Guest Post: Save Money With Social Media by Cheryl Pitt
I’m raising what most consider to be a large family. With five children, ages 1-17 (and three of them teen boys), I want to save money as often as possible. I love to save with coupons and other discounts! However, I don’t always have time to cut and organize coupons. That’s why I love social media and blogs. Here are some of my tips on how to use social media to save money!
The first step in saving money through social media is to make a master list of your favorite brands, products, stores and destinations. Then, follow everyone on the list on all your social media platforms. Sometimes savings will be offered only on one social media platform at a time. So find your favorites wherever you are: Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, Vine, etc.
1. Facebook
Once you’ve followed your favorites on Facebook, be sure to stop by their pages once a week (or whenever you’re looking for a deal). Remember, due to Facebook’s algorithm, following a brand doesn’t mean their posts will appear in your feed. Check their pages regularly. Better yet, interact with them! Interaction boosts the possibility of their posts showing in your feed.
Search hashtags as well. Facebook recently added hashtags to their platform (yay!). This is an easy way to find deals. Enter #coupon, #savings, or #giveaway into the search bar and Facebook will display items tagged with that hashtag (plus give you suggestions for similar hashtags – neat!).
2. Twitter
I find Twitter to be the easiest platform to find current deals – it’s my favorite! This is because Twitter isn’t stagnant, it’s constantly moving and updated with brand new content. Old content, even minutes old content, is pushed down. You won’t find an expired coupon in your stream.
Make lists on Twitter. If you use a platform such as Hootsuite or TweetDeck, it’s easy to make and display lists without clicking and searching. Lists you should make:
- Your master list of brands and products. Put them all in one easy to browse list. You can also follow Twitter lists curated by others. Beltway Bargain Mom has a great list of Restaurant Deals!
- Hashtags (Hootsuite will allow you to make a list of multiple hashtags). Hashtag suggestions: #coupon #BOGO #deal #savings #frugal #giveaway
- Bloggers. There are many great deal blogs out there. Follow the ones you love, especially your local deal bloggers and put them in a list. A few I love: Beltway Bargain Mom (of course), 5 Dollar Dinners, and Saving Dollars and Sense.
3. Pinterest
This platform has taken the world by storm. Intensely visual and immensely popular, Pinterest is a great way to find deals…but it must be used differently than Facebook or Twitter. Pinterest is more static. Even old content gets pinned if it’s pretty; it doesn’t necessarily have to be current.
While you can (and should) search Pinterest for savings hashtags, I can’t guarantee your results will be current. But still try!
Better than hashtags are boards! Search for boards (not just pins) for savings, coupons, brands, etc. and follow them. Current content will be pinned there.
Create your own community savings board. Invite your favorite savings bloggers, family and friends to pin to it. This is a win-win. Pinners get more exposure for their pins and you get current savings delivered to your board.
4. Instagram & Vine
- While you may not happen to stumble across many coupon codes via Instagram or Vine, brands often host fun giveaways! So if you enjoy reposting images and videos for a chance to win your favorite products, join the fun. You can search the hashtags #giveaway #contest and #win on both these platforms.
I hope these easy steps help get you started saving money with social media. But this is just the beginning! What other ways do you use social media for savings?
Thanks Cheryl for guest posting today at BeltwayBargainMom!
Cheryl is a brand consultant and avid social media user. Her heart for strong family values and the companies that promote them, led her to found the 2:1 Conference – the only conference for homeschooling parents active in social media. You can find Cheryl at her blog Cheryl Pitt.
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