Groupon is the big name in the social deals sites but it’s definitely not the only one in the market. In fact, there are so many Groupon clones that it’s hard to even count them all. But there is one in the mix that may stand out more than the others – and may in fact even be better than Groupon itself. That site is SociallyIdeal.

SociallyIdeal Doesn’t Require a Minimum Buy

Most social deals sites operate on the idea that an item can cost less if it is bought buy a lot of people all at once. For that reason, sites like Groupon require that a minimum number of people purchase the deal before it can be activated. Although it doesn’t happen often, this can mean that you go ahead and sign up for a deal and then don’t get it after all. You aren’t charged but you can definitely end up disappointed, thinking you’re getting a great deal and then finding out that you’re not getting that deal after all. SociallyIdeal doesn’t require any minimums so you don’t have this problem. You get the power of social buying without the requirement that a huge group buy into the same deal.

You’re Billed Right Away

Because you don’t have to wait for others to get the deal you also don’t have to wait until the deal closes for your credit card to be billed. This is a benefit to some people who are tracking their spending and want their current credit charges to reflect all that they’ve put on the card as quickly as possible.

Great for People in DC

This site is specifically good for people who are interested in DC Daily Deals. People who are living in or traveling to the nation’s capital can take advantage of the deals offered on the site. The site also offers deals for Baltimore and will be adding additional cities in the future. This is not to say that Groupon doesn’t offer DC deals. In fact, they offer deals for numerous specific areas within the DC metro area and because of that their DC page is actually kind of noisy. SociallyIdeal is more straightforward and simple when it comes to DC Deals.

All of the Normal Perks Still Apply

SociallyIdeal does offer the standard format and perks for deals that you’ve come to expect if you’re a Groupon user or a user of Groupon clone sites. For example, you still get $10 when you refer someone new to the site. You can share deals via Facebook and Twitter. Deals change daily and offer you as much as 80% off of the cost of products and services (although the standard is typically closer to 50%). It’s what you’re used to from daily deals sites but with some added oomph.

Tags: daily deals, groupon, Personal Finance, saving money, sociallyideal

One of the topics that I write about on a regular basis is personal finance. I write about many different aspects of this topic but my focus is on saving money and living a frugal life. I believe that living within our means allows us to pursue dreams and focus on what really and truly matters to us.

Some of the things that I’ve written in relation to this during the past week or so include:

• How to find and attend free events. People waste a whole lot of money on entertaining themselves. That’s sad when there are actually tons of free events that you can enjoy with your family, your lover or by yourself.
• How to use coupons during summer travel. There are a lot of people who use coupons to save money. Do you know how many of them forget to do that when traveling? Too many! Hopefully these tips will inspire people to take their coupons on their trips with them.
• How a frugal life is a healthy life. Some people live a frugal life and are also unhealthy but it’s not that common. It’s especially rare among people who choose frugality (instead of having it forced on them by circumstance). Here’s a look at why frugal and healthy go hand-in-hand.
• Choosing foods that pair well together. If you buy two inexpensive foods that can be combined to make many different recipes (like broccoli and cheese!) then you can save money on groceries.
• Coupon news. I like to stay on top of news about coupons. News this week included a new printer that’s great for coupons, statistics about online coupons and problems with in-store coupons.

I love writing about saving money. I also love reading about it so if you know of good blogs or articles on this topic then feel free to drop a line!

Tags: Frugal Living, kathryn vercillo, links, money, Personal Finance, saving money

I’ve been reading a lot lately about coupon queens and coupon divas. These are people who pride themselves on an ability to use coupons to save a large amount of money on everything that they purchase. They offer all sorts of tricks and tips to enhance money-saving with coupon use.

This is all smart stuff. However, I think that the average person needs to balance saving money with saving time. Clipping coupons can end up wasting a lot of time if you don’t know what to look for and how to do it efficiently.

One of the most important things to learn if you want to save money with different types of coupons is how many different types of coupons are out there and which ones are even worth your time. There are coupons for free stuff, coupons for half off, coupons for buy one get one free … You have to really know what’s what if you’re going to be able to quickly sift through coupons and really make use of them without spending too much time on them.

See my recent article describing 10 different types of coupons to learn more about this area of personal finance.

Tags: coupons, discount codes, kathryn vercillo, money, Personal Finance, saving money

I do a lot of research into saving money when shopping online. Because of this, I’m constantly looking for news about discount codes and other tools for saving money online. Recent news suggests that college-aged kids are the ones most likely to be interested in using online coupon codes.

This is an example of how technology has taken an old tradition and brought it to the younger generation. Young folks and young couples have traditionally been opposed to “coupon-clipping”. However, now that they’re able to get their coupons online, they are more interested in saving money this way.

Of course, the recession has encouraged all people to start looking at ways of saving money. It just so happens that college-aged kids are most likely to turn to the Internet to do that. As a result, the industry for discount coupons online is growing rapidly.

What’s interesting about the research is that young couples without kids are more likely to use discount codes than are young couples with kids. You would think folks with babies were the ones most interested in saving money wouldn’t you?! Maybe they’re still using the old coupon-clipping method in keeping with tradition. What do you think?

Tags: discount codes, Frugal Living, promotional codes, saving money, shopping, shopping online, trends

I keep trying to reduce what I spend each month so that I can save a little bit of money. It’s a smart thing for anyone to do and it’s really important for those of us who freelance and who therefore may have an unstable income. Unfortunately, I continue to keep over-spending on groceries and dining out even though I’m aware of the fact that this is a problem for me.

It’s not that I don’t know how to save money on food. I’ve written extensively on this topic including recently publishing 20 Simple Tips for Spending Less on Food Without Resorting to Ramen. I’m aware of the tricks and I use some of them on a regular basis. But the fact of the matter is that there are some foods that I like that are expensive and I’m not very good at restraining myself from buying them even though I know that they impact my food budget. Marinated mushrooms and fancy cheeses are two big examples from my kitchen.

The other thing that I do to waste money on food is that I often spend more money than necessary on food for when other people come over. Any time that I’m going to have someone to my house, I buy way too much food – even when it’s for a potluck! I’m always worried that there won’t be enough. It’s something I really need to work on if I want to spend less.

Luckily, the one area that I’m getting good at is saving money on eating out. I’m learning not only to eat out less but also to make smart choices when I do dine out. I always split my meal in half and save part of it for later. I usually skip expensive drinks. And I try to choose affordable restaurants. So I’m getting there. Slowly.

Tags: Food, grocery shopping, hubpages, kathryn vercillo, money, Personal Finance, saving money, shopping, spending money

I’ve got another “best answer” over at Yahoo! Answers and I’d love it if you’d check it out. The question this time was about whether online shopping or mall shopping is better. My response was basically that it depends what you’re looking for in terms of your shopping experience but I tried to give a comprehensive overview of the pros and cons of online shopping in comparison with shopping at the mall.

I definitely think that online shopping is usually the better way for me to go personally. I really don’t like malls much. I feel like everything looks the same and it’s overpriced. However, I do like other in-store shopping like thrift store shopping and boutique store shopping. If I want to get the experience of browsing, I’d rather go to one of those places than shop online. But if I want to get a decent deal or to buy something in the most convenient way then online shopping is where it’s at for me.

What about you? Do you like online shopping? Would you rather go to a mall or some other type of store? Share your thoughts …

Tags: money, online shopping, Personal Finance, saving money, shopping, spending money, Yahoo Answers

I am usually really good at sticking to a budget. However, there are always those big expenses that come up that throw me off of my savings plans. The one that always seems to get me is travel. I absolutely love San Francisco but I enjoy getting away now and then to other (sunnier!) places.

I like to go back home to Arizona and to LA and to Ohio, all of which are places where I have family, because I like to get the chance to be around the people that I love. I also like to travel to nearby places within California for short little getaways – last year I went to San Luis Obispo and San Diego on different trips, both of which were wonderfully enjoyable. And I’d like to travel further if money would allow.

But sometimes we have to convince ourselves not to travel because it’s not cheap. So I have a lot of little tricks for curbing the travel bug. I do what I can to make it feel as though I’m traveling in my own city (easy enough in San Francisco but possible anywhere). I work on travel-related projects and enjoy travel-themed parties. And it helps me feel like I’m living an exotic life even when I can’t get away. Those tips can be explored in my weekly financial advice column if you follow the link in this paragraph.

Tags: Frugal Living, frugal travel, Personal Finance, saving money, tips, Travel, travel on a budget, travel tips