Mauch Chunk Trust Company raises money for Harvey Relief

Mauch Chunk Trust Company raises money for Harvey ReliefEmployees of all branches of the Mauch Chunk Trust Company raised $700 to benefit Harvey Relief. The MCT Harvey Relief donation was raised through personal contributions from MCT employees and a matching donation from the MCT corporate office.

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Businesses meet with trade organizations at Kalahari

Businesses meet with trade organizations at KalahariThe Northeastern Pennsylvania Alliance's 20th annual "Bringing the World to Northeastern Pennsylvania" brought together businesses from Northeastern Pennsylvania and 14 of Pennsylvania's Authorized Trade Representatives from around the world at Kalahari Resorts & Conventions, Pocono Manor.State Sen. Mario Scavello, 40th Senatorial District, served as the luncheon keynote speaker and highlighted the [...]

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That Sonic Shake Cost You Major Calories — and Maybe Your Credit Card Info

Good afternoon. Since you can tell that the sun has risen on yet another day, you can safely assume that another major American company has had a security breach. This time it’s fast-food chain Sonic Drive-in.

We should have seen it coming.

It’s just two guys — grown men — who sit around by a drive-in all day, every day ordering ridiculous amounts of slushies, milkshakes and burgers.

I never trusted them.

The two guys from Sonic’s ever-present ad campaigns drive me nuts. Many people have to deal with those ads even if there isn’t a Sonic anywhere near them.

That said, I don’t think this latest news is really the guys’ fault. They just want to chill in their car and snarf down footlong chili cheese Coney dogs.

Your Card Information Is Being Sold on the Darknet

According to KrebsonSecurity, Sonic is the latest company to suffer a massive data breach that impacts the credit and debit cards used at its restaurants. It’s unknown just how many card numbers are affected or even how many Sonic locations were impacted.

What is known is that many of the card numbers will go up for sale on darknet sites like Joker’s Stash for as little as $25 or $50 each. The batch of cards that appears to be drawn from Sonic customers is numbered at 5 million, but that may include cards from other security breaches, as well. The dark web is hard to decipher.

And you thought that large pumpkin pie custard concrete was only going to cost you 1,670 calories!

Sonic issued a statement regarding the security breach.

“We are working to understand the nature and scope of this issue, as we know how important this is to our guests. We immediately engaged third-party forensic experts and law enforcement when we heard from our processor. While law enforcement limits the information we can share, we will communicate additional information as we are able.”

Don’t panic. If you recently indulged in some Sonic goodies and are worried about your personal information getting in the wrong hands, take the safe route. Call your bank and ask what you should do. Canceling your current card and getting a new one may be a pain, but it’s much easier than recovering your credit once it has been stolen.

Another day, another breach.

Tyler Omoth is a senior writer at The Penny Hoarder who loves soaking up the sun and finding creative ways to help others. Catch him on Twitter at @Tyomoth.

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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This Guy Found a Free Way to Get Clean Power Without Pricy Solar Panels

Eric Hanson is an avid backpacker, skier and kayaker — a Sierra Club kind of guy. He loves the great outdoors and believes in protecting the environment.

He wished he could power his home using clean, green, sustainable energy sources like wind and solar, but that didn’t seem to be an option for him. The power company serving his part of Maine produces its electricity with a mix of nuclear reactors and oil-fired power plants, among other sources.

“We don’t have an ‘a la carte’ option for different sources of power,” says Hanson, 33, an assistant high school principal near Portland, who started his career as a science teacher.

So much for that idea, right?

Then, one day, Hanson clicked on an online ad for Arcadia Power. It proposed to let him power his house with renewable energy sources, no matter where he lived. It offered to sell him clean energy without installing solar panels or wind turbines on his property.

That piqued his interest.

How would that work? Hanson wondered. How can I be an Arcadia customer when the poles and lines that connect to my house are owned by my local power company?

No Matter How It’s Generated, All Electricity Looks the Same

Here’s what he found out:

Arcadia Power is an energy marketplace that would allow him to buy into wind farms and solar panels installed elsewhere.

Here’s the thing about electricity: It can be generated by burning coal or by uranium in a nuclear reactor, by river water flowing through a hydroelectric dam or by sunlight shining on a solar panel. But no matter where it comes from, all electricity looks the same once it flows into our national energy grid

(In the U.S., most electricity comes from “dirty,” non-renewable sources like coal, natural gas or nuclear plants. Only about 13% of our electricity comes from renewable sources.)

Arcadia Power buys energy from renewable sources like wind farms. As it does this, it collects Renewable Energy Credits (RECs), which certify that a unit of electricity was produced with green energy sources. (Here’s a video that explains RECs.)

Arcadia sells its customers RECs. This would normally be complicated for the average person, but Arcadia has simplified the process.

To be perfectly clear: If you’re an Arcadia customer, your home will still be powered by the same energy sources that your local utility uses. But by buying your power through Arcadia, you can offset the environmental impact of buying carbon-emitting “dirty” energy from your local utility.

For customers like Hanson, the bottom line is that Arcadia Power offers him a way to drive the demand for sustainably sourced electricity. It makes the overall energy mix in the grid cleaner. This way, he can financially support green energy even if there are no sustainable energy options in his neck of the woods.

How Arcadia Power Works For One Customer

Hanson signed on with Arcadia three years ago, not long after the company was founded in 2013. He’s glad he did.

“They essentially take over your account,” he says. Hanson pays for his electricity through Arcadia, not his local utility.

Full disclosure: It costs him a bit extra. Arcadia adds 1.5 cents per kilowatt hour to his regular electric bill, collects payments from him, and uses the money to pay his regular power company.

But he feels it’s worth it.

“We’re talking about five bucks a month difference,” says Hanson, who owns a four-bedroom home.

(Arcadia also has a free version that will source 50% of your electricity to renewable energy sources at no extra charge.)

One bonus: Arcadia equips customers with an online “dashboard” that Hanson uses to track his home’s power usage throughout the day and night.

“They have a really functional, user-friendly dashboard that lets you see hour-by-hour consumption,” he said. “I can see behavioral trends.”

He has learned money-saving tips like setting his dishwasher on a time delay so it runs at night, when power is cheaper. He has changed up when he runs his dehumidifier.

“I’ve changed my behavior,” he said. “In the long term, it has saved me some money.”

The big picture: He feels it’s totally worth it to support renewable energy. He believes the environmental cost of “dirty” energy still gets overlooked. And installing solar panels on the roof isn’t financially feasible for most people.

“On a fundamental level, the power that I use in my house is coming from renewable sources,” he says. “By providing financial support for renewable energy sites, I can disrupt the market. I’m willing to support green growth.”

If offsetting dirty power is a cause you want to get on board with, Arcadia Power is offering new customers $20 off their first power bill when they sign up through this link.

Mike Brassfield (mike@thepennyhoarder.com) is a senior writer at The Penny Hoarder. His home is powered by natural gas and nuclear plants, and he is powered by caffeine and pure force of will.

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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Get a Free Pancake Stack at Perkins This Thursday for a Really Great Cause

Pancakes: They’re good for breakfast. Or lunch. Or even dinner.

And this week, you can get them for free at your local Perkins.

To celebrate Give Kids the World Pancake Day on Thursday, Sept. 28, participating restaurants will give you a free short stack of pancakes.

Why the Free Pancakes? Why Not?!

What’s the catch? It’s for a good cause.

Perkins asks that guests consider making a donation to Give Kids The World Village, a nonprofit that invites kids with serious illnesses and their families to enjoy cost-free, weeklong vacations at its resort in central Florida.

Funds raised during Thursday’s event will go toward operations of the resort’s Gingerbread House, a restaurant and bakery that serves Give Kids The World guests.

A short stack typically costs $6.49 — something to consider if you take advantage of the freebie.

Do You Go to Perkins Often?

While you’re there, you might want to sign up for My Perkins, the restaurant’s rewards program, which offers a 20% off coupon for joining.

Free pancakes now, discounted pancakes later? Sounds good to me.  

Lisa Rowan is a writer and editor for The Penny Hoarder. She loves pancakes, but they make her sleepy.

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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Getting a Flu Shot Is Cheap or Free. Getting Sick Is Really Expensive

“This isn’t prison,” my doctor tells me. “I can’t make you do anything you don’t want. That being said, I highly recommend you get your flu shot today.”

He’s right to expect pushback: Consistently since the 2010-11 flu season, more than half of adults have declined to get a flu vaccine, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Flu season typically peaks in December or January, but it can invite itself to a party in your immune system as early as…right now.

I, for one, had never received the shot, even as a child. And I was all set to bolster the statistic this year, too.

That is, until I realized exactly how much my negligence might cost me, and how easy and cheap it would be to avoid a few days of couch-ridden misery.

Here’s How Much it Costs to Get the Flu

News flash: Being sick sucks. It feels horrible.

But in case you need more prodding to get poked, you should know the flu can deplete your wallet as quickly as it does your electrolyte levels.

Don’t believe me? Well, consider these costs.

Missing Work

The flu is contagious for a long time, sometimes before you even begin to show symptoms.

And once you do start to feel like death, your Grim Reaper status gets real: For five to seven days, you can easily infect those around you.

Since you’re likely to experience severe symptoms for at least two, maybe three of those days, you’re almost definitely going to miss at least a day of work. And if you do the truly conscientious thing to avoid spreading your illness, you may miss up to five days of work — and that’s assuming you’ve got a two-day weekend in there somewhere.

I’m lucky to work at a company with unlimited paid sick days, but if you don’t, your absenteeism could pull a lot of money out of your pocket.

If you make $10 per hour and work eight-hour days, your flu would cost you between $80 and $400, before accounting for taxes and other withholdings.

And if you drag your snot-infested self into work (DON’T DO IT), you could spread your illness to your co-workers or customers — at least the ones who also skipped the vaccine.

Doctor’s Visit

When the flu hits hard, sometimes it’s not easy to simply knuckle down, pound the Advil and drink lots of fluids. You might find yourself schlepping to the doctor’s office for prescription-grade meds, or at least to have them confirm you’re not actually dying.

And even if all your doctor does is repeat the advice above, if your health insurance isn’t great or existent, you might shell out more than $100 to get the “Why didn’t you just get a freaking flu shot?” side-eye from health care professionals.

Sickbed Supplies and Ripple Effects

Although it might not seem like much, you’re also spending money on that sick nest you’ve created on your couch.

Let’s say you go through two boxes of tissues and half a package each of Dayquil and Nyquil.

Even Walmart’s store-brand tissues cost 7 cents apiece, and if you’re like me, you’ll spring for the aloey, mentholated kind, even though they cost more than double.

Listen, it’s my face. Some things are just worth the money. Tissue cost: $6.99

And although it’s completely necessary, cold medicine still ain’t cheap. Medicine cost: $6.98

Plus there are other, less obvious, costs to think about: soup, whether canned or homemade. If you’re really lucky, the time your loved one puts into preparing the soup for you. Blankets and temperature regulation. Wear and tear on your couch.

If you have kids, you’re probably going to pass your germs to them, so they’ll have to stay home from school for a while. Maybe they’ll stay sick longer than you, forcing you to hire a sitter so you can go back to work.

Maybe they’ll miss a fundamental math class in seventh grade, and you’ll need to hire a tutor.

Or maybe you won’t, and they’ll grow up to be humanities majors instead of super-high-earning coders or computer engineers. Yes, this really does happen — trust me.

4 Ways to Get a Cheap or Free Flu Shot This Year

Getting the flu is sounding worse and worse, huh?

Wouldn’t it be great if there were an easy way to avoid all this misery and financial waste?

Perhaps you see where I’m going with this.

Best of all, the health care community is behind me. Since they want you to just get your gosh-darn flu shot already, there are tons of ways to get a free flu shot.

And no, it doesn’t hurt — at least, not nearly as bad as your throat, head, body and wallet might if you don’t get vaccinated.

So now that you realize exactly how inexcusable it is to avoid the vaccine, here’s where to find them.

1. Your Doctor’s Office

If you have health insurance, your flu shot is more than likely 100% covered — so you can just head to your primary care physician’s office and get it there.

If your doctor’s anything like mine, it’ll put a smile on their face.

2. Your Local Grocery Store or Pharmacy

A quick Google search shows that Safeway, Publix, Albertson’s, Walmart, Costco, Walgreens and CVS all offer flu shots — which, again, are almost definitely covered with a $0 copay under your insurance plan.

If it’s not covered, it’ll run you about $20 at Costco and up to about $40 at CVS or Walgreens.  

Many of these stores even sweeten the deal — after all, they are sticking you with needles.

When you get your flu shot at Walgreens, the company will donate a vaccine to a child in need.

Publix offers a $10 gift card when you get your flu shot there. Albertson’s and Safeway give you 10% off your next purchase when you get the shot, and CVS offers a coupon for $5 off $25 when you get vaccinated there. CVS Extrabucks members get an extra $5 in rewards.

I took advantage of that last one myself, and now I’m stocked with toothpaste and deodorant for at least a year. Way better than the silly lollipop they used to give you when you were a kid, right?

3. Your Workplace

Your boss knows the flu can you and the company money. If everyone in the office gets taken out at once, there could be a serious productivity lapse.

Check to see if your company offers employees free flu shots. Sometimes, companies will even bring in a nurse so you don’t even have to leave the office.

4. Your College Campus

Flu season and finals season: They’re the same season.

To avoid that disaster waiting to happen, lots of college campuses offer free flu shots. Most times, all you’ll need is your student ID.

Stay healthy this winter, Penny Hoarders! After all, with the holidays coming up, you no doubt have better stuff to spend your money on.

Jamie Cattanach is a contributing writer at The Penny Hoarder. Her writing has also been featured at The Write Life, Word Riot, Nashville Review and elsewhere. Find @JamieCattanach on Twitter to wave hello.

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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Love Searching the Web? This Company Will Pay You $12/Hr to Do It

It’s been more than a decade since we had our own personal search engine butler. (R.I.P., Jeeves.)

Google. Bing. Yahoo. Online searches just seem more impersonal nowadays.

Here’s your chance to cast judgment on the remaining cold, heartless, non-anthropomorphic search engines we rely on every day.

And the best part is you can make more than $12 an hour doing it while working from the comfort of your home.

Leapforce, a company based in Pleasanton, California, is hiring what it calls “at-home independent agents” to do search-engine evaluation on a contract basis. Indeed and Glassdoor list hourly pay for these types of gigs as ranging from $12 to $15.

You would be testing out search engines, as well as evaluating videos, mapping software and automation. (You might be assisting our new robot overlords!)

Here’s How to Snag One of These Leapforce Jobs

Leapforce has set a pretty high and specific bar to land one of these work-from-home jobs. It’s looking for educated, internet-savvy applicants with this specific set of qualifications:

• Use of an iPhone 4s or higher, Android 4.1 or higher or a Windows phone version 8.1 or higher

• College degree or equivalent experience — post-graduate degrees are a plus

• High-speed internet connection

• Excellent English writing and comprehension skills

• Web research and analytical skills

• Broad range of interests

• Familiarity with U.S. pop culture

Click here and select U.S. jobs in English from the dropdown menu to apply. Applicants will be expected to pass an exam.

Of course, if you don’t have a college degree, tons of other opportunities to work from home are out there.

And be sure to follow The Penny Hoarder Jobs page on Facebook for a plethora of job prospects.

Alex Mahadevan is a data journalist at The Penny Hoarder.

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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Cards Against Humanity is Offering a Full-Ride STEM Scholarship for Women

Passionate about science? Applying to college — or already enrolled? You might be able to earn yourself a full-ride scholarship.

Cards Against Humanity has opened the application for its 2018 Science Ambassador Scholarship, a full-tuition scholarship for a woman earning her undergraduate degree in science, engineering or math.

The iconic card game funds the scholarship program through its 30-card Science Pack expansion set, which retails for $10. All profits from sales of the Science Pack go toward the scholarship, which is up to more than $1.1 million.

How to Apply to be the Next Science Ambassador

If you identify as a woman, will be enrolled in college in fall 2018 and can talk circles around a STEM textbook, then you have no reason to not apply for this scholarship.

To apply, submit a three-minute video in which you “deliver a mini lecture, not a personal statement, as if you are teaching or lecturing an audience,” the application explains. Share your excitement about the topic of your choice, which doesn’t have to be your chosen field.

Need some inspiration? Check out the video entry by 2015’s winner here or last year’s winner here.

Upload your video to YouTube, make it public and fill out the super-short application form. A group of 60 women who work in science and engineering, plus your parents and aunts and uncles, will judge your video.

The website specifies 10 video finalists will be asked to submit additional materials, although what those materials will be is not explained. Basically, be ready to prove you’re majoring in a STEM field.

Your deadline: Dec. 11. Finalists will be notified in January, and the winner will be announced in April 2018.

Lisa Rowan is a writer and producer at The Penny Hoarder. All her degrees are in history. Disqualified.

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 to Create a Content Upgrade That Will Automate Your List Building

I am a big champion of the power of email marketing.

There’s no better way to build a community and nurture a relationship with your audience.

It’s hands down the most authentic way to prime your prospects, sell them your work, and grow your revenue.

So, when a powerful list-building technique comes along, I get excited.

After all, a thriving email list is the foundation of email marketing.

I’m sure you’ve noticed this, but I’ll point it out anyway.

Content upgrades are what’s hot right now if you want to accelerate the growth of your email list.

Take a guy like Bryan Harris, for instance. He sees a conversion rate of 20-40% on blog posts with content upgrades.

He now averages almost 80 subscribers a day.

That’s amazing!

Blog posts typically do not convert as well as landing pages because they’re not designed for that purpose.

The point of a blog post is to educate, entertain, and inspire. There’s too much going on to get someone focused enough to sign up to your email list.

Content upgrades have changed that completely.

You can now transform your blog posts into powerful list-building assets. All you have to do is uplevel your posts with a targeted free resource.

Don’t worry—I’ll show you how.

First, let’s define a content upgrade.

What is a content upgrade?

It’s a type of lead magnet you give your audience in exchange for their email addresses.

The typical lead magnet, like an ebook or an email course, stands alone.

It is not attached to any specific piece of content. It has its own thing going on.

A content upgrade is unique to a piece of content.

It’s usually tied to a blog post. But there are other types of content you can uplevel with a free resource.

Webinars, podcasts, and videos are examples.

The point is to enhance the value of your content with this additional resource.

As you can imagine, there are several ways to achieve that.

You can create a resource that helps readers implement what you just discussed. An action sheet, workbook, or toolkit are excellent examples.

You can give away something that saves them time, like templates or cheat sheets.

The ultimate strategy is to create something that will help them delve deeper into the topic.

This is where you give additional strategies, tutorials, case studies, etc.

Your options are endless.

Let’s look at some examples.

CoSchedule published a post “How to Repurpose Content and Make the Most of Your Marketing.”

The content upgrade?

A content repurposing guide and infographic:

If you read this post and were interested in implementing this content repurposing technique, you’d sign up for this upgrade in a heartbeat.

And that’s why content upgrades are so powerful for growing your email list.

They offer something you can’t say no to: value.

I’ll give you more examples later. For now, let’s get into how you can create your content upgrades.

Step #1: Identify your top-performing content

Can’t you just create content upgrades for your new content?

Yes, but it’s not where you should start.

If you haven’t created upgrades, you should first capitalize on the traffic you’re already receiving.

This is the fastest way to see results.

You can identify your top posts with Google Analytics or Buzzsumo.

If you have GA fired up, go to the Reports section and click on “behavior.”

Go to “site content” and then “all pages.”

You’ll find the website pages with the most traffic.

You can also find this info directly from your WordPress dashboard if you have GA set up there.

Buzzsumo is even simpler.

Plug in your site URL and press “Go.”

You’ll find the posts with the most social shares.

Record these in a spreadsheet. They’ll serve as your targets for your new content upgrades.

These are for finding your top blog posts, but the same can be done for your podcasts, YouTube videos, webinars, etc.

Step #2: Find the gap in your content

To deliver that extra value, you need to pinpoint the gap in your content.

Otherwise, your upgrade won’t be worth opting in for.

Select one of your top content pieces found in the first step. Go through it from top to bottom, and consider the following questions.

Q. 1: What problem does your content solve?

If you’ve created something of quality, it should solve a problem.

I understand not all content is instructional or how-to, but the question remains.

Think about what knowledge you’re trying to deliver and what purpose it serves for your audience.

Let’s look at this post.

My goal is to give readers the fastest and easiest strategies to grow their email lists.

If I were to create a content upgrade for that post, it would:

• be easy to implement
• deliver on the promise of being fast
• help you gain more subscribers

This may sound futile. But without going through this exercise, your content upgrade can flop.

When I talk about types of upgrades later, you’ll understand why.

For now, figure out what your content is trying to accomplish.

And your job will be half done.

Q. 2: What’s missing?

You know the goal of your content piece.

Is there a strategy you didn’t mention? A tool required to implement your tactics? Something that fulfills the goal but was not covered in-depth or at all?

Find the gap between the objective and what your content does.

Q. 3: How can you expand the value?

Think of what could’ve been included to make your content more valuable.

You want an upgrade that accomplishes the same goal you established earlier, but with an extra kick.

When people consume new information, they’re thinking of the ways they can implement it for a positive result.

Your audience wants to achieve that outcome better, faster, and cheaper and with more precision, less error, and less effort.

That’s the purpose your content upgrade should serve.

What content do you plan to create in the future?

If you want to make upgrades a key piece of your list-building strategy, here’s what I recommend.

Don’t wait till after you’ve created your content to come up with an idea for your free resource.

Instead, strategize the future upgrade.

How?

Leave an open loop.

This technique uses the power of storytelling to get readers excited about your content upgrade.

Here’s what storytelling does to the brain:

How do you achieve that?

Briefly mention a tool, a topic, a relevant experience, or an action step in your article.

Don’t expand on it in your post. Just mention it, and leave the gap wide open.

This way you’re giving people a piece of the story—not the whole thing.

The objective is to hook your readers.

Then, create an upgrade that closes this gap. I guarantee you, people will sign up to your list just to get the inside scoop.

With this technique, you’re utilizing curiosity, a major persuasion factor.

Step #3: Select an appropriate type of content upgrade

Now that you know what content you’ll cover, it’s time to establish the form.

How will you deliver your content?

Many people don’t give it much thought. They believe the content is the end-all and be-all.

Not true.

Content and delivery go hand in hand.

Imagine you promise subscribers a quick win, and you deliver your content in a 30-day email course.

There’s nothing quick about a 30-day email course.

But that doesn’t mean this form isn’t appropriate for a different result.

Let’s say you promise advanced in-depth training, and you deliver it in a cheat sheet.

The email course would serve your audience way better in this instance.

It’s why I use it. It works.

You could also use a webinar.

Do you see how the type of upgrade you select can conflict with the actual content?

You want the two to work seamlessly.

Otherwise, your subscribers will feel cheated when they receive your resource.

The result?

They unsubscribe and never return to your blog again.

This is why I placed emphasis on establishing your goals in the beginning. It’s going to help you select the right type of content upgrade.

Here are the options available:

• email courses
• email challenges
• cheat sheets
• checklists
• planners
• ebooks or PDF guides
• resource kits
• case studies
• video series
• templates
• printables
• swipe files
• transcripts
• infographics
• workbooks
• audio files

These will give you enough food for thought.

Ensure you select the form that aligns with your content and its goals.

Step #4: Design your content upgrade

You’ve got your content figured out. You’ve got your delivery method aligned with the content.

This is where you might have some problems.

Or maybe not.

Designing a lead magnet can be time-consuming and challenging for some people. For others, it’s a breeze.

Here’s the thing.

It doesn’t have to be overwhelming for anyone.

Even if you don’t have one technical or creative bone in your body, you can do this.

And if you don’t want to, you can outsource it for pretty cheap. That’s why sites like Fiverr, 99Designs, and UpWork exist.

For those who want to handle it themselves, here’s how.

First, I’ll tell you my favorite tools:

• Canva
• Beacon
• Google Docs
• Word or Apple Pages

That’s it.

The best part? These are free to use.

Here’s an overview of how you can do this.

Step #1: Outline the content for your upgrade in a Google Doc or Word document

Whether you’re creating an ebook, ecourse, or cheat sheet, write out the most important points.

This will serve as a skeleton for your content upgrade.

Step #2: Expand on your outline

Flesh out your main points. I like to use dictation to get through this faster. This way, you can just speak about your topic and let the tool do the typing.

Go through it with a fine-tooth comb to make sure there are no errors.

Step #3: Use Canva or Beacon to create a beautiful layout

You can also do this with Google docs.

You can copy and paste images, icons, create tables, and highlight text to create a sophisticated design within a simple document.

Then, download your document as a PDF.

But if you want to step up your design, Canva and Beacon are the best choices.

Step #4: Create an image of your content upgrade

This is so you can place it within your blog posts or on a landing page. One of my favorite tools to do that is Skitch.

I use it to take a snapshot of the individual pages of the content upgrade. Then, I overlay them in Canva to create an image.

Like this:

Step #5: Create a compelling call to action image to place within your blog posts

Again, you can use Canva to do this.

Here are some examples:

Here’s another:

It doesn’t have to be fancy.

You can use a feature box like this:

Step #5: Set up the delivery of your content upgrade

At this point, you should have all the assets created for your upgrade.

The task now is to set up delivery.

Step #1: Host the file in WordPress or with your email management software

Some email systems, like ConvertKit, allow you to host files. This makes it super simple to deliver them to subscribers.

The alternative is to use your WordPress account.

Go to your dashboard, find the “Media” tab and “Add New.”

Upload your file.

You’ll receive a downloadable URL (“file URL”).

Anyone with the link can now access your content upgrade.

Step #2: Set up a follow-up email in your email management system

This is what you’ll use to deliver your content upgrade. Place the link you got in Step #1 within your email.

At this point, you can set up a system to segment subscribers.

Let’s say someone opts in for a content upgrade on list-building. You can tag them to be transferred to a separate list designated for people interested in this particular topic.

Most email software allows for segmentation.

When you segment subscribers this way, you are better able to deliver emails aligned with their interests.

It keeps them engaged and your unsubscribe rate low.

Step #6: Promote your content upgrade and watch your list grow

The only thing left to do is to promote your content upgrades. The goal is to get them in front of as many eyes as possible.

Place them prominently within blog posts. Do it several times.

When you share your content on social media, let people know there’s an additional free resource that comes with it.

A good way to promote your upgrades is to repurpose them. It’s not necessary to create a new resource for each piece of content.

If you’re covering the same topics, your upgrades will be relevant to other content you create.

Conclusion

If you really want to take your list-building up a couple of notches, content upgrades are a must.

They enhance the value of your posts and give your audience a reason to hop on to your email list.

In some instances, content upgrades are more powerful than stand-alone lead magnets.

Why do people shy away from them?

It can appear to be time-consuming and complicated.

In some instances, that’s true.

But if you follow the steps in this article, you’ll have everything you need to quickly and painlessly create content upgrades.

Why not transform every piece of content into a list-building asset?

That’s the kind of transformation that impacts your bottom line. Try it out, and watch your email list numbers go through the roof.

Do you have any tricks for creating high-converting content upgrades?

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When Experiences Become About “Keeping Up with the Joneses”

There was a time earlier in my life where I was very concerned with “keeping up with the Joneses.” I ran with a crowd that was incredibly focused on buying new things, showing them off to friends and family and acquaintances and neighbors and reveling in their jealousy, and then also being jealous of the things that friends and family and acquaintances and neighbors had.

I remember, at the time, getting a brand new Blackberry the day it was released. This was during the era where the Blackberry was the be-all-end-all mobile device, as it was a pretty effective tool for answering email and sending texts on the fly in the pre-iPhone and pre-Android era. I remember showing it to people and seeing their jealously and loving it, then I remember being jealous not too much later when a better model came out and someone else had it.

I was jealous of the cars and clothes and houses that people had, and I felt a ton of pride in what I had and had a desire to show it off. This was normal within my social circle – if I were active on Facebook during that time in my life, I’m sure my feed would have been full of pictures of my latest possessions and likes and comments on the pictures of possessions of my friends and family and acquaintances.

Since then, my own life – and a lot of my own social circle – has undergone a lot of changes. We’ve really drifted away from that kind of materialism. There’s almost no discussion about the things that people have in my social group. It’s just not a part of the conversation.

The same is true for my own personal social media. When I look at what the people in my group post about, it almost never has anything to do with the things they possess.

However, I have noticed a different flavor of oneupmanship in the last few years – the “experience” oneupmanship.

Chasing Experiences, Not Things

There are quite a few people I know who are largely silent on social media unless they’re traveling or going to an interesting place or having an interesting experience.

They’ll post pictures from their cruise ship or from the resort or from the nation halfway around the world that they’re visiting.

They’ll post a bunch of pictures and commentary of their dinner at a restaurant that charges $200 for a plate.

Here’s the thing: I don’t blame them for posting such things, not in the least. Those are great experiences to be having.

Instead, it’s the comments that trouble me a little – and, even more than that, my own reaction.

I’ll read the comments and notice that the post has a whole bunch of reactions, including a ton of likes and loves.

I’ll see that people have written that they’re “soooo jealous” of their vacation. I’ll hear about how that $100 dish looks “amazing.” And I’ll see people saying that they “MUST DO THIS” thing that costs hundreds or thousands of dollars.

The thing is, I sometimes feel that exact same way.

I’ll read or hear about someone’s fantastic vacation or amazing restaurant meal or their cruise and I’ll feel jealous.

I want that experience, too.

I want to “keep up with the Joneses,” not in terms of stuff, but in terms of experiences. I want to see the world. I want to taste the foods. I want to attend the shows.

The thing is, it would be very easy, as a fairly financially responsible person, to fall into that trap. It’s a tricky trap to fall into, too, because you’re not even accumulating any stuff to point out to yourself all of the money you’re spending.

So, how do I solve this?

One strategy, of course, is to just further trim my social circle down to people who just don’t take on expensive experiences – or at least don’t share them. That’s a non-starter. There are people that I deeply value in my life who have the financial means to travel to Paris or Tokyo every year, and they do so. It’s on me to deal with it, not on them. I would do the same thing as them if I were in their financial state.

Here are the five real strategies I use to handle that situation.

One, I think about experiences outside of the glare of social media and social relationships. I don’t consider what we’ll do for our family vacation next year while staring at gorgeous pictures of Tuscany that a friend posted to Facebook. Instead, I think about it after a day or two spent with my family and with time to think about what we really enjoy and what we can sensibly afford.

This often points me toward trips like our family vacation this past summer, where we camped at Yellowstone using a free national parks pass. That trip absolutely nailed the things that my family loves, and it happened on a shoestring budget.

When I think about delicious meals, I don’t stare at pictures of amazing restaurants that friends are talking about. Instead, I look around my own kitchen and wonder what I can create myself for my family.

My decisions about the experiences I enjoy are ones that I make far away from sources that might tempt me and might drive up my “jealousy” factor.

Two, I think about why I’m jealous. The easy answer might be that I wish I could go to Paris on a long weekend, but the real answer is that I wish I could afford a trip to Paris without any long term financial ramifications.

Thinking in that fashion, and realizing that it has less to do with the trip itself and more to do with recognizing that I’m not yet where I want to be financially, pushes me to do better. It pushes me to spend less on unimportant things so that I can have the important things.

It pushes me to not sweat about that trip to Paris right now, but to make smart financial moves so that when we do eventually take a trip like that, the real financial impact is minimal. I don’t yet deserve that experience because I haven’t yet achieved the financial change necessary to make such an experience happen without financial stress. Until then, it’s on me.

Three, I reflect on the financial state of those enjoying the experience. Some of them are at retirement age and are enjoying the fruits of thirty five years of financial planning and hard choices. Others are spending themselves into a deep hole of debt that’s going to add a lot of stress to their life. Still others can outright afford those experiences, but they’re lassoed to a high-stress career to be able to afford it, which takes away from the joys of daily life.

On the whole, I’m pretty happy foregoing most of those “great experiences” in order to be able to enjoy lower stress and contentment in other areas of my life. I don’t have any debt whatsoever. I’m building toward a state of financial independence where I won’t have to work at all, and if I push a little bit past that, I’ll be able to afford such things without any long term financial risk – but I’m not there yet. I have a pretty low stress life, all told, without incredible career pressure. I wouldn’t trade those things away for an annual trip to Jakarta.

Four, I consider what kinds of splurges are also meaningful to my family. If I were to make a list of ten things I would love to do if I were single and didn’t have to worry about anyone else, it would be a much different list than the ten things I’d most love to do with my family. Most of the things I’d love to do with my family are actually lower cost ones, because they involve travel that’s manageable with three children and they involve seeing things in North America that are inherently less expensive to visit.

My solo list involves things like visiting Jakarta. My family list involves camping at Acadia National Park. One of those is pretty expensive. The other one isn’t. Not only that, on the whole, the Acadia trip would be far more meaningful to my family right now, as it would involve lower stress on the parents while also including new experiences and sights for the children that sync up well with what they enjoy.

Finally, if I’m still struggling with experience temptation, I talk to my wife. Like most married couples, Sarah and I have a bunch of mutual friends, some individual friends, and somewhat different social experiences as a result. Often, she’s not exposed to the same “experience temptations” that I am, and vice versa.

So, whenever one of us is feeling jealous and wants to “keep up with the Joneses” with regards to some experience, we just talk to each other. Almost always, the other person will pop a hole in that bubble pretty directly by pointing out how the idea is pretty unnecessary, how it doesn’t really mesh up with our shared goals, and how it’s probably just driven by an empty “keeping up” mindset.

I can’t name how many times Sarah has effectively pushed a pin right into the balloon of a desired experience. I come in wanting to do something or go somewhere and she’ll point out how it is completely out of left field and doesn’t match up with anything. She won’t shout “no,” but will encourage me to sit on the idea and ask myself if it really makes sense in the larger picture of my life. The truth is, when I actually listen to her reasoning and think about it, I realize the desire is pretty silly. And I do the same thing for her.

Relying on a partner with whom you have great communication is an incredibly useful tool for keeping your worst impulses in check.

In the end, experiences can become all about “keeping up with the Joneses” as material items are, especially in the age of social media. The best tool that you have in your repertoire is to step back, breathe, and reflect on why you feel that way, especially if you have a partner to talk it through with.

Good luck!

The post When Experiences Become About “Keeping Up with the Joneses” appeared first on The Simple Dollar.

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Study: People Think Their iPhone is More Important Than Their Credit Score

Credit scores and iPhones.

What have the two got in common?

Well, the buzzy new iPhone 8 and iPhone X are set to launch soon. They’re adorned with HUGE price tags, like up to $1,400…

In addition to all of us wishing our credit reports were adorned with HUGE credit scores, many people don’t realize their credit reports can affect their cell phone bills.

Also, how’s this uber-expensive piece of technology going to affect Americans’ credit card debt?

5 Credit Score Statistics You Never Knew You Needed to Know

WalletHub conducted a survey at the end of August and asked 530 respondents questions about the new iPhone — and their credit scores.

Here are a few of the findings:

1. Some People Think Their Phone Impacts Their Life More Than Their Credit Score

To be fair to the 37% of respondents who think their phone impacts their life more than their credit score, our phones are glued to our hips.

However, our credit reports (and our consequent credit scores) are going to be more impactful for those big life decisions, like buying a house or a car. Your credit report could even affect potential job opportunities.

2. A Majority of People Say Credit Reports are Easier to Understand Than Phone Contracts

Score!

This is awesome news.

Sometimes folks can be intimidated by credit reports because, you know, personal finance. However, credit reports are easy to follow, especially when you use a service like Credit Sesame.

The service is free, and it’ll even walk you through the report, letting you know what you can do to bump up your credit score.

If you have any trouble, we’ve got a guide to break it down a little more.

3. Some Would Rather Have a New iPhone Than a Higher Credit Score

Again, we’re talking about some big life decisions, so unless your sparkling new iPhone will help you get a better mortgage rate, then it seems like a higher credit score would be more beneficial… right?

4. More Than Half of Folks Would Rather Have a Stranger Access Their Credit Score Than Their Phone

OK, what have you guys been doing on your phones?!

WalletHub reported that 55% of people would rather let a stranger view their credit score than their phone.

But I don’t think this is entirely unreasonable. A credit score is just a number (yes, with huge impacts, but still). It’s not like they’d get to dig into your credit report and get all your personal info — a lot of which is likely stored on your phone.

5. Nearly ⅓ Would Opt for a Waterproof Phone vs. a Damage-Proof Credit Score

As someone who doesn’t have a whole lot of luck with phones near toilets, I get it. Water damage is a real pain — but so is hundreds, even thousands of extra dollars on a mortgage or car payment. *shrug*

After all of that, though, WalletHub found that 74% of people said they aren’t giving in to the new iPhone hype.

Good for you, you Penny Hoarders!

Carson Kohler (@CarsonKohler) is a junior writer at The Penny Hoarder. She doesn’t plan to buy the new iPhone, mostly because she just paid $1,000 for her iPhone 7 back in May. *cringes*

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 to Set a ‘Spending Money’ Cap and Save More Every Month

There’s no right or wrong way to budget your money, just like there’s no perfect way to spend it. But, that doesn’t mean a little planning can’t help you get closer to your savings goals.

If you take the time to write out a monthly budget, you may find you’re able to better organize your finances in terms of how much to spend on experiences, savings, and regular bills. And, despite what anyone says, budgets don’t have to be restrictive. If you use a budget to create a comprehensive spending plan, you should budget for more than bills; you should budget for entertainment, vacations, and fun, too.

This leads us to the concept discussed in this post – spending money. Generally speaking, “spending money” is extra cash you keep on hand to pay for daily expenses like gas for your car and splurges like going out to eat. You can budget a set amount for this category, but you should ideally be able to spend it how you want.

Four Steps to Budgeting for ‘Miscellaneous’ Spending

Still, if there’s one problem new budgeters always face, it’s how much to set aside for spending money every month. No matter how disciplined you are – or how dedicated you are to your goals – you will need money to spend on a daily basis.

And, it’s not just as easy as figuring out the minimum amount of money you can get away with spending each day or each week. You work to pay bills, but you also need to live. Ideally, you should strive to find a balance that lets you spend some money now without detracting from your future goals.

Whether you’re budgeting for the first time or considering giving it a try, it’s important to know how to budget for life’s “extras” so you can set yourself up for success. Here are four steps that can put you on the right track:

Step 1: Track your spending.

Before you set a budget for your discretionary spending, it’s important to see some historical data for this category. The best way to see how you’ve spent in the past is to break out your bank and credit card statements to track your spending in each relevant category.

Once you have a few month’s statements to work with, tally up all your spending in important categories like:

• Groceries
• Dining out
• Entertainment
• Rent or mortgage
• Utilities
• Car payments
• Insurance
• Entertainment
• Gas and transportation
• Clothing
• Random

While some of your expenses — like rent or car payments — should stay the same every month, you should have plenty of variable categories to consider. Start by evaluating each of these categories individually as well as which ones you want to add to your permanent budget.

For example, if you’re spending $300 per month on gas for your car pretty consistently, you should probably give that expense its own permanent budget category. And if your utility bills can be estimated, add those to your budget, too.

Everything else – everything within your control – should go into your miscellaneous discretionary spending category. For most people, miscellaneous spending might include purchases like:

• Clothing
• Coffee shops
• Gas station purchases
• Convenience stores
• Makeup
• Dining out
• Lunch at work

Step 2: Define which ‘wants’ are important, and which you can safely scrap.

Once you have a good idea of how your miscellaneous spending looks, you might be mortified. If you haven’t budgeted in the past, but know you need to, chances are good you’re spending more than you want or thought you were.

With the cold, hard facts right in front of you, you can no longer hide from outrageous spending or pretend it’s not a problem. Before you come up with a miscellaneous spending limit for your budget, it’s smart to see which of your expenses can be whittled down.

Start with the easy stuff. If you’re spending $8 to $15 per day going out with the girls for lunch, ask yourself if you’re willing to brown bag it at least a few days per week. Spending a lot on clothing or the golf course? See what kind of sacrifices you’d be willing to make to lower the amount you’re spending in these extra categories.

Unfortunately, digging into the nitty gritty of your spending is at the core of building a budget that works. As you set your miscellaneous spending cap, figure out what you can live without and plan to make adjustments accordingly.

Also keep in mind that your current level of spending might be perfectly okay. If you’re saving for retirement, building an emergency fund, and meeting your other savings goals, then going out to lunch a few times per week or buying new clothes every month may not be standing in the way of your dreams.

Just keep in mind that today’s spending may prevent you from living the life you want in the future — or at least delay it by a few years. If you’re spending $15 per day on lunch five days per week week, that could mean you’ll have less money for dining out later on, once you retire. While you shouldn’t let this deter you from having fun, it’s important to think not just of how to spend today, but how today’s purchases can impact your future self.

Step 3: Define your ‘musts.’

Whether you want to reduce your spending or are pretty happy with where you’re at, it’s still important to define your “musts.” While you might need to go on a bare-bones budget to pay off debt or overcome financial hardship, most of us want some wiggle room in our spending plans. And even if you’re fine with your spending as-is, defining your musts can also help you prepare for any upcoming changes in your budget if, say, you lose your job or take a pay cut.

Your”musts” should include all daily spending you can’t live without. You need to put gas in your car, after all. You need to eat lunch during work, whether you choose to dine out or bring a boxed lunch from home.

Chances are also good that at least some of your miscellaneous purchases are important enough to your mental health that you want to prioritize them. And that’s the whole point of budgeting: to better use your limited resources on what really matters to you.

Maybe you’re unwilling to give up your daily coffee because it’s the best part of your day. Or, perhaps you’re willing to give up cable television or going to the movies if it means you’re able to shop for new clothes.

Budgeting is all about trade-offs, but hopefully you can work some of your “musts” into your long-term spending plan.

Step 4: Come up with a weekly or monthly amount.

Once you’ve considered how you’ve spent money in the past, what you’re willing to cut, and the ‘musts’ you want to keep, it’s time to come up with an amount to stick to in terms of miscellaneous spending. If you’re budgeting on a monthly basis like most people, you’ll want to reach a monthly amount of cash to set aside.

Let’s say your past miscellaneous spending has been unsustainably high, but you’re willing to give up a few things. Here’s how a person’s pre-budget and post-budget miscellaneous spending might look:

Pre-Budget Miscellaneous Spending:

• Work lunch with friends five days per week: $15 per weekday or $300 per month
• Morning coffee five days per week: $15 per week or $60 per month
• Snacks at gas station convenience store: $80 per month
• Clothes: $300 per month

Monthly total: $740 per month

Post-Budget Miscellaneous Spending:

• Work lunch with friends two days per week: $30 per week or $120 per month
• Morning coffee five days per week: $15 per week or $60 per month
• Snacks at convenience store: $10 per month
• Clothes: $150 per month

Monthly total: $340

As you can see, the person in this example found a few different ways to save money on random spending – without giving up their morning coffee run.

They eased up on going out to lunch every weekday down to just twice a week. Instead of fueling up at the gas station with the convenience store (and all its tasty temptations), they started filling up at the bare-bones gas station down the street. And they removed their stored credit card information from their favorite retail websites, making checkout just cumbersome enough that they stopped short of buying some shoes and clothing they didn’t need.

As a result, they were able to cut their miscellaneous spending from $740 per month down to $340 a month. Ideally, this should help free up $400 a month more for savings, debt repayment, and other long-term goals – including fun stuff like vacations.

Final Thoughts

If you’ve been trying to budget but keep letting your random purchases get you off track, the best thing you can do is create a spending plan for the purchases you make most. At the same time, you should strive to cut out or reduce spending on items that don’t bring you happiness or add real value to your life.

Also keep in mind that none of this will work if you don’t track your spending religiously and grow an emergency fund to cover the “what ifs” in life.

What if your roof needs repaired or replaced? What if your car breaks down? What if you have a medical emergency?

While your miscellaneous spending category may be able to cover some smaller unexpected expenses, you need a full-fledged emergency fund to cover the big stuff. Without one, you are destined to go over budget time and time again.

Remember, the best way to win at budgeting is to plan. And that means more than planning for your mortgage and car payments; it means creating a realistic plan for spending money, too. With a comprehensive plan in place, you give yourself the best shot at controlling your spending and making every dollar you earn count.

Holly Johnson is an award-winning personal finance writer and the author of Zero Down Your Debt. Johnson shares her obsession with frugality, budgeting, and travel at ClubThrifty.com.

Related Articles:

• Money Management 101: How to Track Your Spending
• Your Budget is No Place for Wishful Thinking
• Why I’ll Never Feel Bad About My Vacation Spending
• 100 Great Tips for Saving Money

How much spending money do you budget for? How did you reach that amount?

The post How to Set a ‘Spending Money’ Cap and Save More Every Month appeared first on The Simple Dollar.

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I Needed Extra Money for Vacation — Here’s How I Earned $500 in 3 Weeks

When I was planning a recent trip to Nashville, I was so concerned about finding the best vacation deal that I forgot about another large vacation cost — actual cash to spend during the vacation. With no extra money coming my way, I decided to take a few unconventional paths to get some extra money before I left.

Here’s how I scraped up an extra $500 in the three weeks before I left on my trip:

I Donated Plasma

If you don’t mind needles and you’re in good health, donating plasma can be a great way to earn some extra money. Plus, you’re helping to save lives.

You’re typically only allowed to donate two times per week, and each donation takes about an hour. My local donation center currently pays $70 per week — $20 for your first donation and $50 for your second donation.

Oftentimes, new donors can get a bonus after completing a few donations. Unfortunately, I didn’t qualify for the bonus being offered because I’d donated before, but it still didn’t take much time to rack up a decent balance.

Total earnings: $210

I Cashed in My Change

Do you have a dusty mason jar full of change sitting on your dresser? I sure did. Mine was almost full and pre-vacation was a great time to cash in. I combined coins from my change jar, my car and my wallet and took it all to my bank. It was quite satisfying to literally hear the sound of money.

Take your loose change to your bank if you can. While coin-counting machines typically charge a fee for cash, banks typically won’t charge you for cashing in. Coinstar doesn’t charge a fee if you opt for an eGift Card.

Total earnings: $70

I Sold Unwanted Items

In the past, my boyfriend and I had sold some larger items on Craigslist, including our washer and dryer, a boat and a truck. But before my vacation, I only had a few small items I wanted to sell quickly, so I decided to try Facebook Marketplace.

There, it was super easy to post my items for sale: I just snapped a few photos and added a price and description. Anyone with a Facebook profile can post items on Facebook Marketplace.

I listed a Keurig, an old iPad and a Fitbit that I never wore. I sold each item within the three weeks I had before I left for my trip.

A word to the wise: if you’re making an exchange with a stranger, take someone with you. If you don’t have anyone available, meet in a public place. I’ve never personally had a bad experience, but it’s better to be safe rather than sorry when dealing with a cash exchange.

Total earnings: $180

I Found a Freelance Job

I was already dabbling in freelancing to put money toward student loans. I write for a living, so I joined Upwork, an online freelance platform. I landed a few gigs early on but jumped online to find some quick job opportunities before my vacation.

A quick introduction to freelance platforms like Upwork: You create a profile and search for jobs based on your talents. I search for writing jobs, but there are all kinds of opportunities, from web and graphic design to IT and accounting. When you find a job posting that interests you, pitch for the job. If the client likes you, you’re hired.

I wrote a 500-word blog post for a client and earned $50. Upwork then charges a 20% fee from your earnings.

Total earnings: $40

After just a few weeks I had an extra $500. Instead of worrying about how to both pay my bills and enjoy my trip, I just took a few quick steps to earn some extra cash.

Nichole Wierzba is a marketing writer by day and freelance writer by night. When she’s not madly typing on her computer, she’s eating Mexican food or playing with her dog.

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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