Let’s face it; times are tough and saving is near impossible for many. With interest rates being at a record low, returns are minimal and everyday living costs are slowly creeping up.
The outlook is bleak, but it’s not all doom and gloom – you can make your money go further by shopping smart. Here are a few top tips to make the most of your money.
Promotions
Instead of parting with your cash, why not give up your time for some free goodies. You could write reviews of products, participate in marketing surveys, sign up to focus groups in favour of getting gifts, vouchers and free stuff.
Kellogg’s, for example, opened a pop up store in London’s Soho last month where they were giving away free packets of their newly launched Special K Cracker crisps in return for a mention on Twitter.
Vouchers
Through such dark times of austerity has come the glorious birth of vouchers and discounts. From leg waxes to Legoland adventures, you can now find discounts and vouchers for almost anything.
Take advantage of this by downloading a free voucher app to your smartphone so you can have vouchers on demand wherever you go.
Buy own brands
Can you taste the difference between branded goods and non-branded goods? If not, why pay more for it? It’s significantly cheaper to store branded goods.
Nearly a quarter of Brits on average incomes have in fact done the switch from branded to non branded to make their money stretch further, according to Axa’s Big Money Index.
If you think you might struggle with everyday living costs, you may be thinking about a payday advance.
If an emergency has left you short, this may be useful, but be careful – it does need to be repaid within the month to avoid high interest rates, and isn’t a long term solution as a result.