No. 83 - Groupon

I love to save money. Or, rather, I love to spend as little money as possible and still get the things I need or want. I recall hearing a long time ago that "it's not how much you make, it's how much you spend." Saving money is almost considered a sport in our house.

We quite frequently shop for the lowest price if quality isn't a concern. For example, what does it matter who collects our trash? As long as we drop it off in front of the house each week and it disappears the next day, it's all good. I remember one time we received a much lower price from a smaller trash collection company. So we called our current, and significantly larger, trash company to see if they would match the price. They said no, and then proceeded to tell us that they have more employees and more trucks and, therefore, more costs which makes the price they charge their customers higher. Wow! So we switched. That was years ago. And every week our trash still disappears, except now less money disappears with it.

But I digress.

Anyway, it is amazing how much money people overspend because they don't ask a simple question, "Is that the lowest price you can sell this to me for?" or some variation thereof.

How about a flat-screen TV at BestBuy?

Me: I think I'd like to buy this TV today, and I see it's on sale, but is there anyway you could take another 50 bucks off?

Them: No problem, sir, I think we can do that.

It's so easy sometimes it's almost funny.

But I digress. Again.

Today I learned about Groupon.com. Their website says they "offer daily deals at unbeatable prices through the power of group buying." Groupon solicits retailers to offer around 50% to 90% off "the best stuff your city has to offer." A local restaurant is a good example of a typical offering. They showcase just one retailer a day. If a certain minimum number of people agree to purchase the item, then it will sell for that price. Otherwise, no deal. Sounds interesting. I think I'll give it a try.

There's another similar service that's coming to our area soon called LivingSocial.com that offers a similar service, but without the minimum number of buyers needed to get the deal.