Monday, October 25, 2010

Groovin' on Groupon

I love it when great minds get in the same groove! Witness Donna Freedman at Surviving and Thriving. She and I are both having great experiences with Groupon.

I've been a member of Groupon for awhile now, but haven't actually used one of their coupons until last week, when all of a sudden there were two coupons that would save me money for things I'd buy anyway. One was to a local restaurant that my soon-to-be 26 year old daughter already told me was her choice for her birthday dinner. (This is my Halloween baby--it was so great when she was growing up--I never did have to decorate for her birthday!) The other was today's coupon for The Body Shoppe, where I do a fair amount of my Christmas shopping. In both cases, I paid $20 for a $40 coupon. In both cases, I saved 50% on items I was already going to buy, even at full price.

The point of Groupon is to get folks to try new places and new services. From a frugal point of view, this is not always good. It can be hard to resist a bargain on something I didn't know I wanted until the coupon became available. At least in my city, many of the trendiest salons and restaurants are featured. It would be easy to overspend on things I was interested in trying were my finances not an issue.

I'm excited to see what other groupons may be available between now and Christmas.

4 comments:

Sharon said...

Sounds like a great deal (as long as you only buy things you will use! :)
Happy birthday to your daughter!!

Donna Freedman said...

Thanks for the link, Grace.
For those who don't make that jump to hyperspace, allow me to mention that additional frugal hack: You can get an additional 6% off by using a cash-back site such as Mr. Rebates when you actually order a Groupon voucher.
If you're unfamiliar with cash-back sites, please do use the link Grace provides. My post explains how. It's an extra 6% off, guys.
And for extra credit: I just ordered my annual Entertainment Book through Mr. Rebates -- and got a 30% cashback plus free shipping. woo hoo!

Dorothy Potter Snyder said...

Aagh! I had to stop it with Groupons because I discovered that I don't do anything or buy anything. I like your style, lady!

LC said...

Hubby and I just returned home from dinner at one of our favorite restaurants in our small town. It is a regular breakfast spot, but we haven't been there for a "date-night" dinner since before Hurricane Katrina. Hubby had paid $25 for a $50 coupon. We had a wonderful seafood and steak dinner with a go box that will supply lunch tomorrow. Hey. . . I like frugal! And I will be checking link on your post and Donna's post.