A tired old saying for the frugally minded is that “If you buy something on sale but you don’t need it, you’re still wasting money.” OK, maybe I’m the only one that says that, but the point is that if you’ve been in the Personal Finance game long enough, you’ve come to view marketing attempts with a hefty dose of skepticism. Advertisers want one thing from you: Money, and they’re willing to employ all sorts of psychological tricks along with flashy ads and seemingly irresistible discounts to accomplish that goal.
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Enter the Groupon
Groupon is built on a pretty simple premise. If they get enough people to buy a particular products or service, then the provider of that product or service is willing to offer a steep discount, as they’ll be making their money up with volume. As a consumer, you get to enjoy a 50% or more discount as a result, so in the end it can be a win-win. Groupon also employs a sense of urgency, as each deal only lasts for a few days. If you don’t act now (or soon), then the deal will pass you by. How then do we make this work to our advantage?
Identify What’s Important
The key to being a successful Groupon customer is to identify the products and services you want most, and ignore the rest. If you like to eat out, pop into Groupon each day and see if they have any lucrative dinner deals in your local area. Personally, I like planning out day trips, so I’ve been keeping an eye out for fun locales like a ski package in Vermont or a trip to Niagra falls (The Canadian side, duh). Not giving into the impulse to buy buy buy because hey, it is all on sale allows you to pick out things that you want for personal spending and have fun on the cheap.
In the world of personal finance, sacrifice is a common theme, but it doesn’t always have to be. Stay within your budget, and you can still have a night on the town or a weekend trip to the shore if you want to.
irresistible
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