Who doesn’t love to save money? Luckily for us, technology has not only made our lives easier, but has evolved to help us save money. Here are 3 location-based services to help you save money.
Google Offers
Google Offers is a relatively new Google service that Google users can subscribe to and receive daily deals on local services and products via their Gmail account. I recently began using this service and absolutely love it. Users are limited to purchase only one of each offer, but I have multiple Gmail accounts, so I’m actually able to take advantage of the offers multiple times if I want or need to. Of course, the goal of these services is to get you to purchase things you wouldn’t ordinarily, so in order to truly save money, you should limit yourself to buying deals for services or products that you would have purchased anyway. So far, I’ve saved $150. I purchased a much needed $150 full auto-detail for my car for only $50, two $30 1-800-Flowers for only $15 each, and two $10 Starbucks gift cards for only $5 each. There is a wide-variety of offers that are perfect for saving money on yourself or on gifts for others; I highly recommend utilizing this service.
Yelp
Most people have heard of Yelp, but what many people might not know is that Yelp has a mobile app that will help you save money in two key ways. First, Yelp rewards its mobile users by allowing restaurants and stores to host deals through the app. All users have to do is check in to the establishment and if there are any deals, Yelp will display them. The first time I used the Yelp app was at a local bar and I got a free drink for my check-in. Second, Yelp allows businesses to offer virtual gift certificate deals. For instance, there’s a $20 gift certificate for the sushi place across from my apartment that I can purchase for $10 through Yelp.
Foursquare
Foursquare is another location-based mobile app that is easy to use and allows users to save money in 3 ways. First, like Yelp, Foursquare offers those users who check in with their app deals on many products and services. For instance, I get free chips and salsa every time I go to a local chain restaurant because I check in with Foursquare. If I check in with 3 of my Foursquare friends, the last person to check in gets the code for a free appetizer.
Second, establishments that participate in Foursquare reward their loyal users; Foursquare is first a location-based social networking app. Users essentially play a game, trying to check-in more times than their friends so that they can receive the title of “Mayor; ” there can only be one Mayor for each business. However, many businesses that participate in Foursquare deals offer the customer with the most check-ins at their business, i.e. the Mayor, special deals. For instance, a restaurant called Mission Burrito in my area offers the mayor 20% off of their entire purchase every single time that they go into the restaurant, as long as they maintain their Mayor status.
Third, Foursquare and American Express established a relationship recently. I’ve been using Foursquare for years, and since American Express and Foursquare joined forces, I’ve never seen so businesses participate in Foursquare deals. Essentially, if you have an American Express and register it with Foursquare, you open up your possibility for saving dramatically. Many of the businesses I go to on a daily business have become participants in this deal. The deal is that if you use your Foursquare registered American Express at a business that participates, you get $5 off of your purchase once you’ve spent $10; and you can do this every single time you go to a participating business. If you eat out 4 times a week at participating restaurants, you will save $20 a week.
Allison Dean jumped at the chance to bring us a guest post about how using location-based mobile applications can save you money. A blogger and writer who saw the need for an educational resource that laypersons could depend on when they had legal problems, Allison spends her professional life writing about medical malpractice attorneys.
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