Save money easily on your holiday shopping

(ARA) - Who doesn't want to save money these days? With the holiday season around the corner, saving money is a top priority in the minds of many parents.

Here are some tips to make sure you check everything off your holiday shopping list, and keep some money where it belongs - in your pocket:

* Look over your shopping list.
Let's face it, you probably can't afford everything that you want to purchase for all of your friends and family. So take careful inventory of what you want to purchase, and do some research on if you can find a cheaper option, or smaller item.

* Reduce the price and get a rebate.
Online shopping is growing in popularity - it saves time and gas money, plus you don't have to take your kids to the store with you, allowing you an easier process to keeping the secrets a secret. A great site to visit before you start your online shopping should be Ebates.com, where not only can you find coupons and discount codes for more than 1,100 online stores, but you will also get a check back in the mail for a percentage of your purchases.

For example, if you shop at Target.com through the Ebates site, you not only can use the discount codes and coupons, but you also get a 4 percent total purchase rebate put into your account. Once a quarter you'll receive a check in the mail for all of your rebates. An added advantage - no rebate forms to fill out or points or miles to redeem.

"It's a great way to save time and money," says Nikki Laff, a Chicago-based mom of a teenage girl and avid online shopper. "I go in through Ebates to do my shopping and get everything I need. And I get cash back. I just do my shopping, I check out, and every three months I get a check, it's really that simple."

* Sales, sales, sales, need we say more?
Retailers recognize that parents are looking for sales when it comes to holiday shopping. And by combining coupons, discounts and sale prices, you can get some pretty good deals. Check the fliers, go online and compare everything.

Soon you'll be sitting under the Christmas tree or gathering around a holiday meal with brightly-wrapped packages just waiting to be opened. This year, you can sit back with a huge sigh of relief, knowing that you crossed everything off your shopping list with some great bargains.

Courtesy of ARAcontent