Monday, June 3, 2013

Saving Money with Apps Part 1: Endorse

Hi friends!  I hope you are all doing well.  We are ok.  Avery is teething but other than that, things are pretty good.  Brady is out of school right now which is nice.  Perhaps, I will make one of those Summer Bucket Lists that I've seen going around.  :)

Today, I'm starting a new series on my blog called Saving Money With Apps.  I've had several friends ask my how I go about saving money.  One of the most simple ways to by using a couple apps on your smartphone.  Please note that these are NOT sponsored posts.  These are apps that I've come across in my attempts to be more thrifty that have worked for me.  However, I will be posting my referral links in the posts.  These are the same referral links that everyone is given to invite their friends.

First up is Endorse.  Endorse is the app that I have made the most money back from, hands down.  Here's how it works.  You download the app to your phone (iPhone or Android) and then each week they will send you offers.  You have 6 days to redeem these offers.  You redeem them by buying the items listed on the offers and uploading a photo of the receipt.  Kind of like a rebate but you don't have to mail your actual receipt or wait forever for a check.

There are a couple different kinds of offers.  The first type are ANY brand offers.  These are for ANY brand you buy.  Some of the ones I've gotten are 50% cash back on any brand diapers, 100% cash back on any coffee, and 10% cash back on any brand gasoline.   Then there are brand specific offers like 50% cash back on Mountain Dew or 10% cash back on Quaker oatmeal or 20% cash back on Tide.

In addition to cash back, you will earn points for uploading your receipts.  You can redeem these points for gift certificates to Donors Choose which is a great program where teachers post things they need for their classroom and you can donate to them.  I've found Brady's school on Donors Choose and have been donating my gift certificates so they can buy things for their computer lab.  It's a really nice added bonus from Endorse.

HOW DO YOU GET CASH BACK?  That's what you really want to know, right?  After you submit your receipt, Endorse will review it.  If it meets the criteria, you get the cash and points added to your account.  Then whenever you want, you can cash out via Paypal.  This method is super fast.  I usually have my money in a few minutes.  OR you can request a check and that takes a couple weeks to come in your mailbox.

PROS:
~ You can shop at ANY store.
~ There are a lot of offers where they accept ANY brand.
~ Getting money back is fast.

CONS:
~ Some weeks, you won't have offers you want/need.
~ If your receipt gets ruined (too crinkled, ink fades, etc...) they might not accept it.

Personally, I've made hundreds of dollars by using this app in the last few years.  Usually from the 50% back on diapers and 100% back on coffee (hello Starbucks.)  But even if you save $5 a month, isn't it worth downloading a free app?  If you sign up, please use MY REFERRAL LINK.  I will get one whole dollar if you do.  ;)

Let me know how you like this series.  Again, I want to turn my blog into a lifestyle blog and one of the BIG things in my lifestyle is saving money.  

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