24 Mar

Written by Kathryn Vercillo on March 24, 2009

As more and more people begin to use their phones for services that extend far beyond just voice messages and conversations, mobile phones are becoming a serious tool for saving money. One of the most significant and fastest-growing ways that the mobile phone can be used as a money-saving device is through the use of mobile coupons. Take a look through this comprehensive mobile coupon guide to gain an understanding of why you might want to use mobile coupons and how to do so in a way that will save you the most amount of money.

Mobile Coupons Save You Money

Mobile coupons work essentially like any other type of coupons work. You get the coupon either by having it sent to you or by searching for it. You redeem the coupon when you make a purchase. You save money. What’s different about mobile coupons is that the coupon is right there on your mobile phone. It may be sent to you via text or through a targeted mobile web marketing campaign or you may find the mobile coupon when searching for online discounts through your mobile web. What’s really great about the mobile coupon format is the convenience of using your mobile phone to save money. You can save money with mobile coupons no matter where you are as long as you have your phone with you.

Mobile Coupons Save You Time

One of the things that truly frugal people realize is that their time is worth money. Whenever you are able to save yourself time on tasks, you save yourself money. Mobile coupons save you time and therefore increase your overall savings. Mobile coupons allow you to search for discounts anytime using your mobile phone which means you can look for savings when you’re waiting in lines or using public transportation. You can look for mobile coupons when you’re standing right in front of the item that you want to buy so that you can conveniently save money on every purchase, even on impulse buys.

Mobile Coupons Save Money Because They Are Green

The two major reasons that people will use mobile coupons are because they help the individual to save money and they do so in a way that is truly convenient. However, it’s also important to note the benefit that mobile coupons are good for the environment. When you’re not printing out coupons, you’re saving trees. And when you’re using a small mobile phone instead of a big PC to search for online coupons then you may be saving energy. The fact that mobile coupons are green adds to the list of reasons to use them. Additionally, it can save you money since you’re not spending on ink, paper, printing and use of your desktop computer.

Mobile Coupon Use Is On The Rise

As you can see, there are numerous reasons to make use of mobile coupons. You’re not the only one who realizes this. In fact, recent research predicts that the state of the economy combined with the increased use of advanced mobile phones will make it so that the use of mobile coupons will increase by thirty percent over the next two years. By the end of 2010, it is believed that there will be over 100 million mobile coupon users who will increase the value of redeemed mobile coupons to $3.2 billion (£2.3 billion).

Be Aware That You Are Being Marketed To

The one thing that you really need to be smart about when using mobile coupons is the awareness that you are being targeted as a consumer for these coupons. Businesses will use the mobile web to track your spending and purchasing information. They will then approach you via your mobile phone with coupons that are specifically targeted to get your interest. Mobile coupons are designed in such a way that they can truly be personalized and tailored to your tastes. This is great because you receive coupons for the things that you would normally buy. However, it also means that you can easily fall into the trap of buying items that you wouldn’t have bought because the availability of a mobile coupon encourages you to do so. Always keep your spending habits in mind when approached with a mobile coupon so that you don’t waste money with impulsive purchases.

How to Find Mobile Coupons

There are typically three ways that you’re going to come across mobile coupons. The first is that they are going to be sent to your phone as a result of targeted marketing (as described above). The second is that you will see them when surfing the mobile web. And the third is that you can actually search for mobile coupons yourself which is a smart thing to do if you want to have yet another option for saving money on your purchases.

To find mobile coupons yourself, you will want to look to those websites and online tools that are specifically designed for this purpose. Cellfire is a really popular option to consider looking into for learning to start using mobile coupons regularly. MoQpon is another option. These are applications that you sign up through to get mobile coupons regularly.

In addition to these applications that you choose for yourself, there are some cases in which you will be approached with a mobile coupon offer but you’ll have to act to get it. For example, you may receive an email with a code to text somewhere if you want a mobile coupon. Many of these are legitimate but of course you should watch out for online scams.

Be Aware of the Different Types of Mobile Coupons

Like with any other types of coupons, there are different offers made with mobile coupons and some are better than others. Some of the commonly-seen types of mobile coupons include:

• Certain amount off. Either a dollar amount or a percentage is taken off of the top of the purchase price. As long as you were already going to buy the item, this is the best type of mobile coupon to get.
• Get something free. You have to be careful with these because there’s usually a catch but they can sometimes be real deals.
• Buy one, get one free. If you do need two of something instead of one then these are good mobile coupons.
• Multiple-product purchase. This is when you have to buy more than one of an item to get the discount (as in buy 2 for $5 or 1 for $3). Again, if you need more than one of the item, this is a good deal.

Any of these can be good coupon deals if you need the item. Be smart about your mobile coupon use just like you should be about using regular coupons.

Don’t Forget About Other Mobile Web Discounts

Mobile coupons are terrific but it’s really important that you use them as a supplement to your other money saving tools and not as a replacement for those tools. Before purchasing anything using a mobile coupon, make use of your mobile web to search for other promotion codes and to do some quick comparison shopping. You just want to make sure that your mobile coupons really are the best deal out there before you use them for your shopping.

What To Expect from the Future of Mobile Coupons

There are a few things that we can expect to happen with the future of mobile coupons. In addition to the general rise in the number of users who are making use of them, we will see a corresponding rise in the number of businesses that are marketing to their customers with mobile coupon offers. Additionally, it is likely that we will see the development of numerous cell phone applications designed to increase the efficiency of delivering and redeeming mobile coupons. Finally, we will likely see a significant growth in the interactive capability of mobile coupons as this area of web technology develops.

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