MAKE MONEY ONLINE POSTS: 04/12/17

الأربعاء، 12 أبريل 2017

How One Family Walked Away With $11K After Delta Overbooked its Flight

The announcement is familiar if you’re a frequent flyer: The airline overbooked your flight and is looking for volunteers to give up their seats.

What you might not know is that airlines don’t expect you to give up your seat out of the kindness of your heart. Many of them are willing to pay you top dollar for that seat. And the more desperate the airline is, the more it will pay.

A New York family of three learned just how much Delta Airlines would pay this past weekend when the airline canceled, delayed and overbooked multiple flights because of a series of storms in Atlanta.

That fiasco led to about $11,000 in flight vouchers and gift cards for Laura Begley Bloom and her family, who were among the few willing to give up their seats after days of delays, according to CNN Money.

How They Got Top Dollar From Delta Airlines

The storms in Atlanta started Wednesday, April 5.

By the time Begley Bloom, her husband and their 4-year-old daughter were set to fly on Friday, the airline was still in midst of the logistical nightmare the storms created. Delta canceled about 150 flights and needed to rebook thousands of passengers.

So when Begley Bloom was willing to give up her seats, there was room for negotiation. The gate agent initially offered them $900 for each of their three seats, but her husband raised the stakes when he countered. He wanted $1,500 per seat, according to CNNMoney.

The airline, desperate for the seats, agreed to $1,350 per seat ($4,050 total).

When the family returned Saturday, things were not much better. They gave up their seats again, this time for $3,950 in vouchers. Delays were still a serious problem when they showed up on Saturday, so the airline refunded their tickets and gave them an additional $1,000 per ticket.

In the end, they had $11,000 in vouchers plus a cash refund for the flights they never got to take.

Of course, Begley Bloom and her family got so much because of the circumstances. Without the weather debacle, they likely would not have seen such a massive payday. But you can still use that as your guide the next time you negotiate with a gate agent: The more dire the circumstances, the more the airline might pay.

Airlines Often Oversell Flights

It may not take as long as you think to cash in on this kind of offer. According to TechCrunch, airlines often overbook flights based on their guess of how many people will fail to show up on travel day.

The no-show rate can be as low as 5% or as high as 15% in some cases. Airlines sell more tickets than seats to ensure they’re always filling planes to capacity.

Sometimes that means giving away vouchers when more people show up than the airline anticipated.

The lesson from Begley Bloom and her family is clear: The next time an airline asks for volunteers to give up seat on an overbooked flight, don’t be afraid to negotiate. It could pay big time.

Your Turn: Have you ever negotiated freebies at the gate on an overbooked flight?

Desiree Stennett (@desi_stennett) is a staff writer at The Penny Hoarder. She most she has ever been offered for her seat on an overbooked flight was a free night in a four-star hotel, which she declined.

This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, one of the largest personal finance websites. We help millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. In 2016, Inc. 500 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the No. 1 fastest-growing private media company in the U.S.

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How Walmart Just Made its Online Prices Cheaper in its War With Amazon

The fight between Walmart and Amazon continues.

Back in February, Walmart announced free two-day shipping on select items in an effort to bump Amazon Prime off its throne. This week, it announced another strategic move.

Starting April 19, Walmart will offer a new ship-to-store discount that combines online shopping with in-store pickup. The way it works is simple: Order an item online, have Walmart ship it to a local store, and receive a discount.

Is the new Walmart discount enough to get customers to ditch Amazon Prime?

Walmart’s New Ship-to-Store Discount

The move allows Walmart to capitalize on its competitive advantage over Amazon: physical retail locations. Walmart has around 4,700 stores in the U.S., making the new discount widely accessible.

Savings on products could be 3-5%, making this discount most desirable for those making big purchases. Walmart gives the example of a $50 discount on a $1,698 70-inch 4K Vizio TV, which rings in just below 3%.

How is the retail giant able to make this happen? The costs of having a package directly delivered to customers is expensive; having items shipped to the store saves on delivery costs, allowing Walmart to pass some savings on to you. The best part, though, is you don’t have to pay for shipping with the ship-to-store option. Score!

The new program’s rollout will make 10,000 online-only products eligible for discounts, and that number will skyrocket to over 1 million by June.

Is this deal good enough to push devoted Prime members ditch their memberships? It’s too soon to tell, but Walmart is certainly making big efforts to knock Amazon off its e-commerce throne.

Your Turn: Is Walmart’s new in-store pickup discount worth it?

Kelly Smith is a junior writer and engagement specialist at The Penny Hoarder. Catch her on Twitter at @keywordkelly.

Hilton Needs People to Work From Home in 29 States (Pay Starts at $9/Hr)

Do you have excellent customer service skills, the ability to troubleshoot problems and a desire to work from home?

Hilton may just have the perfect job for you.

The global hotel chain is looking to hire full-time remote reservation sales associates.

As a reservation sales associate, you’ll answer customer calls in a friendly manner and respond to inquiries regarding availability, accommodations, sales promotions, transportation to and from properties and more.

Pay starts at $9 an hour, with performance-based incentives, according to Hilton’s job preview for this position. Incentives could bump pay up to $14 an hour.

Jobs benefits include discounted rates at Hilton properties for employees, plus their family and friends.

Schedules are flexible, but this position is for a 40-hour work week, with hours between 8 a.m. and 2 a.m. Central Standard Time. You may also be required to work weekends and holidays.

While this is a work-from-home position, the company needs these employees to live in the following 29 states: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming.

How to Land This Work-From-Home Job with Hilton

For this gig, Hilton is looking for someone with at least one year of experience in a customer-oriented or sales role.

You should also have at least six months experience in a sales-oriented, performance-driven role where you’ve had to successfully meet metrics or goals, upsell or cross-sell, overcome objections and use negotiating skills.

A college degree is not required.

Job candidates also should:

Have a positive attitude with high energy

Have strong communication and active listening skills

Possess excellent customer service skills

Be computer literate

Be able to provide a quiet work environment, free from noise and distractions

Bonus points if you have a hospitality industry background, experience with virtual training or previously held a work-from-home job.

Job interviews and training will be done virtually.

Once you’re hired, the company will provide you with specific hardware to get the job done. However, you’ll need to already have:

A monitor

Landline phone with dial pad and a dedicated number (no cell phones)

Headset compatible with phone

Speakers

Webcam

Surge protector

High-speed wired internet connection (wireless is not permitted)

Watch this video to learn more about the reservation sales role. If this sounds like the right opportunity for you, apply here.

If you’re interested in other work-from-home jobs — or jobs in general — then make sure to like The Penny Hoarder Jobs on Facebook.

Your Turn: Will you apply for this work-from-home job with Hilton?

Nicole Dow is a staff writer at The Penny Hoarder.

Car Seats are Insanely Expensive. Here’s How to Save at Target’s Trade-in

One of the eye-opening things you quickly learn as a parent is how expensive child car seats are.

Spoiler alert for the childless: Car seats are super-expensive. Also, your growing child will cycle through various car seat stages. Take it from me, a father of two.

These days, the average convertible car seat price is roughly $175 — although it ranges from $75 to $400 or more, depending on your needs, taste and budget.

One way to save money here is to take advantage of car seat trade-ins. Babies R Us, Toys R Us and Target have these in-store events every once in a while.

Right now, it’s Target’s turn. Target is holding a nationwide car seat trade-in event April 17-30.

It’s basically a two-week window to bring in your old car seat and get a coupon for 20% off a new one, good through May 31.

Once or twice a year, Toys R Us and Babies R Us do the same thing, usually offering a 25% discount. This usually happens near the beginning of the year.

The Car Seat Cycle of Life

These car seat trade-ins are especially useful because at some point, your child will outgrow their current car seat, or it’ll expire.

The federal government offers car seat guidelines based on your child’s age and weight. Here are some useful guidelines:

Infant seats: Newborn to 2 years, or 30-plus pounds.
All-in-one seats: Newborn to 12 years, or 120 pounds.
Convertible seats: Newborn to 6 years, or 65 pounds.
Booster seats: 6-12 years or 120 pounds.

What happens to the car seats that Target collects? It’s teaming up with recycling company TerraCycle to have them recycled into new products. They expect to keep 700,000 pounds of car seat materials out of landfills.

Consumer Reports has good tips on when to trade in your car seat:

When your baby is a year old.
When your baby gets too big for their infant seat.
It’s simply time for the next step.
When your car seat expires. Yes, car seats have expiration dates. Check your car seat’s manufacturing label. They’re typically good for six years. After that, you can’t resell them on Craigslist or at a consignment store.

Your Turn: Have you ever traded in a car seat?

Mike Brassfield (mike@thepennyhoarder.com) is a senior writer at The Penny Hoarder. He has two little kids, and just writing this story is making his wallet bleed.

Transforming a Hobby Into ‘Achievement Collecting’ – and How It Can Save You Money

During the latter days of my video game hobby, I used to love spending time after work playing video games on my Playstation 3 and computer games using Steam. These two platforms had one really cool feature in common, one that kept me playing many games far longer than I might have otherwise – achievement collecting.

Achievements in video games and computer games are a simple concept to understand. Essentially, they’re specific goals within the game that aren’t necessarily tied to actually defeating the game. Most of them are centered around exploring every nook and cranny that the game has to offer and often involve finding or doing an extensive set of challenging things.

I found these achievements to be really fun to collect. I distinctly remember spending a lot of time collecting achievements in some games, most memorably Red Dead Redemption and Batman: Arkham Asylum. It was fun to chase down those achievements because I was actually doing something I enjoyed, plus I got this sense of accomplishment out of it.

My interest in playing video games has waned in the ensuing years, but I haven’t forgotten the joy of chasing down achievements. In fact, they form the backbone of my fondest memories of the later years of my video game hobby.

Here’s the thing, though: Achievement collecting doesn’t have to end just because I don’t play video games much any more (aside from getting stomped by my kids at Mario Kart). In fact, achievement collecting can liven up almost any hobby and can actually save you money in terms of your hobby spending.

This is one of those things that’s easiest to comprehend through examples, so let me start off by giving you some examples from some of my own hobbies.

In 2017, I made it my goal to read 52 books. This is essentially an achievement, and that achievement encourages me strongly to spend more time reading. Notice that reading does not mean buying books – it means spending my time with a book in my hands learning something or being carried off into a story. It means actually engaging with my hobby.

I have a long-standing goal to walk at least five trails at every state park in Iowa. I actually keep a list of these parks and trails that I’ve walked, along with photos. This encourages me to plan weekends where I go to state parks with my family and go on the trails with them, which is a great way to spend a weekend doing something. It’s far less expensive than hanging out at a REI store buying stuff that I don’t actually need to fulfill some vision of an outdoor adventure.

I’ve found that I like to collect filled-up journals and notebooks as well as empty fountain pen ink bottles because I’ve used up all of that ink taking notes and journaling. I like using fountain pens for writing, but it can be tempting to get caught up in buying some of the many beautiful inks available, but I came to realize that I was far more proud of collecting things like empty ink bottles and full notebooks because those were easy indications that I’ve actually been doing things with pens and inks, not just collecting them.

I’m much more interested in my daily step count than on a new pair of hiking or walking shoes. I’m much more interested in my batches of homemade sauerkraut or home-brewed beer (both of which I carefully catalog) than I am with the amount of gear that I have for those things. I’m much more interested in my list of “nickels and dimes” (board games I’ve played five or ten times this year) than the actual physical games in my collection.

In other words, I find that I get much more joy and life value out of collecting achievements or physical representations of things I’ve actually done than collecting stuff that represents things undone. An unread book on a bookshelf is just stuff – it has no real meaning for me. A book that I’ve read, whether I actually possess the book or not, has meaning – it represents knowledge that I’ve (hopefully) absorbed into my head.

Understanding that phenomenon actually encourages me to buy less stuff, assuming that I stay focused on the achievements. The actual process of reading a book or adding a fully-read book to my list of completed books doesn’t require me to own the book – I can happily return it to the library at that point – but those processes leave me with far more lasting meaning than actually buying a book and tossing it on my shelf.

Over time, all of my hobbies are slowly transforming from object collecting into achievement collecting, and any stuff that I own is solely oriented toward achievement collecting. I collect books that I’ve read and not that I own. I collect trails that I’ve walked and not hiking gear that I own. I collect notebooks I’ve filled with thoughts and not pens and notebooks that I own that sit unused.

That change has made virtually every hobby more meaningful for me. Rather than just looking at a shelf full of stuff that I’m not using, I’m instead drawn to thinking about the stuff that I’ve actually done and completed and achieved. I don’t have to look at a shelf of mostly unread books and try to convince myself that I’m well-read; I can just look at a list of the books I’ve read recently and remember all of the great stuff I’ve actually read recently and revel in all of the ideas and stories. I don’t have to look at a bunch of unused homebrewing equipment; instead, I can look at some of the bottles I’ve actually made and my big long list of successful recipes.

The focus turns from the collecting and the owning to the doing and the enjoying, in other words.

That transition has actually saved me a ton of money. Basically, I no longer feel that I need more stuff for most of my hobbies. What I need, more than anything, is time for my hobbies, so it’s actually convinced me to be more efficient in other areas in my life so I can block off more hobby time, and when I have more hobby time, I’m more inclined to do things rather than buy things.

There are still some pitfalls along the way, however.

First of all, in realizing how important my leisure time actually is to me, I’ve found that I sometimes really struggle when it’s missing. During really busy weeks when I don’t have any time for actual leisure, I can feel it strongly and it knocks my mood down. It also drastically increases my temptation to spend money on hobby supplies, because buying stuff is a weak substitute for not having time for a hobby you love.

My solution here is to block off time for hobbies and treat it as uninterruptible as possible. I treat my periods of time for hobbies as being practically sacrosanct, with very few things being able to interrupt them. Sunday afternoons are always blocks of hobby times, as are a couple of weeknights and most Saturday afternoons are spent on hobby activities that can be done with the family most weeks. We also have a rule of thirty minutes of daily sustained silent reading which I participate in as an example for the children, but I do it to sustain my passion for reading books, too. Walling off this time ensures that I have regular hobby time, which points me toward achievement collecting and away from spending.

Second, I often use hobby spending to prop up hobbies that are waning for me. I self-identify as a follower of a hobby, but if I find myself naturally winding down my time spent on that hobby because I find other stuff more compelling, I have this deep desire to “make up” for that by buying more stuff. Why? I think it’s because I think “stuff” can be a lure to convince me to actually do things.

Here’s the truth: Passion for a hobby is judged by how much time you put into it and how much more time you want to put into it. If you’re not spending time on a hobby, then you shouldn’t be spending money on a hobby.

What’s my solution? I keep rough track of how much time I spend on my various hobbies and I use that info to calibrate how much I spend on it going forward. I have a monthly hobby spending budget and lately I’ve been intentionally cutting my spending hard on any hobbies that I don’t spend time on. This is actually surprisingly easy to do. It also keeps money in the bank where it belongs and it also makes it easier to actually buy things for the hobbies I spend time on when I actually need them.

Finally, I find hobby related media very valuable, but it also sometimes pushes me toward more purchases. While the hobby media that I read or watch is really helpful in terms of techniques or ideas, it also often pushes me toward purchases that I don’t actually need but am tempted by, things that theoretically could improve my ability to actually achieve things within my hobby but often just amount to a tiny incremental improvement on what I already have.

My solution here is to be very selective in my hobby media. I have cut back significantly on my hobby-related media and instead try to focus my spare moments on getting other things done so that I have more time for practicing my actual hobby. I cut out several hobby publications and subscriptions and now I generally only use it when trying to figure out how to solve a specific problem that crops up by using internet searches. Knowing the latest in hiking gear doesn’t really help me get to the trail on Saturday afternoon, after all.

So, here’s my challenge for you. Look at your hobbies, especially ones that seem to eat a lot of your spending, and ask yourself whether you can start collecting achievements with that hobby instead of stuff. Can you start aiming for games played or games completed rather than games owned? Can you start aiming for books read rather than books owned? Can you start shooting for woodworking projects completed instead of tools owned? Make it your goal to actually complete things within your hobby over the next several months rather than just acquiring more stuff, and then, along the way, assess how you feel about that new direction. If you have a hobby budget, let your time use lead you in terms of how to spend your hobby money, particularly in terms of cutting back on spending in areas that you spend less time.

Good luck, and may your hobby achievements lead you to less spending and more enjoyment!

Related Articles:

The post Transforming a Hobby Into ‘Achievement Collecting’ – and How It Can Save You Money appeared first on The Simple Dollar.

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Payday: Here’s How I’m Going to Use My Next Paycheck to Improve My Finances

Disclosure: Clink! Clink! Clink! That’s the sound of pennies hitting our piggy bank, thanks to the affiliate links in this post. It’s a better savings plan than stopping traffic to pick up loose change — and safer, too!

Here’s what I feel like when I check my bank account and realize it’s payday:

Not only am I excited to see my inflated balance, I’m also excited for a fresh start — to finally get my assets organized.

Then, suddenly, all those goals and plans dissipate, and the immediate gratification of ordering products on Amazon Prime and Zappos takes over.

But this time I’m going to do it.

I’m going to do smart things with my money.

Let me tell you exactly what I have planned — for my own financial health, and your inspiration.

1. Open a high-yield checking account.

Right now, all of my paychecks funnel into my one and only checking account, which is very, very dangerous. (See above: Amazon and Zappos)

It also doesn’t embody the whole “make your money work for you” mantra because I’m not earning any interest — not even 0.01%.

I’ve been meaning to follow in the steps of my cohort, Dana Sitar, who redirects a portion of her paycheck to her Aspiration Summit Checking Account.

But what about a savings account?, you ask. Well, here’s why Sitar prefers Aspiration:

It’s online only, so she doesn’t have to leave her apartment to handle her finances.

It offers 1% APY on a balance of $2,500 or more. If her balance is less, it offers 0.25% APY. In context, the average savings account has a 0.06% interest rate.

It’s free.

There are no ATM fees.

Also, 10% of the company’s revenue goes to charity, so that makes her feel like a good person.

I plan to open an account with Aspiration and set up automatic transfers for every two weeks (payday).

2. Maintain (and improve) my credit score by paying off my credit card.

One thing I already do but keep on my to-do checklist so I always remember?

Keep tabs on my credit score.

These days I only use my credit card to make purchases so I can earn points, which in turn pay for my flights.

But lately my credit card spending has been gnarly. Still, one of the first things I do at the beginning of each month is pay that sucker off. (Probably because I’m a millennial.)

It stings to see those hard-earned dollars disappear so quickly, but the last thing I want is credit card debt — and to ruin my young credit score.

I use a free service called Credit Sesame to monitor that super important, three-digit number. The best part is I get email notifications when my score fluctuates, which holds me accountable.

It also gives me personalized recommendations on how to increase my score, so even if credit card debt isn’t your thing, it’ll point out your other weaknesses. Then hopefully you can put that paycheck to good use.

3. Keep tabs on my spending habits.

Each time I get paid, I feel a little more confident about my financial situation, so naturally I tend to splurge — even on routine trips to the grocery store.

Oh, this cheese looks nice… of course it is because it’s $9. High time to try it with all the money I just earned…

No. No. No. I don’t need $9 cheese because the cheaper stuff tastes just fine, too.

To keep tabs on my spending habits, I just downloaded the Clarity Money app, so I’m going to start using it to hold myself more accountable.

It shows me my spending percentages, so I can see I’ve already spent way too much money in the shopping category this month. And food is up there, too, with a recent hefty Publix charge. (Cheese, probably.)

By simply analyzing and keeping tabs on my spending habits with Clarity Money, I’m reminded of my larger financial goals.

4. Start investing.

I’ve been meaning to invest, but sometimes I get overwhelmed.

So I just stall.

However, there are apps out there that make it super easy, like Stash.

All I’d have to do is click download and set up automatic transfers. Each payday, a set amount would sneak away from my account and into an investment. Even only $5 would help plan for my future.

You don’t have to know anything about investing, either. You can invest in causes you care about, like “Clean Energy.”

Also, if I sign up now, I can snag a $5 bonus, which will help me get started on this whole investing endeavor.

5. Use every darn rebate app.

In order to wring the most out of every paycheck, I need to start using rebate apps, so I can actually earn some money back on those essential purchases.

Again, I’ve been meaning to do this…

Here are a few I’ve had my eye on:

Ebates: This platform has everything — from rebates to deals to promo codes to discounts. It’s always worth checking before venturing out (or online) for a shopping trip.

Ibotta: This gem helps save big on groceries. All I’d have to do is scan my receipt after shopping. (We’ve got 11 more grocery-savings ideas here.)

Paribus: This tool is too easy not to use. Paribus basically scans your emails for online-shopping receipts. If the price decreases during the return period, it reimburses you.

MyPoints: Shopping through the online MyPoints portal earns you points with each purchase, which go toward gift cards.

BevRAGE: With each alcohol purchase, I can earn money back within 48 hours by scanning my receipts.

Yes, I have big plans next payday. I always do, but I plan to execute this time around — and finally get my finances in order.

Plus, these are too easy, so why not?

Your Turn: Do you have big money goals, too? Share ’em with me to keep us accountable after next payday.

Carson Kohler (@CarsonKohler) is a junior writer at The Penny Hoarder.

Here’s How This Mom Paid Off 9 Credit Cards and Raised Her Score 284 Points

The Totally Genius (and Simple) Way This Family Saved Money at Disney World

Nearly every kid dreams of going to Disney World…

And nearly every parent dreams of a magic fairy who will help them pay for it all.

Because whether you’re planning to hit up Disney, Universal or some other theme park this summer, it’s not going to be cheap.

So I was psyched to discover an easy way to save hundreds of dollars on your trip — no matter which park you visit.

How to Save Hundreds on Your Theme Park Vacation

If you’re a smart Penny Hoarder, you’re probably already staying at a vacation rental with a kitchen.

And you’ve probably opted not to rent a car, and instead take advantage of the park’s free transportation.

So here’s one more trick: Get groceries delivered.

Not only is it convenient, but it’ll save you tons of money over expensive theme park food.

Christine McCarroll, co-owner of McCarroll’s The Village Butcher in Delmar, New York, tried this strategy on a recent family vacation to Disney World.

The trip was “really, really expensive,” she says, so they were looking for any ways to save money.

She ordered breakfast food, snacks for the kids, cases of water — even alcohol — through grocery delivery site WeGoShop, which she highly recommends.

“I paid for 12 bags, plus a percentage and a tip,” she says. “I don’t feel the prices were unreasonable… I had no car, no way to get there. It was a great deal.”

I might even try this the next time I stay at an Airbnb that doesn’t have a grocery store within walking distance.

Cheap, convenient and healthy — what’s not to like?!

Your Turn: Have you ever considered grocery delivery on vacation before?

Susan Shain is a freelance writer and digital nomad. She covers travel, food and personal finance (basically, how to save money so you can travel more and eat more). Visit her blog at susanshain.com, or say hi on Twitter @susan_shain.

Half of adults in 30s and 40s prefer property over pensions and Isas to finance retirement

Marina Gerner

funding-pension.jpg

Nearly half (47%) of 35-54 year olds known as ‘generation X’ – which equals 8.3 million people in the UK – intend to use property to finance their retirement, according to a report by the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA).

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The Tax Credit You’ve Never Heard of That Could Add $2K to Your Refund

4 Creative Ways to Teach Your Kids About Compound Interest

Compound interest is a difficult concept for even the most financially savvy adults to fully grasp — the idea of our money earning interest, the interest building interest, and so on, is hard to compute.

Now think how challenging it can be to explain compound interest to a child who’s just learning the basics of saving money and financial responsibility.

If this puts you in a parental quandary, don’t worry: It doesn’t need to be as complicated as explaining the theory of relativity. It’s basically all about how time affects money’s value.

Try some of these simple, basic ways to teach your kids about compound interest.

First, Explain What Interest Is

“Interest” tends to be a word we take for granted, since we usually haven’t had to explain it to anyone.

Keep it simple, especially if your kids are younger: Interest is what a bank pays you to keep your money there. The longer the money stays in the bank, the more money you earn.

Get them thinking about it. For example, ask them if they’d like to have $10,000 right now, or a penny.

Naturally, most kids will choose the larger amount.

Then elaborate on your question, and don’t be afraid to exaggerate to illustrate how interest works. Tell them the penny will double its value every day they leave it in the bank. Do they still want the $10,000, or will they now choose the penny?

At that unbelievable rate, after 30 days, they’d have more than $5.3 million. By day 31, they’d have $10 million! This growth isn’t at all likely, but it helps make the point.

Of course, you’ll also want to talk about the other aspect of interest: paying it.

When bills aren’t paid on time, interest continues to add up — only instead of earning more money, they’ll owe more. This explanation is especially important as kids get older and approach the age they might get their first credit card.

Even young children can learn about accruing interest the next time you lend them a few dollars. Explain how when you borrow money, it accumulates interest while you pay it back.

Tell them you’ll lend them the $5 they need, but they’ll actually owe you $5.25 for the privilege of borrowing the money — and if they take too long to pay it back, their debt will keep growing.

Once you’ve explained a bit about what interest is, try these steps to illustrate what you mean:

1. Teach That Restraint Equals Reward

Before trying out coins and currency with smaller children, show the value of saving versus spending with the classic marshmallow test.

Give your child one marshmallow (or a favorite candy) and tell them if they don’t eat it today, they’ll get another one tomorrow. Tomorrow, they’ll have two, and if they put them aside, they’ll have three the next day.

This can be a good, tangible lesson about how delaying gratification can increase something’s value, according to Kasasa.

2. Teach Them to Earn Interest with Coins and Cash

Give your child a piggy bank or plastic jar, suggests Jason, the blogger behind The Frugal Dad and father of an 8-year-old daughter. Offer them a bag of pennies and tell them to deposit one cent a day into the “Bank of Mom or Dad.”

Every other day, as they continue to make deposits, put another penny in your child’s bank as “interest.”

While you could match them penny for penny, as Jason explains, “I didn’t want to set the unreal expectation that it is easy to double your money in a short time.”

Later, you can start adding cash and other bills into the mix to add variety and teach them money is made up of all sorts of coins and paper bills.

This bank is like an ATM: Kids can take their money out anytime, but there won’t be any left to collect interest. This gives them the incentive to watch their money grow and teaches them about choices.

3. Make a Game Out of the Goal

Like any lesson, it’ll sink in better when it’s fun.

Try the checkerboard method. Start with a large bag of coins. On Day 1, have your child place one penny in the left bottom square of the board.

Each day, they collect double interest from the banker (that’s you) and put those coins on the next square. On Day 2, they’ll have two pennies, Day 3 they’ll have four pennies, Day 4 they’ll have eight pennies, and so on.

Once they’ve collected enough interest and stacked the pennies until they fall, they’ve reached their savings goal.

4. Create a Visual

Is there a toy or gift your child really wants?

Make a deal: Tell them if they save a certain amount of money, you’ll buy it. Establish at the beginning how much interest they’ll earn on their savings, such as 5% or 10%.

To help kids track their progress toward a savings goal and account for compound interest, keep things visual. Try drawing up a savings goal chart and putting it on the wall.

At the end of each week (and especially at the end of each month), mark their progress. Write down how much they have in their savings, along with how much interest they’ve earned.

Part of the agreement might be they’ll withdraw some of their interest-bearing savings to pay for it — a good springboard for a discussion on budgeting.

How Have You Taught Your Kids About Compound Interest?

While offering 40% or 50% interest is helpful for the sake of demonstrating the effects of compound interest, explain to your kids the interest rate from a real bank won’t be that high.

In time, you can guide them along the way when it comes to all things interest-related, like eventually getting a credit card, taking out their first car loan or student loans or securing a mortgage.

Your Turn: Have you taught your kids about compound interest? What strategies or games did you use to illustrate the concept and help them understand its power?

Paul Sisolak (@PaulSisolak) is a freelance writer who writes about all things personal finance. He’s been featured in U.S. News & World Report, The Huffington Post and Business Insider, among others.

Don’t Kill Your Audience’s Vibe with These Content Marketing Turn-Offs

As of 2017, the overwhelming majority (89%) of B2B marketers use content marketing in some form.

As you can imagine, how well marketers execute their campaigns varies quite a bit.

Or, as The Content Marketing Institute would put it, there are differences in “content marketing maturity levels.”

As you can see, a fairly small number (28%) would be considered either mature or sophisticated.

The rest could definitely use some improvement, and there’s a lot of room for growth for many content marketers.

One thing I’ve noticed (especially when it comes to those new to the game) is that many brands engage in tactics that could be considered turn-offs.

This doesn’t necessarily mean being unethical or using black-hat techniques.

It means unknowingly using tactics that annoy site visitors and slowly but surely drive a wedge between the company and its audience.

At best, this results in diminished engagement, a lower follower count, etc.

At worst, it can lead to dwindling traffic numbers, fewer leads, decreased sales, and diluted brand equity.

The bottom line is you don’t want to kill your audience’s vibe with content marketing turn-offs.

Here are some common mistakes I see marketers make and how to avoid them.

Fatiguing your audience

The amount of content on the Internet is mind-boggling.

According to Marketing Profs, roughly two million blog posts are written every single day.

If you really want to get a sense of how much content is being created, check out Every Second on the Internet. It’ll really put this phenomenon into perspective.

Here’s the thing.

Everyone is trying to outdo one another to claim their piece of the pie and get traffic.

What’s the result?

Many content marketers are grinding out content.

They have the mindset that if they slap up enough content, the leads will come.

They end up flooding their blogs with mediocre content and their social media followers’ feeds with sub-par updates.

This all results in one thing. Content fatigue.

They fatigue their audiences as well as themselves in the process.

Don’t get me wrong. Fresh content is great.

Of course, you want to post new content consistently.

But I know I feel overwhelmed when someone I follow is constantly blasting me with new content just for the sake of having new content.

I don’t have the time to consume it all.

What I suggest is to chill out with the frequency of your content creation.

Don’t worry so much about constantly populating your blog and social media with new content.

Instead, focus on creating fewer but higher quality pieces.

Try to find the sweet spot between updating your content regularly and giving your audience time to catch their breath.

The sweet spot will differ depending on the nature of your brand and the platform you’re using. Finding it requires a certain level of experimentation on your end.

I also suggest checking out this post from Buffer for advice on this topic. It will give you a better idea of how much you should be posting and how much is too much.

Being too content-centric

I love this graphic that illustrates the difference between being content-centric and audience-centric:

The difference between the two is to whom your content caters: yourself or your audience.

Here’s an example.

Let’s say your brand is passionate about obscure industry trends, so you frequently write about these topics.

That’s all well and good, but if those topics don’t resonate with your audience, you’re unlikely to gain any real traction.

It’s a fairly widespread issue, considering that creating more engaging content is a top priority for 73% of content creators.

Over time, being too content-centric will minimize the impact of your campaign.

It hinders engagement, lowers readership, and gradually drives your audience away.

Make sure you’re on the audience-centric side of the spectrum— not the content-centric.

How do you accomplish this?

Two words: qualitative research.

If you’re unfamiliar with this term, let’s start with a definition:

Qualitative research is designed to reveal a target audience’s range of behavior and the perceptions that drive it with reference to specific topics or issues. It uses in-depth studies of small groups of people to guide and support the construction of hypotheses.

Rather than merely observing what’s happening, qualitative research seeks to understand why it’s happening.

This type of research enables you to put yourself in your audience’s shoes and be highly informed when creating your content.

I’m not going to launch into a long-winded discussion of every facet of qualitative research, but let me offer a few key strategies:

Ask your blog readers what topics they would like you to cover.
Use analytics to identify content trends. See which posts are getting more traffic and engagement.
See which keywords your visitors are searching before landing on your blog.
Pay close attention to readers’ comments. Look for direct feedback. Note the number of comments on a post—it’s usually indicative of interest level.
Check your social media analytics. See what types of content are getting the biggest response.

I also recommend checking out two specific posts on this topic:

Go Beyond Analytics to Give Customers the Content They Crave from The Content Marketing Institute.

Find Out What Your Audience Wants Using Qualitative Research from Positionly.

Being pretentious

Does your content consist of a steady stream of douchey buzzwords and complicated industry jargon only a handful of individuals will actually understand?

If so, this is guaranteed to turn off your audience.

Don’t get me wrong.

You want to come across as being intelligent, knowledgeable, and generally knowing your stuff.

But I feel there’s a fine line between being smart and being pretentious.

It can be an issue especially for certain industries such as medical, legal, and finance, where complex subjects are routinely discussed.

If you’re not careful, you can easily launch into some needlessly complicated rant and lose the majority of your audience.

It makes you appear insincere, alienates your audience, and makes it much more difficult to get your point across.

To be totally honest, I have been guilty of it myself at certain times.

However, it’s something I seriously strive to avoid these days.

What’s the solution?

First, try to stick with a natural, conversational tone when it comes to your content.

I try to approach it as if I’m sitting down with someone face-to-face and having a conversation.

That seems to work for me.

Also, don’t try to jam-pack your content with big words just for the sake of using big words.

Always look for the most direct way to say something without using needless buzzwords and industry jargon.

I also recommend asking yourself the following questions when proofreading your content:

Will my average reader understand what I’m saying?
Am I writing in my own—unique—voice?
Can I simplify what I’ve written?
Did I use any overly annoying buzzwords?

Always going for the sale

Ever feel like a sleazy used car salesman when creating content?

It’s not a good path to be on.

In fact, this is perhaps the number one way to turn off would-be readers and lose the readers you’ve currently got.

No one wants to be bombarded with “Buy Now!” messages when they’re trying to kick back and read some content.

It’s distracting and detracts from the overall user experience.

Here’s the thing about content marketing.

It’s one of the more long-term inbound strategies.

It doesn’t typically involve going for an instant sale.

Content marketing is about building relationships, creating rapport with your audience, and establishing trust over time.

The mentality is that if you take the time to create awesome content that’s genuinely useful, you’ll be primed to make a larger volume of sales down the road.

Therefore, it’s important to have the right mindset when approaching your content.

Here are a few techniques that I recommend:

Avoid using interstitials on your website. Google actually started penalizing certain sites that use them.
Place your focus on educating rather than selling. Believe me. If you educate your audience and solve a problem for them, the sales will follow.
Don’t plug your business or include a CTA until the end of your content.
Work on building rapport and establishing trust before asking your audience to buy anything.

Conclusion

Content marketing has been proven to be less costly and get more leads than outbound marketing.

It also tends to yield higher conversion rates.

But using the wrong tactics and not understanding what your audience does and doesn’t want can marginalize the impact of your campaign.

You don’t want to kill their vibe unwittingly and create a rift between your brand and your audience.

But steering clear of the issues I mentioned above should prevent any missteps on your end and lead to deeper relationships and a more receptive audience.

What’s your number one content marketing turn-off?

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Student loan interest to rocket to 6.1%

Adam Williams

student-loan.jpg

The headline interest rate charged on post-2012 student loans in England and Wales will increase to up to 6.1% in September.

The interest charged is set at 3% plus the Retail Prices Index (RPI) inflation rate. With March’s RPI standing at 3.1%, as announced yesterday, this means students will be hit with interest charges of up to 6.1% from September.

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Student loan interest to rocket to 6.1%

Adam Williams

student-loan.jpg

The headline interest rate charged on post-2012 student loans in England and Wales will increase to up to 6.1% in September.

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Labour woos older voters with commitment to triple lock

Rachel Lacey

three-locks.jpg

The Labour Party is gearing up to win the hearts and minds of older voters with the unveiling of its ‘pensioners pledge card’.

Today, shadow Chancellor John McDonnell announced four key commitments to pensioners in a bid to secure their vote.

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Skip the Newspapers. These 42 Brands Will Send You Coupons Just for Asking

Here’s Everything You Need to Know About Saving Money at Busch Gardens

Funny money: The strangest home insurance claims

Adam Williams

cow-pic.jpg

A herd of cows caused thousands of pounds worth of damage to a property and its garden when they escaped from a farm in Gwynedd, north Wales.

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Three Changes You Can Implement Today to Maximize Your Time

By Amanda Goldman-Petri The adage “work smarter not harder” may seem like an easy limerick to quote when doling out advice, but for entrepreneurs—both established and aspiring—it must be a rule of life. In a time when self-starters are now inundated with opportunities, it can be overwhelming, and adhering to the age-old advice is even […]

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