Beating Broke

Personal Finance from the Broke Perspective

  • Home
  • About
  • We Recommend
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy

Powered by Genesis

Looking for More Ways to Save? Try Asking for Discounts

April 15, 2013 By MelissaB 13 Comments

There are plenty of ways to save on a daily basis–clipping coupons, resisting the urge to buy something, packing your lunch instead of eating out, etc.  There are many ways to live a more frugal life, and chances are, you incorporate the ways that are easy.  You know, the ones that don’t cause you to change your lifestyle much.  Things like giving up cable and getting streaming through your Xbox instead.  That’s fairly easy and doesn’t change your lifestyle.

Another easy way to save that doesn’t change your lifestyle is to ask for discounts.  Have you tried it?

Asking is surprisingly easy, and even more surprising is how often you actually get the discount.  You just have to get up the nerve to ask the first time; once someone says yes, you’ll gain confidence, and it’ll be easier to ask next time.

Ask for the DiscountWant proof that asking is as easy as I say?

Credit Card Fees

A few years ago, I made an online payment to my credit card on the day it was due, which was a Saturday.  The web stated that any payment made on the weekend wouldn’t post until the next business day.  Yep, my on time payment was counted late, and I was charged a $25 late fee.

I called the company and asked them to remove the late charge.  They did immediately.  Why?  Two reasons.  First, I asked.  Second, I never make late payments, so they rewarded my good payment history by removing the late payment.  I’ve had this happen to me 3 times in about 10 years of credit card usage.  Each time I called and they removed the charge.

Credit Card Interest

We’re paying down debt, and one thing that slowed our progress was our credit card APR of 13.99%.  I called to ask to have the rate reduced.  I had to talk to a supervisor, but she lowered our rate to 9.99%, and she gave me enough reward points to cover the cost of our annual fee.  I saved a few hundred dollars right there in about 10 minutes, just by asking.  (But when I got an offer to move my balance to a 0% APR card a few months later, you better believe I did it.)

Grocery Store Purchases

Asking for discounts isn’t limited to credit cards.  If I see something at the grocery store that is at the sell by date, I’ll ask someone in that department to discount it.  I’m only successful here about 50% of the time, but still, that’s half the time that I save more than I would if I hadn’t asked!

Garage Sales & Craigslist

I love shopping garage sales in the summertime.  If things are already priced dirt cheap, I don’t haggle, but if the price is too expensive, I have no problem asking for a lower price.  Most of the time people will say yes because they just want to get rid of their stuff.

Likewise, people on Craigslist expect you to ask for a lower price than they have listed.  Just don’t get ridiculous with the amount you ask.  That can be insulting for the seller and usually won’t lead to a deal.

These are just a few examples of how I’ve saved by asking for a discount.  However, any time I think asking might lead to a discount, I ask.

What was your most successful discount you got just by asking?

MelissaB
MelissaB

Melissa is a writer and virtual assistant. She earned her Master’s from Southern Illinois University, and her Bachelor’s in English from the University of Michigan. When she’s not working, you can find her homeschooling her kids, reading a good book, or cooking. She resides in New York, where she loves the natural beauty of the area.

www.momsplans.com/

Filed Under: credit cards, free money, Frugality, Saving, ShareMe Tagged With: asking for discounts, credit cards, discount, discounts, shopping

Ask for the Special

January 24, 2011 By Shane Ede 4 Comments

I’m not a very outgoing person.  I have a hard time going up to people I’ve never met.  I have a hard time even talking to people I’ve never met.  So, I have a very hard time following the old advice that you have to ask for the real discount.  Luckily, not everything has to be done in person, so I can send emails for some things.  Which is exactly how I proved that old adage true.

For Christmas, instead of receiving gifts from all of our relatives, we asked them to put in the money that they would normally have spent to a mini-vacation fund for us.  We all have set spending limits for our Christmas presents, so it was pretty easy for them to do that.  Then, we took a nice little weekend trip the day after Thanksgiving.

We wanted someplace nice that would be within the budget, but would still count as a vacation.  In other words, Super 8 just wasn’t going to cut it.  We had originally settled on one place, but, being the curious fella that I am, I kept looking for a better deal.  And, as luck would have it I found one.  In fact, for what it would have cost us for one night at the original place, we stayed for two at the next place.  And, if you want my honest opinion, I think the place I found was a lot nicer.  How did we get such a deal?  I asked for it.

Simple really.  I emailed the manager who was listed on the website.  He forwarded my email on to the guy in charge of reservations.  In my email, I simply told him what days we were planning on staying, and asked if there were any specials that would be active for that weekend.  At this point, he could have easily just said no.  But, he didn’t.  And he earned a customer.

IMG_2154The place was very nice. (Here’s a link and a picture of the living room area if you’re curious: Chase on the Lake, I highly recommend it.) They called the room we stayed in a “condotel”.  Basically, it was a two bedroom, two bathroom, suite with a full kitchen and living room.  Everything was way above the typical standards that we have for a hotel room.  Overall, it was incredible.  We spent the whole weekend relaxing (kid-free, thanks to Grandma) and came home refreshed.

We would have gone on the trip in any case.  But, because I asked for the special, it became a lot cheaper than we had planned on it being.  And, if we plan on doing it again (we will), I think we’ve found our place.  Next time you’re making plans for a trip, or just trying to buy something special, make sure you at least ask for a special.  You might just surprise yourself and get one!

Shane Ede

I started this blog to share what I know and what I was learning about personal finance. Along the way I’ve met and found many blogging friends. Please feel free to connect with me on the Beating Broke accounts: Twitter and Facebook.

You can also connect with me personally at Novelnaut, Thatedeguy, Shane Ede, and my personal Twitter.

www.beatingbroke.com

Filed Under: Coupons and Discounts, Frugality, Saving, ShareMe Tagged With: advice, chase on the lake, coupon, discount, frugaler, Saving, special, vacation

  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Improve Your Credit Score

Money Blogs

  • Celebrating Financial Freedom
  • Christian PF
  • Dual Income No Kids
  • Financial Panther
  • Gajizmo.com
  • Lazy Man and Money
  • Make Money Your Way
  • Money Talks News
  • My Personal Finance Journey
  • Personal Profitability
  • PF Blogs
  • Reach Financial Independence
  • So Over Debt
  • The Savvy Scot
  • Yes, I am Cheap

Categories

Disclaimer

Please note that Beating Broke has financial relationships with some of the merchants mentioned here. Beating Broke may be compensated if consumers choose to utilize the links located throughout the content on this site and generate sales for the said merchant.

Visit Our Advertisers

Need to change careers? Consider an Accounting Certificate Program from WTI.