Managing your money doesn’t need to be painful. Whether you’re looking to purchase your first home, go on an expensive holiday, or you’ve popped the question and you’re saving up for a wedding – these simple saving tips can help you achieve your goal.
What’s inside our blogger box?
We sent a savers blogger box to our favourite thrifty bloggers to help them on their way to their goal. The box included:
• Light box – daily inspiration for what you’re saving for.
• Busy B Oh-So-Clever Budget Planner Notebook – to keep track of all outgoings and to make a note of monthly budgets.
• Travel Suitcase Money box – to save spending money for travelling or a holiday.
• Calculator – for all those difficult budgeting equations.
• Food planning sheets – to plan your weekly meals and save money on last minute takeaways.
• Cotton Re-usable bags – for saving money on plastic bags (and the environment).
• Lonely Planet Best Things in Life Are Free Book – as the old adage goes, the best things in life really are free, and this book explains them all.
• Bag of chocolate coins – because they’re tasty.
Simple saving techniques
Saving money isn’t always fun, but it can be easy. Follow the tips below and you’ll be further along to your saving goal in no time.
Decide a savings target
Saving without a goal or ultimate target can make it tougher to keep focused. Figure out the exact figure you need to save to achieve your goal and the time you’d like to reach it, then use this to set a monthly savings target.
This will help you create a weekly budget for everything you spend money on: entertainment, travel, food, bills, etc. Once your budget is in place, you can make informed decisions about how often you can go out socialising, scale down some of the subscriptions you may have, or do your food shop at a cheaper supermarket.
Cut down on TV
At £147 a year, a TV license isn’t cheap. Instead of forking out for a pricey TV package, why not save some money with an online streaming service instead.
Be careful not to get caught out however – the BBC iPlayer now requires a TV license to watch recordings and non-live TV, so you won’t be able to use this service without one.
Staying in is the new going out
One of the biggest outgoings for many people is going out – whether that’s out on the town on Saturday night, heading to the pub after work on a Friday, or trips to the cinema or theatre – entertainment can be pricey.
Try creating a monthly entertainment budget, then stick to it. To keep costs down, replace previously expensive activities with cheaper alternatives, for example, instead of going out, why not invite some friends over for drinks? Or arrange a movie night – the popcorn is certainly cheaper from a supermarket than a cinema!
Get on your bike
If possible, cycling to work can cut down on commuting costs – not to mention keep you fit and healthy – so, consider investing a bike rather than a car.
Many companies offer a cycle to work scheme, whereby your employer will cover a percentage of the cost of bike from a wide range of retailers across the UK.
Get a SIM only contract
A mobile phone contract that includes a brand-new smartphone can be an expensive undertaking, with many contracts around the £50 mark for the latest device.
It’s worth remembering that most smartphone contracts, over the course of two years, will cost £200+ more than buying the handset and using a SIM only deal instead.
If your contract is running down, before renewing, have a look at the resale value of your current phone – it may go some way towards purchasing a new device, and allow you to make significant monthly savings with a SIM only contract.
Lose the lunches
Buying lunch every day at work can really add up, even a cheaper option, such as meal deal from a supermarket, could cost £785 over a year! Bringing a packed lunch or leftover meals from the night before can be a simple way of saving money. Try to cook a couple more portions than you need on weekday evenings, then bring in the extra portions to work.
Becoming a better saver
Ultimately, only you can motivate yourself to be a better saver. But we’re confident that the sense of achievement you’ll feel after making sacrifices to achieve your goal will make it all worth it.
Got any super saving tips or saving success stories you’d like to share? Get in touch on Facebook or Twitter!