A good list like a good plan requires focus, planning, testing and revisions. You have years of experience shopping, and you can use that to your advantage. Wal-Mart may have selling experts on staff, but you are a buying expert. Here’s how you can level the playing field.

1. Create individual lists for each store you frequent for replacement items. A replacement item is anything you might buy more than once in a 2-3 period, and of course includes things you buy every day or week too.

Setup a list for your preferred grocery store, your preferred hardware stores, electronics stores, clothing, shoes, etc. You get the idea.

2. Make copies of these lists (either in software or printed on paper).

3. Each time you go to the store, take the list and place a box by each item you intend to buy up front.

4. While there check off those items as you buy them, and

5. Write the price listed on the item on the list. If you don’t have time to get the price at the store, take the receipt from your purchase and add everything purchased to the list with all prices.
Wal-mart has one of the most advanced information (intelligence) gathering systems in the world. You make a purchase and the information from the cash register is ready to be tabulated at corporate Wal-mart in 15-30 minutes. That information is used for months and years to analyze how to sell more to you in the future.

When you take a few minutes to review your own purchases and figure out how to spend a little less, you are taking a very big step towards maximizing your savings when shopping. Wal-mart isn’t expecting this. You have the benefit of better information and surprise.

This article is the next part in the series on Controlling Cash Flows: Maximizing your Savings when Shopping. In the last article we discussed the overall situation of using advanced lists to compete with major retailers. We now start to get down to business and detail how to achieve this goal.

In our last article we described how simple lists can form a strategy to help you obtain your objective of minimizing your spending while shopping.

Last time we mentioned that modern day stores are setup to optimize their cross promotional opportunities against you the shopper. If they set up a camping aisle, they will include flashlights and a mini battery section. If they sell turkeys, they will sell turkey bags.

Their goal is to provide the things you are looking for and put a host of related items near those things so that you will stop and consider, I needed nails, do I need a new hammer too? How about a plastic Nail Holder Gizmo so that I don’t smash my thumb, now that sounds like a good idea! (While you are there in the store, but when you get home and hit that plastic Nail Holder Gizmo once with the hammer and it smashes to pieces, you are now out $5 and the store has taken money out of your pocket that you never intended to spend!

Retailers have very advanced systems and many very intelligent people working to sell you when you walk into the store, lengthen the amount of time you spend in the store, and get you to keep filling up your basket, and switch to a cart and get a second cart if possible. You can go into the wilderness unprepared or you can make a plan (simple list) and even get some survival gear to prepare yourself (advance list and advanced list tools).
In our next article we will cover the details of preparing an advanced list and soon after that how to use it!

This article continues the series on Controlling Cash Flows and sets up the simple theory and practices you can utilize to compete head to head with entire corporate sales teams run by retailers like Wal-mart to entice you to spend more than you intend, want or can afford. This second segment in this series can help you to level the playing field with corporate retail marketers.

There is a key to shopping that can make a major difference in the results you achieve. The key is extremely simple to understand, implement and benefit from for just about anyone. It does not require technology, but technology can help make it work more efficiently. Its a simple tool that delivers reliable results.
Its a Simple Shopping List.

It may sound almost too simple to be true, but when applied correctly it can make a huge difference in maximizing your savings when shopping especially from a cash outflow perspective. A shopping list is not just a memory jogger to help you not to forget the eggs or milk.

A shopping list is an action plan, a strategy that includes a list of objectives to obtain. Your strategy should include an objective to minimize cash expenditures. As an example,

• Eggs
• Milk
• Butter
• Save Money
• Don’t spend more than necessary
• Don’t buy anything not on the list

Shopping Lists can do even more for you than remind you to buy the right things, it can help remind you not to buy all those useless, frivolous extras that you never intended to buy when you left the house for the store.

In our next article we will take this simple concept one slight step further and apply the use of lists to managing our purchases at multiple stores for a wide variety of needs. Stores are setup to cross sell you many products that you may not normally associate with that specific store. This is a great bonus for the store. They increase their revenues and that means you have increased your spending so we will look at ways to make sure that this works in your favor next!

Controlling Cash Outflows Series

Today we pick up where we left off yesterday running down ways that you can avoid maxing out your credit card. To revisit the First part of this series see How to Avoid Maxing Your Credit Line Part 1.

These are hard times for all of us, there is a global resource crunch and the thinning ozone layers are not helping matters either. So, what does one do? Well, at least the credit card companies have found a way out and that is to charge high interest rates on its unsuspecting customers whenever and wherever it can.

Basically, credit card companies are now always on the lookout to increase credit card rates at the slightest pretext; for example if you hold more than one credit card and you’re approaching the limit on one card, it makes you fair game for an interest hike in the other cards.

You can actually take a knock of as much as $40 if you are so much as a day late in paying your credit card dues. What’s more many credit card companies are now shortening their turnaround times and you do not have as long to pay as you once did.

Be careful when shifting to a low-interest card. Teaser introductory rates are tempting but you need to keep an eye open for the transfer rates. Also, it is no longer easy to toss a credit card aside once the introductory period is over, you may invite a stiff penalty if you try to do so. So do ensure that you read the fine print and check the rate you will pay at the end of the introductory offer.

Credit cards are also becoming more selective on what their low rates can be used. Check if such conditional low rates are worthwhile for you. Try to go for a low-rate card that gives you an introductory period of at least six months.

Credit card companies would like to talk to you if you’re a high school fresher for whom budgeting is meant to be done by the finance ministry. Also, if you have just emerged from a bankruptcy you are a candidate for a visit or phone call from credit card marketing companies. Conversely, if you pay off your credit card dues unfailingly every month, you’re not going to endear yourself to the card companies and they may make their displeasure known by slapping an annual fee even if you had signed you for a no annual-fee card. Similarly, conscientious credit card holders do not get to enjoy grace periods for purchases made on credit cards. Your card will start accruing interest from the very first day of your purchase.

Don’t let credit card companies entice you into taking a cash advance because when you do, they are not above lowering your credit… just like that! You will be left facing fines for being above your credit limit.

You can be charged by credit card companies in a number of creative ways; for example you can be charged for account inactivity, transaction fees while taking a “free” cash advance, transaction fees when calling a toll-free number to check your accounts, etc.

These are some of the low-down tricks that credit card companies are not above using. It’s up to you to be alert and not get suckered into a credit card deal that is as hollow as a scooped pumpkin.

Controlling Cash Outflows Series

Yesterday, we discussed our intent to help people learn how to control their Cash Outflows. There is no genie in the bottle of the Credit Cave that will fix all of your problems however we will now start to empower you to tackle or prevent credit issues.

As a credit card holder or borrower you never ever want to Max out your credit, your credit lines and not even a single credit card. Having the ability to access a line of credit is extremely valuable and can definitely help you when you need it, however this resource can also be squandered and too often get very good people into a lot of trouble. When you max out your line, your credit rating will go down, your interest rates will go up, you will be more likely to default on payments and get into serious financial trouble and more.

Here are some tips to help you avoid this situation:

• Do not go shopping with your credit card
• Take Cash, Take your check book, take a debit card for your bank account, you can even take your PayPal Card - DO NOT TAKE YOUR CREDIT CARD!
• If you absolutely must take your credit card, do not use it, use something from point 2 above.
• Leave all of your other cards at home, preferably locked up safe in a safe or vault or secure location. If you are not carrying the cards, you will not be able to succumb to temptation.

. . . To be Continued tomorrow!

There are many components to your personal finances that are important areas to monitor and manage. Typically, it is best if you can treat your finances like a business and focus on your Cash Inflow and your Cash Outflow.

Many of us have fixed incomes whether it is in the form of a salary or even if it is an hourly rate, there are only so many hours you can work and multiply it by that rate. We typically have a limited capability to increase our cash inflows unless your boss is a push over and will give you a bonus on demand!

Our Cash Outflows are usually much more flexible. In the age of credit cards, it can be extremely flexible. An average consumer can spend everything they have in the bank and everything they will earn in disposable income over the next couple of years if they max out a couple credit cards in one shopping venture. Fortunately, not too many people fall victim to this kind of spending.

That doesn’t mean the rest of us might not fall victim to Binge Shopping habits. Often if we go shopping for items, we will buy a product at the spur of the moment (usually enticed by something the savvy retailer has done to sell us on it.) We may not max our credit cards out in one shopping spree, but it is all too common for people to max their cards out over a couple year period and much of this comes from buying more than they set out to buy and more than they need.

This week I will cover a series of articles on Controlling Cash Outflows to help you control your cash outflows and find ways to:

1. Avoid maxing out your credit cards
2. Maximize your savings when shopping
3. Learn how to recognize a truly good spontaneous deal
4. Recycle your extra stuff not only for the good of the environment but for the good of your pocket book!

We may not be able to directly and rapidly impact our Personal Earnings, however we often have a great deal more control over our Cash Outflows. By the end of the week, we will work to empower you to maximize your ability to control your Outflows and maybe just in time to make for a more enjoyable holiday!

Sounds a little convoluted but that’s exactly what banks are helping their customers do. Spending done via credit and debit cards are linked to a savings component. For example, American Express offers a credit card where one percent of the amount spent goes into a high-return savings account.

A similar program by Bank of America for its debit cards works something like this. Every time you make a purchase, the amount gets rounded off to the nearest dollar and the extra money gets transferred to your savings.

However, all said and done this does appear to be a case of penny wise and pound foolish, it is illogical to expects any real savings this way. In fact, consumer activists warn that there is a real chance of us overspending for that feel-good saving. We need to factor in the fee that the credit card transactions attract and the interest on any card payments that you may default in your eager haste to save.

I have a secret. Well actually if you have read the title of this article, I had a secret.

I am making and saving a lot of money with my PayPal MasterCard, and you can do the same thing.

Who is PayPal?

PayPal is a company originally setup in 1998 to make online transactions easier. PayPal is owned these days by EBay after an acquisition in 2002.

What does PayPal do for me?

It’s really pretty simple. PayPal is like an online savings account for me.

Direct Benefits

• They currently pay me 5.15% interest on all funds in my account.
• I get 1% cash back savings on all purchase I make with my PayPal MasterCard
• I can transfer money from my primary bank account to or from my PayPal savings account with a direct deposit (ACH)transfer.

Indirect Benefits

• My PayPal MasterCard is not a credit card. It is debit card that is accepted anywhere MasterCard is accepted. This enables me to make purchase with the convenience of a mastercard without having to run the risk of making a credit card charge.
• Paying for small items with a credit card is convenient, but if you do not pay your bill in full you end up paying 5% to 10% to 20% to 25% interest on those small purchases and that interest can add up quickly.
• When I make small purchase with my PayPal card I never run the risk of getting a credit charge. The funds come straight out of my PayPal account, where they were previously earning 5.15% interest.
• I immediately get 1% cash back on the charge instantly!
• As I am charging through MasterCard and not debiting, the vendor selling the goods must pay the fee to MasterCard. This is good for me as I am not paying a debit fee myself.
• In addition to all of those great things, I use my PayPal card as a buffer against my normal bank account. I only keep enough money in my PayPal account for my monthly charges or internet purchases. So if I were to ever lose my PayPal card or become the victim of identity theft if someone hijacked my number, then only the small amount of funds in my PayPal account would be at risk.
• Plus I would get the full protection offered by MasterCard covering that small amount of risk. My primary bank account and other credit cards remain safe!

To sum it up, I get 5.15% interest, I get 1% cash back instantly, I do not pay any interest fees on purchases, I have the convenience of a MasterCard without the expense, and I have protected my identity with an added layer of protection!