Testimonial from a Happy Reader
As many of you know, I send custom daily and weekly deal alerts via email and invite our readers to share their suggestions, comments and thoughts with me. A few minutes ago I received the following very kind and thoughtful reply that especially meant a lot to me:
Mike,
I just had to send you a quick note to let you know how much I continue to be amazed with this site. I love it, love it, love it!! Before finding your site last October I was searching so many different sites for deals. This site is truly ONE STOP shopping.
Thanks again and keep up the awesome work!!
Sandi U.
Thank you, Sandi, for those kind words. I really appreciate your loyalty to Shopping-Bargains.com and that you took the time to tell me.
5 Things You Should Know about Government Tax Rebates
As many readers know, we started listing TurboTax last year and currently promote their TurboTax Federal Free Edition. I just received some details from a contact at TurboTax who shared the following information about the government tax rebates (economic stimulus payments) that will be sent out starting in May.
According to this TurboTax information, the IRS estimates that more than 130 million Americans will benefit from an income tax rebate this year. There are five things you should know, however, about these government tax rebates and how they work. And don’t forget that you must file your Federal Tax Return to get your rebate.
- To receive your tax rebate you must file your 2007 tax return.
- Your economic stimulus tax rebate is based on your 2007 income and how many children you have.
- Most individual taxpayers will get $600.
- Most married couples will get $1,200.
- Plus, most taxpayers will receive an additional $300 per child.
Source: personal communication from TurboTax.
Here is some additional information from the Internal Revenue Service that could help you determine whether you will file electronically or otherwise. Those opting for direct deposit will be among the first to receive their payments — starting on May 2. Paper checks will not be mailed until May 16 through July 11. The rebates will be processed in order by the last two Social Security Number digits so lower numbers (00 through 20 for direct deposit and 00 through 09 for checks) will receive payments first. For more information visit this IRS payment schedule.
On a personal note, I expect some incredible sales and coupon codes for bigger ticket items to be available starting May 16 and lasting through July! It looks to be an exciting time for buyers.
Question: How Does Shopping-Bargains Make Money?
One thing I’m frequently asked is how we, as a company, make any money since we charge nothing for our coupon codes and other services. We also don’t have a site registration process or run popup ads. The answer is we are paid a commission or referral by the merchants whenever they sell something to somebody who clicked a link on our site and bought something on theirs.
The process is private and we don’t know who buys what. At the end of the month we know that X dollars were spent at X stores and from those transactions we earn X. From the store’s perspective, we help them attract new shoppers and make additional sales. From our perspective, we are paid to help people be more frugal when shopping online. And because our payment comes out of the store’s advertising budget, it doesn’t raise your prices over “going direct” to the merchant. On the contrary, because each store must compete for your attention on our site, they provide us with some great coupons that actually can reduce your spending. Since a store would rather have a smaller-size order than no order at all, the process is a win-win for everyone involved.
I like helping people and I like win-win arrangements. So, with this in mind, my request for you is when you buy something online to please be sure to click a link on our site to the merchant’s site so we receive credit for the sale. If just our coupon codes are used but our site links are not clicked then we don’t receive credit for the sale.
A Veterans Day Tribute
As the founder and president of Shopping-Bargains.com, I have the privilege of frequently traveling around the nation and even overseas. One thing I enjoy about flying is the chance to talk with people I meet on the plane. I have met people from many different places, occupations, positions and nations.
Some of the most memorable of such experiences have been talking with military personnel. Most, while at least a decade younger than I, demonstrate a wisdom and appreciation of life, freedom and this nation that is truly humbling. Their appreciate of life is not so much for their own but in support of their fellow troops and in protecting America.
Kudos from a Happy Shopper
One of the great things about my job is that I get to interact with the public. While this interaction is rarely face to face, it is nevertheless interaction. And even though such encounters are sometimes difficult, many times they bring me joy.
Last week I received an encouraging email from Debbie DiGirolamo. It was a simply reply to one of my newsletters I send out daily to our loyal subscribers. With her permission, I quote her note:
“I love this web site! It’s straight forward without any gimmicks. I am so pleased that I joined.”
Those kind of comments are so great to hear and go a long way in counteracting the ones that are not much fun. Thank you, Debbie, wherever you are, for your kind words!
My View from London
On September 26 I headed “across the Pond” to London to attend an online industry conference related to marketing in the United Kingdom. It was a great experience and I gained more than just content and contacts from the conference.
The main reason for attending this conference was to promote our recently launched Shopping-Bargains UK site. I wanted to physically meet some of the people and visit some of the companies we were actually working with online. I also wanted to experience British culture for myself.
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