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Frequently Asked Questions

Something About Coupons:

What is a Coupon?

According to Wikipedia, A coupon in marketing is a ticket or document that can be exchanged for a financial discount or rebate when purchasing a product. Customarily, coupons are issued by manufacturers of consumer packaged goods or by retailers, to be used in retail stores as a part of sales promotions. They are often widely distributed through mail, magazines, newspapers and the Internet. Internet coupons have become popular recently, because there is no postal cost, and the printing cost is borne by the user (who prints the coupons) rather than the businesses issuing them.

What is a Promotional Code or Coupon Code?

A promotional code or Coupon Code is only found on an online coupon. Both paper coupons and printable coupons have barcodes to identify the specific type of discount. A promotional code is the online coupon equivalent. When you're finished shopping and enter the checkout page, there should be a box that asks for a discount code or a promotional code. Enter the promotional code in this box, and the discount specified on the coupon should be assessed and deducted from your bill. Always check the itemized list of your bill to make sure the discount was taken before you make the final purchase.

What is a Special Discount Link?

A Special discount link is a specific type of online coupon. It is essentially a special link to a retailer’s website. Many of these links are compiled on discount websites such as Couponcodez.com. Unlike an online coupon where you have to type in a promotional code at the time of checkout for a discount to be assessed, using the special discount link will automatically deduct the coupon’s value from your final bill. Again, if you’re using a discount link, no additional codes or actions need to be done for the discount to be taken. To ensure the discount was taken, always check your itemized bill before checkout.

What is an On-going Promotion?

Some online coupons have an expiration date, which should be clearly marked on the coupon. However, other online coupons simply say ongoing promotion. An on-going promotion simply means that coupon is valid until the retailers decide otherwise. Since it’s at the retailer’s discretion, the promotion could be revoked at any time, but generally speaking, these deals are staples of the website. One example of an ongoing promotion would be free shipping on Amazon.com for all orders over $25. This deal has been a part of the Amazon website for quite some time with no sign of changing any time soon. Generally, online coupons are much more likely than paper coupons to engage in ongoing promotions.

Some Different types of payment:

Cash (Bills and Change)

There are a variety of ways to pay for your purchases, and cash is one of the most common and familiar. Both paper money (of varying denominations) and coins are included under the larger category of “cash.?While cash has the advantage of being immediate, it is not the most secure form of payment. If it is lost or destroyed, that money is essentially gone. There is no recourse to recoup those losses. If you have a torn bill and are unsure whether it is still usable, check with your nearest bank. Cash is used exclusively at physical retailers. There is no way to use cash towards your online purchases.

Credit Card

A credit card is one of the most popular ways to make purchases which are more expensive than your everyday buys, although they can be used on purchases of any amount. Credit cards look almost exactly like debit cards, and using them is sometimes referred to as paying with “plastic.?Rather than paying for the item right away, paying with a credit card temporarily defers your bill. At the end of each month, you will receive a credit card statement with an itemized list of all your purchases. Therefore, rather than paying the retailer directly, you pay off your bill to the credit card company. If you don’t pay the entire balance of the bill, the company is authorized to charge you interest on your remaining balance. Credit cards can be used for both online purchases and at physical retailers.

Gift Certificate

A gift certificate is a less common form of payment, but they are increasingly becoming a popular gift. Thus, they are increasingly becoming a popular form of payment. Gift certificates come in several forms, but they are essentially prepaid certificates with a certain amount of money added to that certificate. They can be purchased for one particular store, several stores, or any participating store. They come in plastic card form, paper form, or electronic form. Depending on the type of gift certificate, they can be redeemed at physical retailers, online retailers, or both.

Paypal Account

For online purchases, Paypal has become the gold standard for payment. Whether you’re using Ebay.com, some other auction site, or an increasing number of non-auction websites, Paypal is the most popular way to pay without sending your bank information through a potentially unsecured website. Paypal is a lot like an online bank account. The money in your account is linked to your checking or savings account, so you can transfer money to yourself and/or pay for your purchases. The benefit of Paypal is that you do not give the retailer your credit card, debit card, or bank information. They simply give you their Paypal email address, and that’s all the information you need to transfer funds. Paypal accounts cannot be used to make purchases at physical retailers.

Money Order

A money order is not currently one of the most common forms of payment, but its use is increasing. They are a lot like a personal check but without the possibility of “bouncing.?Bouncing a check is when somebody writes a check without having any money in his/her account to cover the expense. When the recipient tries to cash the check, it “bounces.?The recipient cannot get the money if this happens. It is one of the largest liabilities about personal checks, and money orders nullify some of that liability. A money order is purchased with cash upfront, so there is no worry about it bouncing. It is, however, more secure to send through the mail than cash. They are easily redeemed for cash at any post office. Depending on the retailer, they may or may not accept money orders. Inquire into whether the retailer accepts this form of payment before attempting to purchase anything.

Personal Check

The personal check is a form of payment that is dwindling in popularity with the advent of debit cards and online money accounts. However, it is still one of the major ways to pay for purchases at physical retailers. Personal checks are ordered along with your checking account. They are essentially paper forms you fill out and give to the physical retailer. The retailer turns in the check to their bank, the bank processes the transaction, and a few days later the money is deducted from your checking account. However, as stated, with the increasing trend toward fast payment, checks are seen as timely and somewhat outdated. They cannot be used to make online purchases.

Bill Me Later

Bill Me Later is another safe and secure alternative to offering up your personal financial information when purchasing over the internet or phone. Simply select Bill Me Later at the time of purchase, and you’re done. While other similar companies require long, complicated application forms, that’s not the case when setting up a Bill Me Later account. Simply shop as you normally would, and select Bill Me Later as your method of payment. Follow the instructions from there. If you have any remaining questions about what Bill Me Later is, how it works, or if you want a list of participating merchants, just visit their homepage found at www.bill-me-later.com.

Something about using Coupons

Will the Coupon Expire?

Whether a coupon has an expiration date or not depends on the type of coupon. If you are using a paper coupon, it will say right on the coupon itself when it expires. If you’ve thoroughly looked over the coupon, and you don’t see an expiration date, it is safe to assume it does not have one. If you’ve determined the coupon is without an expiration date, you can redeem it anytime. Even years later (assuming the product is still available that your coupon applies to) the store won’t be able to refuse the coupon. If you are using an online coupon, check the information on the site where you found the promotional code. If you can’t find any information there, try entering the coupon code at checkout. If you receive an error message that the code is no longer valid, it has expired. If you receive no such message, and it deducts the discount from your total bill, the coupon has obviously not expired. You can always check if your online code is valid before you make the final purchase. This way, if the code is expired, you can still decide not to make the purchase.

Who Can Use the Coupon?

For the vast majority of online and paper coupons, there is not one specific person that must use the coupon. Unless explicitly stated otherwise on the coupon itself or in the information about the coupon, assume anybody can redeem the coupon. For that reason, make sure you keep the coupons you intend to use in a secure place. If you lose them, and somebody else finds them, he/she will be able to redeem them. This even applies to discounts such as gift certificates. Unless your name is printed on the card itself, anybody can redeem the balance on the card. This also means if you want to give unwanted discounts or gift certificates to others, the recipient won’t have any problems redeeming them.

Can I Combine My Coupon with Other Discounts?

Combining offers depends entirely on the specific coupon or discount you’re using. Some coupons allow it, while others simply don’t. Read the fine print and information on your coupon to find out how combined discounts work with your coupon. Unfortunately, it is far more common for coupons not to allow multiple deals in one purchase. But never assume that is the case. That’s a surefire way to cheat yourself out of some great savings. If you’ve read all the information and are still unsure about combined discounts, contact the phone number or email address on the coupon. If no phone number or email address was provided to direct questions, go to the merchant’s website and consult the help section or send an email with your query.

Does the Coupon Have Any Cash Value?

This depends on the type of coupon you’re using. If you’re using a paper coupon, the cash value of the coupon can be found on the coupon itself, usually somewhere in the fine print. The majority of the time, the coupon is worth nothing or 1/20 of a cent. But always verify with your specific coupon, or you might be missing out on an opportunity for cash. If you’re using a printable coupon, the same applies. It will not usually have a cash value, but always check to verify. If you’re using an online coupon, they do not have any cash value. While the paper and printable coupons could conceivably be exchanged for cash, online coupons could not, because they only consist of an electronic promotional code.