Daily Dose of Thrifty: Ask for a Discount

Today’s Daily Dose of Thrifty is something Thrifty Cas and I do all of the time!  By doing this simple little trick, you could save hundreds of dollars every year.

I know this is going to sound obvious.  It is.  But it works.  When you talk to a company regarding a product or service – ask if there is a discount or a coupon somewhere that you can use.  In addition, find out where to get the coupon/discount as well.  This works for restaurants, local businesses, national chain businesses, car repair shops. ANYTHING.

It never ceases to amaze us how often this really works.  Nearly every circumstance, we have been able to score a discount.  They want your business and most successful smart businesses throw out some sort of savings to lure the customers.  Especially in this economy.

Basic tips to ask for a discount

1. You can get this discount by calling ahead. This allows you the ability to grab that coupon or discount before you leave.  It may be in a local mailer, your newspaper, their website to print or elsewhere and you are better prepared before you go.
2. Whenever you are checking out, ask if they have a coupon or discount that they can offer you right on the spot. Surprisingly, this happens very frequently.  The most common places are local and national restaurants, local businesses or services and clothing stores.
3. Ask which offers and discounts can be combine. If you have multiple coupons for a business or restaurant, most of them will say “not to be combined with any other offer.”  However, often times we will ask beforehand exactly what discounts we could use together and we are usually pleasantly surprised at what they will combine.  We have found this especially at restaurants.  You could say something like “I have this coupon for a free kids meal and this coupon for $5 off our total bill – can we use both?”

Here’s some examples of what you can say.

First, this is about what Thrifty Cas says after all of the many times of listening to her ask: “I LOVE coupons and discounts – do you have any that we could use?  I would totally love it? ”  Then after she gets her coupon/discount she always thanks them with a “Thank you so much – You Rock!”  Yes, Thrifty Cas likes to live in the past (I refer to the “You Rock!” comment)  😉

I am not quite as enthusiastic as Thrifty Cas, but I usually say something like “Hey are there any discounts or coupons – I would appreciate it if you could help me out.”

Many times the response will be, “Actually yes, if you look in the phonebook in the back, we have a $5 off coupon”. Or “Head to our website and click on the about us page and you will see a coupon to print.”  This has saved us money and time as we did not have to hunt the dozens of possible sources!  Of course, always end with words of gratitude as they do not have to disclose the sources of savings.

Again, it NEVER hurts to ask, the answer might be “no,” but it could be (and generally is) something much better!

Thanks to ETFtrends.com for the photo.