when changing or starting a business, an inevitable expense is buying more stuff to make thinks work faster, do thinks better, or just learn new stuff. be it new software, new hardware, new clothes, or whatever, for the start-up it’s easy to go wild and buy with abondon. i did this when i started green building concepts, but i learned my lesson in 1997, and will never do that again. i only buy something that i need for the next 30 days, unless it a birthday or Christmas gift for somone else.
here is my strategy on gettng great deals: never buy at retail prices. now this does not mean i only buy from ebay or overstock, but i always wait until what i’m getting is on sale, on clearance, or just after some mail in rebate. it may seem stupid to wait for a rebate, but i consider it an investment in the future, that will pay with interest in abour 8 to 12 weeks. and i always get my rebate, because i follow the directions on the mail in form. if it says original receipt, that’s what i put. if it calls for red ink instead of black, that too. if it calls for two UPC’s i made a copy. whatever the form says, i follow to the letter.
the best trick i’ve found in processing rebates is always to use a #10 business envelope, computer addressed with a USPS bar code for easy computer delivery. also, if the UPC is small, i tape it to a strip of paper so i will not hide inside the envelope. for all i know these rebates are processed in india or canada, so you have to send them for the long haul.
my second tip for bargains, is using the web. i search the sites:
fat wallet
slick deals
tech bargains
deal news
before i buy anything. this is a result of an article i read in november 2004. one of the largest consumer electronic dealers in the USA, best buy, made some statements in the wall street journal that some of it’s customers only buy things when they are heavily discounted and the company is losing money. they called these special customers, some 20% of its base, “devils.” they warned about the above sites that share coupon codes and discount strategies. i am one of those customers who buys only when something is free or close to it. good luck to you getting back at the man.