So often you hear you have to spend money to make money, and I believe that is true… but… the key is to spend wisely. Put thought into where that money is going and if and how much it’s really going to benefit. Get the best bang for your buck!

How often do we decide we need something and just go out and get it? What is that kind of response really costing us? Well, the answer is probably more than you think.

Whether you’re making a purchase for the home or business, it’s important to know what things are costing you.

Do the items that you use regularly go on sale often? Do you wait for them to go on sale, or just buy them as you need them?

When you need a new larger ticket item, do you shop around?

If you’re buying for your business, do you just think, “Well, it will just be a business expense anyway.”? Ouch!

I’m here to tell you that you rarely have to pay full price for anything! With a little effort you can save something on almost everything.

First things first, when you see something that you would regularly buy at full price when you need it, and it’s currently on sale, buy it even if you don’t need it right now… but only if you know you’ll use it. If it’s something you use a lot of and it will keep, buy 2 or 3, it’s always important to make the most of a sale.

Let’s look at an example. Say you normally buy paper for $6.49 a ream and it’s on sale for $4.49 a ream. This time you buy 3 instead of your normal 1. You just spent $13.47, but if you bought 3 reams at full price over the course of the month you would spend $19.47. By purchasing ahead you saved $6. You paid more up front, but saved money overall.

Are you making a purchase online? You can almost always save money! To start, find where you can get the best deal on the item. Then do a search for that store’s discount codes. Many online stores offer a discount if you simply have a code to enter at the shopping cart area, and there are lots of sites that list these codes for your use.

Use a free savings program such as Ebates, BigCrumbs (only one that has ebay), or Cashbaq when you shop online. These sites often offer a percentage back on specific stores when you make a purchase online. You simply sign up and select the store you want to shop at. Each program offers different stores and different percentages back, so do check around for the best percentage back. Sometimes these sites work when you use a discount code from elsewhere, and sometimes they don’t, but it’s often worth the try.

Have a business? Get the word out! If no one knows about you, they can’t purchase your products or services, or find you online. People won’t get in touch with you if you don’t put yourself out there. You’ve got to promote, promote, promote!

Having an online presence is so important these days to succeed in business. Whether you sell wedding cakes, enjoy crafting and like to sell your items, clean houses or have another hobby or business idea, a website is a great promotional tool! If someone asks you what you do and you don’t have any information with you, you can simply jot down your website’s address so they can check it out.

Don’t have a website? Set up a simple free one at Microsoft Office Live which is free for the first year, BlogSpot or Wordpress.com which are essentially blogs but many are setting up like a website, and a newer one I’ve come across which is called Webs. I will note that Blogspot is not really optimized for Google to search it, by my understanding, so if you’re looking for people to “happen” upon your site, it might not be the program for you.

Already have a website or thinking about starting one now? A great free way to promote yourself online is to respond to other people’s blogs and websites; they don’t even have to be in the same area of business to get you attention. Just participation on other sites gets you recognized. Be sure to include your website information and email so they can find you! You can also host giveaways as well as fun tips & ideas to attract attention.

Need business cards or promotional materials? There are several sites that offer these things very inexpensively. One of my favorites is VistaPrint. I just ordered 500 business cards from them recently for a little over $9 shipped. They often offer free items and you just pay shipping. Their shipping costs may be a little more than others, but the overall cost is less making them a bargain place to shop.

All in all, whether you have a business or not, saving money is essentially like making money that you don’t have to pay taxes on. If you don’t spend it you get to keep it making your profits, or money kept, at the end of the year larger. If you invest that money in a safe way, you are doing even better for yourself.

Suzie is a SAHM in Indiana. When she’s not busy taking care of house & home, scoring good deals, teaching about deals, singing, decorating, camping, and loving God, she likes to travel with her hubby and son and work in the garden. You can find her blogging her deals at FamilyMakesCents.com. She is also the creator of a new website TheCouponClass.com. Her mission is to make others’ lives financially better by teaching them easy ways to save money.