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A trip to the supermarket is pretty good indicator of where the economy is going
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MARY ANN SWARTZ
FOR THE SHAMOKIN NEWS ITEM
Many of us will try and predict economic flows and dips by studying the market. I’m no exception, but my playground isn’t Wall Street. A trip to the supermarket will usually give me a good indication of where the economy is going.
This week it was two large sized blueberry muffins priced at $6. Most of us, seeing prices like this, will rummage through our coupons, search the sales circulars and pinch pennies until they say “ouch.”
There are a few other roads you can travel to get to the financial end of the rainbow. You may remember when manufacturers offered rebates on their products. This was an extremely lucrative means of getting money back if you were a dedicated consumer, and required nothing more than clipping UPC codes from selected items and your sales receipt.
Curious to find out whether rebate offers still exist, I spent a few hours surfing the Web. Most of the rebates I found apply to big ticket items, like appliances, lawn and garden products and auto parts. The major cereal manufacturers still offer free T-shirts and mugs — you’ll find these offers on the cereal boxes themselves but other rebates appear to apply only to bulk purchases.
What I also found was an excellent article on the subject where the author termed the practice — ”re-baits.” Here’s how it works. You’re lured into buying a vacuum cleaner with the promise of a $30 rebate. But most people either don’t send the required items to qualify for the rebate, or forget to send for the rebate at all and this is what manufacturers count on. The Federal Trade Commission estimates that at least half of all rebates go unclaimed because the rebate forms are lost, consumers fail to meet the conditions of the rebates or just plain forget to file. Rebates are still a good way to get money back from your purchases, but you need to keep a few simple rules in mind, especially at this time of year, when Christmas rebate offers are just around the corner. Always read the conditions carefully and make sure you qualify for the rebate. Send your rebate form in as soon as possible, not at the last minute. Be sure you send everything that’s required — UPC codes, sales receipts, etc. Most importantly, make copies of everything you send. If you haven’t received your rebate in 4 to 6 weeks (manufacturer’s offers may vary) you’ll have everything you need to start tracking it down, starting with the manufacturer and going all the way up to the Better Business Bureau. Not all rebates are this complicated.
Stores and pharmacies will offer rebates on selected products. You can use either the U.S. postal service and mail your rebate in or submit it on line (saving the postage). There’s no charge to register on-line and the process is pretty easy, plus some sites will allow you to track your rebate request in the system at any time.
Many sites offer free samples as well as rebates. I checked out a few of these and while some of them sounded good, others do come with conditions and disclaimers. I recommend reading them carefully before signing up. I generally log onto www.coolsavings.com for free samples, free coupons and manufacturer’s offers. It should be noted, however, that most stores won’t accept computer printed coupons.
Other good places to look for manufacturer offers and special promotions are magazines and the coupon section in the Sunday paper. It’s a good idea to keep paper and a pencil handy while you’re watching TV. I’ve noticed manufactureres are including Web site addresses in their commercials to send for a free sample of their product. Additional Web sites are out there to guide the consumer and, courtesy of my friend Sal, I’ve listed a few: Honesty.com lets you know how much things usually go for on eBay and what’s currently on sale there so you don’t overpay when you buy. Pricespider.com and wishradar.com hunt online for the items you want at the most you’re willing to pay. Goodhousekeepingrewards.com lets you earn cash back rewards of up to 20% at over 200 participating on line companies including, Wal-Mart, Gap and Best Buy.
As a matter of record, you can purchase a box of blueberry muffin mix for about $1.79, makes 12 muffins. Freeze them and you can have a fresh muffin every day. Of course, you can’t double the size when actually baking them but mathematically, doubling the size, works out to 6 large muffins for $1.79, or approximately 30 cents a piece. Throw a batch in the oven and add $4.25 to the rainy day jar.
FOR THE SHAMOKIN NEWS ITEM
Many of us will try and predict economic flows and dips by studying the market. I’m no exception, but my playground isn’t Wall Street. A trip to the supermarket will usually give me a good indication of where the economy is going.
This week it was two large sized blueberry muffins priced at $6. Most of us, seeing prices like this, will rummage through our coupons, search the sales circulars and pinch pennies until they say “ouch.”
There are a few other roads you can travel to get to the financial end of the rainbow. You may remember when manufacturers offered rebates on their products. This was an extremely lucrative means of getting money back if you were a dedicated consumer, and required nothing more than clipping UPC codes from selected items and your sales receipt.
Curious to find out whether rebate offers still exist, I spent a few hours surfing the Web. Most of the rebates I found apply to big ticket items, like appliances, lawn and garden products and auto parts. The major cereal manufacturers still offer free T-shirts and mugs — you’ll find these offers on the cereal boxes themselves but other rebates appear to apply only to bulk purchases.
What I also found was an excellent article on the subject where the author termed the practice — ”re-baits.” Here’s how it works. You’re lured into buying a vacuum cleaner with the promise of a $30 rebate. But most people either don’t send the required items to qualify for the rebate, or forget to send for the rebate at all and this is what manufacturers count on. The Federal Trade Commission estimates that at least half of all rebates go unclaimed because the rebate forms are lost, consumers fail to meet the conditions of the rebates or just plain forget to file. Rebates are still a good way to get money back from your purchases, but you need to keep a few simple rules in mind, especially at this time of year, when Christmas rebate offers are just around the corner. Always read the conditions carefully and make sure you qualify for the rebate. Send your rebate form in as soon as possible, not at the last minute. Be sure you send everything that’s required — UPC codes, sales receipts, etc. Most importantly, make copies of everything you send. If you haven’t received your rebate in 4 to 6 weeks (manufacturer’s offers may vary) you’ll have everything you need to start tracking it down, starting with the manufacturer and going all the way up to the Better Business Bureau. Not all rebates are this complicated.
Stores and pharmacies will offer rebates on selected products. You can use either the U.S. postal service and mail your rebate in or submit it on line (saving the postage). There’s no charge to register on-line and the process is pretty easy, plus some sites will allow you to track your rebate request in the system at any time.
Many sites offer free samples as well as rebates. I checked out a few of these and while some of them sounded good, others do come with conditions and disclaimers. I recommend reading them carefully before signing up. I generally log onto www.coolsavings.com for free samples, free coupons and manufacturer’s offers. It should be noted, however, that most stores won’t accept computer printed coupons.
Other good places to look for manufacturer offers and special promotions are magazines and the coupon section in the Sunday paper. It’s a good idea to keep paper and a pencil handy while you’re watching TV. I’ve noticed manufactureres are including Web site addresses in their commercials to send for a free sample of their product. Additional Web sites are out there to guide the consumer and, courtesy of my friend Sal, I’ve listed a few: Honesty.com lets you know how much things usually go for on eBay and what’s currently on sale there so you don’t overpay when you buy. Pricespider.com and wishradar.com hunt online for the items you want at the most you’re willing to pay. Goodhousekeepingrewards.com lets you earn cash back rewards of up to 20% at over 200 participating on line companies including, Wal-Mart, Gap and Best Buy.
As a matter of record, you can purchase a box of blueberry muffin mix for about $1.79, makes 12 muffins. Freeze them and you can have a fresh muffin every day. Of course, you can’t double the size when actually baking them but mathematically, doubling the size, works out to 6 large muffins for $1.79, or approximately 30 cents a piece. Throw a batch in the oven and add $4.25 to the rainy day jar.
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