It seems like everyone has a Smartphone. Flip phones are a think of the past yet many people do not maximize the use of their Smartphone. There are a lot of ways that you can get your Smartphone to work for you and make your life a little bit easier. Below is a list of the top 5 ways that you can save money by simply having a Smartphone available to you.
1. Coupons- This is a big one. There are so many ways that you can get coupons on your phone it is crazy. First there is the simple fact that you can use the browser to search for coupons. You can pull coupons from your email; download apps that pertain to coupons or specific stores. Most stores that have an app have a section that is designated to the active coupons that are available.
2. Join Discount Programs- There is a great deal of discount programs that are available, and most of them have their own app. Businesses such as Groupon, Living Social, Double Take Deal, Amazon Deal, and any local discount program that you may have will provide you with deals that can be purchased around half price. Groupon even offers a set of products that are discounted. You purchase the deal and then you receive a certificate to cash in to get the deal. For example the deal is that you pay $10 and you will receive a certificate for $20 to a local restaurant. The App will allow you to learn of the deals right away, manage your account, and you can even save a few trees by simply pulling up the certificate on your phone when you go to use it.
3. Do Not Be Afraid of a Few Text Messages- Many major chains offers a specialty set of discounts to anyone that is part of their text message program. It is usually rather easy to join; you just have to text a specific phrase to a specified number. You will then begin receiving discount offers and announcements of the location. Regal is very popular for this. They offer a monthly discount through their newsletter, a daily discount, and then every Thursday they release a weekly discount through their text message program. Department stores, restaurants, and even entertainment locations all often have text message programs.
4. Get a Barcode Scanner- Have you ever been in the store looking at an item and you are sure that you could get it cheaper somewhere else? Download a barcode scanner app and you will be able to easily find out. You will simply scan the barcode of the product that you are looking at, and then the barcode scanner program will bring up the information about it and also offer you a price comparison online. This is great because it could help you to avoid spending $50 on something that you could have ordered online for $25.
5. Track the Price of Gas- We all know that it is impossible to predict the price of gas from one day to the next. It could be almost $4 per gallon one week, and the next week it could be only $3 per gallon. It is incredibly frustrating, and the last thing anyone wants to do is to overpay at the pump. Download an app like GasBuddy you can click to find the nearest gas station, or type in a city or zip. The results will show of in price order, tell you the location of the station, the price at the pump, and even tell you the last time the information was updated.
There are many other ways that you can use your iPhone 4s to help you save money. There are tons of programs and apps that were built specifically for this purpose. Just to be careful and check your plan first. Programs that allow you to tether your phone for internet, or call for free such as Skype could seem like a good deal at first, but if they are not included in your plan could cost you some serious cash in the long run.