THE ROAD TO SUCCESS

Useful tips to save money for families

1. Avoid Impulsive Spending

Most families probably spend at least a couple thousand dollars a year on things that they don’t plan to buy. There are two easy ways to reduce these impulse buys and save thousands:

Stick to your grocery list

Research from the University of Pennsylvania shows that people who can avoid impulse spending can save up to 23% on their grocery bills. So create a grocery list and stick to it if you really want to save some money. According to what Statistics Canada reports most Canadians spend on food, a family of four could potentially save over $2,600 by following this one tip.

Don’t shop with plastic

According to a study by Dunn & Bradstreet, people who shop with credit cards pay 12% to 18% more than those who shop with cash. The study further revealed that people tend to spend almost twice as much on vending machines when they use a credit card rather than cash. McDonald's has also found that their average customer spends $7 on food when they use a credit card compared to $4.50 when they only use cash (a 56% increase in spending).

Shopping with $40 in your wallet is a lot different than shopping with a $10,000 credit limit on a piece of plastic. Try shopping with only cash or your debit card if you want to save some money. Following this one tip alone can save the average Canadian household well over $3,000 a year if they are used to putting everything on credit.

2. Stockpile Groceries and then Skip a Grocery Shop

You can save almost 25% on the groceries you buy each year if you stock up when they are on sale and then skip one grocery shop every month. When you skip a grocery shop, you live off of what you stockpiled. If you can’t do this monthly, then try for once every couple of months. It will still save you a lot of money. You can stockpile all kinds of non-perishable food, and you can freeze bread and meat when you find them on sale.

To find out how to save even more on groceries, check out 12 Ways to Save Big on Groceries.

3. Price Matching

Many Canadians don’t know that you can price match in Canada. This means that you shop at your favorite grocery store, but you check the grocery store flyers in advance and then take the flyers with you to prove to the cashier that a competitor is advertising a lower price. If your favorite grocery store matches competitor’s advertised prices, then you can get those same low prices without having to waste gas driving all over town. You can usually save at least ten percent on your groceries by shopping at a grocery store that price matches competitor’s flyers. This would save a family of four over $1,100 per year.

Bringing flyers with you when you shop to 'price match' may not appeal to everyone, but you can give it a try if you want to save some money. The only national store to advertise price matching is Wal-Mart. However, not all Wal-Marts carry groceries. The Real Canadian Superstore does not advertise price matching but they will do it—just check with a manager to be sure. Other grocery stores may also match competitor’s advertised prices, but you will need to speak with a store manager to find out.

4. Take a Lunch to Work and Save $1,800

Most of us don’t realize how much we spend on simple things like lunch buying a lunch everyday rather than bringing one prepared at home. Many people save a lot of money by always making more dinner than they need and then taking some of the leftovers to work the next day for lunch. If this doesn’t appeal to you, you can make something else. What ever you do, it should be much cheaper than buying a lunch every day. If you buy lunch for $7 every working day of the year, you will end up spending over $1,800. You can decide how much of this you want to put back in your pocket, or you can look for another place to save.