Groupon-ing and Other Means of Saving Dough

Groupon, the hugely popular daily-deal email coupon, has been a raving success amoungst my 20-somethings friends. I don't know if it's just the fact that there are instant deals sent daily straight to your inbox, which make no planning necessary, or it's the lure of deep discounts on anything from a manicure to sushi at a cool new place in town that make the daily deal site so popular, but either way, my friends are OBSESSED.

So, I decided to check it out. Because, as of now, i DON'T Groupon. Why? Well, mainly because I don't like my already-flooded inbox to be dumped on by a company that is trying to sell me "50% off a mud facial that usually costs $100,000." Great. That REALLY helps. But, in order to not be skeptical, I've tried it out to see if it really is applicable to my lifestyle and needs.

I'll keep you updated, but in the mean time, check out these other daily-deal sites and see which works for you and your budget.

1. LivingSocial: This site was mostly geared toward women, but it's market is growing rapidly.
2. BuyWithMe: BuyWithMe lets the buyer who doesn't do well with the "YOU HAVE TO BUY IT RIGHT NOW" advertising gimmick have up to 7 days to think about a purchase. It does, however, not guarantee deals until a certain number of buyers have jumped on (hence the name: "BuyWithMe")
3. 8Coupons: This deal-generator does well to offer its customers an option of searching by zip code for the best deals in their area if their city doesn't have a daily deal site.