MyCoupons.com: After a few visits, you'll wonder how you ever managed without it!
Written: Mar 16 '01 (Updated Jun 24 '01)
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The Bottom Line
If you like to get the most for your time and money, you will LOVE this site.
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Living on a budget meant drudgery until I found this board. I have been visiting this board for over two years. Although I have to support three people on an annual budget that is under $15,000, through the help of this board, we have lived very well without government assistance. As a matter of fact, last year we took two vacations for which the lodging and most meals were totally free, thanks to what I have learned on this site. As I describe the areas on this board, I will share with you how these areas have helped my family and I.
HOME PAGE
The home page contains links to a variety of areas including family articles, newsletters, freebies, the Deal of the Day, and various hot deals. There are also polls, trivia questions, and links to various games. This page has a little bit of everything. What is very important to me is that their is a direct link on this page to mycoupons.com e-mail. Every member automatically gets free e-mail through this site. When I trade coupons or correspond with other mycouponers, I find it handy to use this e-mail. It is very easy for other mycouponers to remember your e-mail since it is your user name @mycoupons.com.
COUPONS
Mycoupons.com has nine different categories of coupons (e.g., baby, office, drugstore, travel). Within this area there are online coupons and the links to obtain these deals. For example, one may find a coupon for $20 off of a $50 order at Staples.com. Or you may find a coupon for free shipping at Penneys.com.
FREEBIES
This section of the board has links to about 100 boards where free items are listed. Through these links I have received numerous free t-shirts, magazine subscriptions, books, etc. About a month ago, I signed up for a free 12 month subscription to Time magazine! I have numerous free t-shirts and a bookshelf full of free paperbacks I have collected over the last two years. I fill my children's Christmas stockings and Easter baskets with free toys, magnets, keychains, stickers, etc. that were obtained through these sites.
SHOPPING BOARDS
In my opinion, these boards are the "heart" of Mycoupons.com. This is where I spend a lot of time and where I learn about so many good deals. I have also met quite a few on-line friends here. There are 13 board (or forums). I will discuss some of the more popular boards.
Look What I Found
On this board, members post both on-line and off-line deals they have found. This board gets 100s of new posts each day. Here are some examples of the types of posts that I found today: "$15 off Eddie Bauer", "Free notecards at Hallmark", "Wal-Mart has children's socks for $.25 each.". People will post their deals and then others can post replies. Some of the better deals I have found here included a scanner (after rebate, I earned $29), a Lexmark printer for $1.99 (after rebate), and a $150 gift certificate to Amazon.com (for switching to MCI).
My Two Cents Worth
This is a forum that is set up for further discussion of on-line and off-line shipping deals, tips, and bargains. Here are some examples of the types of posts found on this board, "Where can I get the best deal on Dell computers?", "Who is giving the best incentive for switching long distance?", "Where can I find deals for test driving cars?", etc. Again, there are usually 100s of posts each day. This is the place where people come to warn others about problems they have had with stores.
Tips of the Trade
This board saves me about $60 per week on my grocery bill. Since I started visiting this board, my grocery bill has been reduced from $100 (for 4 people -- 2 teens) to only $40! The focus of this board is on learning the tricks of the trade regarding using grocery store coupons and rebating. Through this board, I have learned how to legitimately get several totally free items each week. I rarely buy generics any more because I can usually get name brand stuff cheaper with coupons. Here are some examples of today's posts, "I got 12 cottage doubles for $1.08 today.", "I just bought Huggies diapers for $.99!", "Kroger deals", etc.
Coupon/Rebate Swap
This board is for TRADING only of coupons, refunding qualifiers, forms and beanie babies. This board is really hopping on Sundays when the coupons and grocery sales advertisements come out in the paper. A few weeks ago, a store in my area had the 6.4 oz. tubes of Crest toothpaste on sale for $1.00. That same day, there were $1.00 Crest coupons in the paper. Through this board, I traded four postage stamps for 20 Crest coupons. I ended up being able to get 20 tubes of toothpaste for 5 stamps (the 4 stamps sent plus the stamp I used for the mail). I kept 10 tubes of the toothpaste and donated the other 10 to a local women's shelter.
Rewards Programs
With the help of this board, I started doing various rewards programs about 2 years ago. Last year I took 2 totally free vacations by earning gift certificates from these programs. Boy, did we live it up on those trips. On the first trip, we went to Chicago and stayed at the Marriott on Michigan Ave. and ate at various restaurants like Hard Rock Cafe, Planet Hollywood, and Rainforest Cafe. The second trip was not as elaborate, but it was nice, and it was free. The rewards programs are not as lucrative this year; however, you can still earn some money and gift certificates through them.
The Smart Traveler
On this board, people discuss travel tips and experiences. Next year we are considering vacationing in the Caribbean. I requested information about which areas tend to be accepting of Americans and which areas are less friendly. About 15 people shared their experiences with different islands enabling me to get a more personal perspective of several islands. People talk about their experiences with getting good deals with (and their hassles with) priceline.com. One lady explained how she got a room at the Waldorf Astoria in New York for about $100 per night.
Your Family Board
This is the board where posters really get to know and support one another. We talk about our families here. Both good and bad things are discussed here. People may talk about problems their children are having in school, how to discipline children, various problems their families are experiencing, nice things that their children are doing, etc.
Health and Fitness
The discussions on this board are geared towards health issues. On this board people discuss issues relating to nutrition and weight loss, quitting smoking, exercise, and other wellness issues. Also, this is where people come to ask for support and information when they (or someone they know) are dealing with health problems. One must note that this board is NOT moderated by anyone in the health profession so take the advice with a "grain of salt" and consult a professional when needed.
The Good, The Bad, The Ugly
This forum is for posts regarding product information, questions, and comments. Examples of topics found on this board include, "What digital camera would you recommend for use with Ebay?" "What should I look for when buying a new stove?", "I experienced terrible customer service at ____.", etc.
Around My House
This is a board full of household tips, tricks, and hints. This is THE place to go to find out out to get stains out of clothes, use natural products to clean one's house, keep mildew out of shower stalls, etc. The Stepford Wives would have really loved this board (if they actually existed).
In the Yard
This forum is a gardener's delight. This where everyone is welcome to talk about taking care of their yard and garden. Information is shared here regarding when to plant various things, how to more efficiently organize the garage, what maintenance a car needs, what to do about various tree diseases, etc.
There are many more things available on mycoupons.com. I just discussed the things that seem to be the most popular (or at least the areas I visit the most).
GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE SITE
Overall, the site is easy to navigate through. I rarely have any problems with it. Whenever they are doing scheduled maintenance, we are usually warned about it. The area that presents the most problems for me is the e-mail. I have learned not to count on it because if anything is to go down on the site, the e-mail will be the first to go.
I have noticed several upgrades since I started coming to this site. This site has grown from a relatively small site to a major one. Last week, major upgrades were done on the site. I liked all of the changes except for the color scheme used. It just seems too drab for me. But, that is must my opinion and I can certainly live with the colors.
This site is heavily moderated. At times, it is a little too moderated. Last night I had a post deleted. I had asked where I could find a very cheap or free tax preparation site. I didn't realize it but I had broken one of the rules; you can't discuss taxes at all there. But, I did break the rules so my post was righteously removed. However, I am very glad that the site is moderated. The moderators remove posts which are argumentative, contain offensive materials, or are otherwise inappropriate. The moderators keep us all on track.
Overall, I am extremely impressed with this site and recommend that you visit it.
Recommended:
Yes
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About the Author
Location: Illinois
Reviews written: 62
Trusted by: 31 members
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