetables discussed in the chart!

Asparagus

Beans Dried

Green or Waxed

Lima (unshelled)

Beets

Broccoli, Brussels sprouts and summer squash

Cabbage

Carrots

Celery

Corn

Lettuce Head (unwashed)

Head (washed and drained)

Bib

Mushrooms

Onions

Peas Dried

Unshelled

Potatoes fresh, white

sweet

instant

Radishes and Parsnips

Spinach, kale, collard, chard, beet turnip and mustard greens

Tomatoes

Cauliflower, eggplants, snap beans

Rhubarb

Peppers and cucumbers

Food Storage: Flour

All flour should be stored in a tightly sealed container or re-packaged in a sealed bag for maximum usage!

All-Purpose Flour:
Cabinet storage: 8 months
Refrigerator storage: 1 year


Self-Rising Flour:
Cabinet Storage: 8 months
Refrigerator Storage: 1 year


Bread Flour:
Cabinet Storage: 6 months
Freezer: 1 year


Whole Wheat Flour:
Cabinet Storage: 3 months
Refrigerator Storage: 6 months
Freezer Storage: 1 year

Organic Flour:
Cabinet Storage: 3 months
Refrigerator Storage: 6 months
Freezer Storage: 1 year





TIPS:

• It is recommended that flour be stored no longer than 6 months. The longer you have flour the more rancid the taste can be when you use it. During hot weather store your flour in the refrigerator to prevent faster spoilage!
• Freezing flour for 48 hours before it is stored will kill any weevil or insect eggs already in the flour.
• Put a bay leaf in the flour canister to help protect against insect infections. Bay leaves are natural insect repellents.
• Do not store flour near soap powder, onions or other foods and products with strong odors. It will absorb the odors.
• Flour should be thrown away if it smells bad, changes color, or is invested with weevils.

The contents of this article have been collected from Woman's Day, Family Circle and from flour packaging itself.

Discounted Meat 101

Now that most of you know how to get everything else in a grocery store for pennies on the dollars...let's talk about the things that some may "think" you can't score great deals on but truly can!

The price of "meat" is the highest part of our grocery bill. Using coupons has allowed me and many of you to cope with higher dairy, produce, and meat prices without even feeling the budget crunch but there is always room for improvement!

I am going to show you how I am able to score great meat prices in hopes that you will be able to find the same great deals!

Buying Discounted Meat 101

In my experience any grocery store will mark down dairy, bakery, and meat products if they are nearing their expiration dates! The meat department along with the dairy and produce departments are required (store policies) to go through each of their items on a daily basis! This is usually done in the morning (times may vary by store). Kroger has been a jackpot for me personally on scoring great mark-down items in each of the above listed departments.

Each store may vary on their policies of mark-downs but many would rather sell the item than to throw it out! The manager of each department should be able to give your their specific time frame for discounts!

Produce:

The hardest to determine for mark-downs. There are no expiration dates on most of the items. If there are...be sure to check and if it expires within 2-4 I always ask for the discount and never had something "not" be marked down!

Dairy:

Usually marked down within 4 days also!
Tip: Remember milk can be frozen and don't forget your organic department for refrigerated products!

Meat:

The dates and mark-downs vary by the product. Poultry, Pork, and Seafood spoil quicker than beef, ham, and turkey. All of the above meats are marked down within 4 days of expiration. Poultry, Pork, and Seafood will be marked down at the 4/5 days(from the current date). Beef is marked down from 3/4 days (from the current date). Frozen ham and turkeys have a long shelf life (2ish months), just check them each week as you go in!

MISC:

We tend to overlook areas such as lunch meat, sausage, etc. If you are in the market for some of these items...don't hesitate to scan the expiration dates on these too!

Tip: Discounts usually start at about 20% off and are discounted as much as 80-90% on the day they expire.

Tip: The meat that I find is often NOT marked at a discount. Sometimes I do find it marked down but it is such a hassle to deal with many people hovering over the "mark-down" man all at once fighting over a good deal. I simply pick up the meat that I know I want to purchase (after taking an additional 5 minutes or so to look at expiration dates) and have him mark it down. If you shop for you discounted meat this way it's a less stressful situation. The next time you go in...take a look around and if you see some meat that is within the 2-3 day range ask the meat manager if he will mark it down.


Tip: I have even seen meat discounted at 20% and the item expired on that day. Knowing that the item should be discounted more heavily than the 20%, I asked if it could be reduced lower and they did!

Tip: Look at your dates on the products next time you are in the grocery store. If you are looking at steaks you will notice that most of the packages on the shelf will have the same expiration dates within 1 or 2 days of each other. If you are looking for that particular piece of meat you may want to come back in on the morning that it expires. I would only suggest doing this if there are a variety of meats that expire on those 1 or 2 days. I have made the mistake of going back in, only when a few packages were going to expire, and they had already sold them ~wasting a trip!

Tip: Never pass up a deal to get chicken breasts for .88-.99/lb. This is a great price to stock up on these items without the worry of spoilage. Hamburger meat is a good deal at $1.68/lb or lower. A great deal on steaks range from $3.99/lb to $6.99/lb depending on the cut! Pork chops at about $1.50/lb or less are good. This is just a few of the great prices to look for!

Important Information

Food Safety:

I almost always cook discounted meat immediately. Whether we are going to eat it that night or in the future this eliminates the chance for the meat to spoil. If I do not cook it immediately...(i.e. hamburger patties, meatballs, meatloaf, boneless skinless chicken breasts) I prepare the meat and then freeze it. I only do this with items that can be cooked from a frozen state.

When you properly thaw out a meat for cooking it can take 1-3 days to do so in your refrigerator. Buying discounted meat, freezing it raw, and thawing it out in the required time frame could possibly allow for spoilage. All meat has potentially harmful bacteria in it (hence expiration dates). The cold "frozen" temperature of the meat stops any bacteria from continuing to grow but it is still there. During the process of "thawing out" the bacteria is reactivated (due to the temperature) and the deteriorating state of the meat continues.

It's not such a great deal if you have to throw it out!

Budgeting Tip:

Each of you have a budgeted amount of money each week for groceries. When shopping for discounted meat it is possible to over your budget for that week. Most of my discounted meat purchases have caused me to personally go over my weekly budget but in the next weeks to come the money balances itself out because you do not have to buy meat for that week (the stockpile method)! If it is possible, you may want to put any money left over in your grocery budget each week and distribute it for just such an occasion or set aside an additional "initial" amount of money to use in purchases like this (that you cannot prepare for otherwise).

Other articles you may be interested in!

You can go here to read an article I wrote on proper "meat" food storage complete with links here.

You can go here to check out my 50lbs of Hamburger Meat discounted to $30 for all here...and what I did with it here!

You can also go here to read an article I wrote on "How to negotiate prices on just about anything" here!

My Motto...

"It never hurts to ask, the worse thing that someone can tell you is NO!"

Food Storage: Meats - Butter - Beverages

We all have an "idea" of how long to store food in the refrigerator or freezer! I thought that it would be helpful to do some research on the appropriate way to store items and how long they can be safely stored!

Here are some highlights!

Hamburger Meat, Roasts etc 4-12 months
Pork 4-6 months
Poultry 9-12 moths
Seafood 2-6 months depending on type
Bacon/Sausage 1-2 months
Frozen Dinners/Meals 3-4 months
Lunch Meats/Hot Dogs 1-2 months
Pizza 1-2 months
Beverages (Fruit in cartons) 8-12 months
Milk 3 months
Butter 6-9 months

Note: Each item has a different storage method based on raw and cooked, so please check the links below for the complete list! There are different methods for each type, frozen/cooked/in gravy's etc.

Here are the links to the resources that I received my information from!

These two links are from the USDA!

The first link is a chart of items and their refrigeration/freezing times
Go here!

The second is a very detailed Q&A page plus a smaller chart! This one is great for bacteria questions etc!
Go here!

Tips:

• ALWAYS keep a detailed list of items in your freezer/freezers. There's nothing worse than throwing out freezer burned items because you forgot that they were in there! This defeats the purpose of stockpiling all together!
• Always reinforce your meats packaging. If you place an item in the freezer in its original packaging...expect a higher chance of freezer burn!
• I place bulk items such as meats in 3 servings per package. This allows me to cook just enough for us to eat. Sometime I place a higher serving amount for things such as soups and chili's. For me, this method cuts back on wasted food!
• I also place individual servings of food in freezer bags (for quick snacks or lunches). This again saves on thawing time and cuts back on wasted food!
• DO NOT purchase and freeze too much of one particular item that won't last more than 1 month in the freezer. Again, you will end up throwing it out! (Tell that to my waffles turned snowballs from a couple of month's ago!)
  

If you have posted any articles on this information please link straight to your article with Mr. Linky below! If you would simply like to give us one of your tips for storage please leave a comment! I would love to hear from everyone! Let me know if you found this article helpful!