Get Paid to Shop
Ebates
I hate to shop.
Actually, that's not true. I love acquiring things. And, I don't mind paying a fair price for something that I want or need. However, I don't want that price to be taken out in blood or bartered with gray hairs.
I live in a major metropolis. A trip to the store requires about as much mental and physical preparation as the D-day invasion. The traffic, the crowds, and the absence of parking spaces make a shopping trip as enjoyable as a morning spent in a dentist's chair. (My apologies to any dentists who may be reading this.)
As a result, I have become the greatest proponent of online shopping. I have been buying all kinds of stuff online for years and have derived great emotional benefits. Imagine my delight when I learned that many of the purchases I was already making could also yield some financial benefit.
I heard a radio commercial for Ebates, a site that pays you to shop at participating online stores. It sounded a bit too good to be true, but, after hearing the commercial every morning for several days, I finally pulled out a pen and jotted the url down on a Dunkin Donuts napkin that I conveniently had littering the floor of my car. Napkin in hand, I arrived in my office, logged on to the internet and, armed with a heaping helping of skepticism, transferred the coffee-stained url to my browser for a look-see.
Here's what I learned:
Ebates takes advantage of every affiliate program they can hook up with. Instead of pocketing the commissions, they pass them on to the buyer and parlay the site traffic into advertising revenue. I looked over the list of participating sellers and was pleased to learn that I already did regular business with many of them. By signing up with Ebates and using their links to the sellers' sites, I could earn up to 25% of what I spent back in rebates. The only catch is that you have to use their portal for every transaction; a process which can be tedious.
Ebates keeps track of all transactions posted to your account and issues a rebate check once each quarter. I have already earned about $150 in rebates on purchases that I would have made anyway. Not a bad deal for just a slight inconvenience. The list of participating businesses has been growing each day, so there is a good chance that you may already have a relationship with one or more of them.
One caveat: Don't make the mistake of figuring the rebate into your purchase price. If you can't afford the purchase, Ebates shouldn't help you justify it. Rebates are issued only four times a year and may arrive months after your credit card has been billed. I try to look at Ebates as found money (kind of like a tax refund) and not savings. I also make it a point not to purchase simply on the basis that doing so qualifies me for an rebate. If I'm planning to make a purchase, I check the Ebates site to see if the dealer participates. The list of stores also helps me comparison shop by introducing me to businesses I might be unfamiliar with. But, I'm careful not to shop purely for the sake of the rebate. I know myself too well for that. (I'm far too impulsive.)
