Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Double Dipping - My Approach For Freebies

I like free stuff as much as the next person. However, I generally won't do something just to get free stuff - e.g. opening several accounts for the bonus money. I try to get free stuff for something that is a good deal and I was already planning to do. That way I expend very little extra effort to get the bonus.

Here are some recent examples of getting free stuff for activities I was already planning to do:

  • Opening new financial accounts - Opening separate accounts for My Wealth Builder resulted in $125 of bonuses for checking, savings, and credit cards. Opening a UTMA account for our daughter qualified us for a free IPod Nano.


  • Attending investment presentations - I have just started to look at investment property in lake, mountain or beach communities. Many of these have free dinners or discounted lodging. I just attended a presentation for a mountain community.

    Also, several reputable financial advisors in my area offer no obligation free dinner seminars, in the hopes of attracting future clients. I attend the ones that are of interest to me.


  • Test driving a car - I enjoy test driving cars periodically, because I like cars and want to keep up with prices. Mazda is offering a $25 gift card for a test drive.


  • Shopping at Costco - I regularly shop at Costco. On weekends, they have free food samples throughout the afternoon. I get free snacks and Costco gets my discretionary spending:-)

    One of the best sample deals I enjoyed was at an Italian grocery store. The were serving samples of wine and liquor. It was a free happy hour:-)
  • These are just a few examples of the double dipping for freebies since starting My Wealth Builder.

    For more on Ideas You Can Use, check back every Tuesday for a new segment.


    This is not financial advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

    Copyright © 2007 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

    6 comments:

    Michael W. said...

    Hi Super Saver, I have started a new blog where I post freebies and giveaways where there are no strings attached. I hate all of the referrals and hoops you have to jump through just to get "free stuff". Check out my website, and let me know what you think. I am new to this blogging thing, so any experienced advice is always welcome.
    GiveawayProject.com

    -Michael

    The Digerati Life said...

    Very cool tips, Super Saver! I like the "attending investment presentations" idea. Maybe make a vacation out of a trip like that. I wonder if they hold any in Hawaii? I heard they do so in cruise ships...:D

    Anonymous said...

    when you drove the car, did they request a copy of your driver's license? if so, while you were driving, they did a credit check on you. still think the $25 was worth the marketing target?

    Super Saver said...

    Michael,

    Good luck on your new blog. I'll check back occasionally on the freebies you find. I haven't had much luck with sweepstakes :-)

    SVB,

    Thanks for your comment and idea. I hadn't thought about "free vacations." When I find one, I'll definitely let everyone know. :-)

    Anonymous,

    Thanks also for your comment. Great point on the marketers getting info in exchange for the freebies.

    In this case, Mazda didn't ask for a driver's license. However, since I test drive cars (including the Mazda RX-8) periodically, I would not object to them taking my license information.

    Your example is the reason I only try to get freebies for something I was already planning to do.

    Anonymous said...

    Super Saver, I also am not a big fan of the sweeps, but the sweeps postings will help get my traffic up, then I hope to encourage other bloggers to do real giveaways. I am seeing more and more bloggers do giveaways. My dream for GiveawayProject is to post less and less freebies, and more "real" giveaways.

    Super Saver said...

    Michael,

    Thanks for the clarification.

    Good luck on your plan to build traffic and get additional people to do giveaways.