Parenting

The Best Of Back-To-School And Fall Shopping…At A Savings

Posted: 12/5/2010

(NAPSI) - As summer comes to an end and fall is upon us, parents reminisce about their own first days of school and all the preparation needed to start the school year. It wasn't too long ago that the best ways to save money and get the best prices on back-to-school items from trendy clothing to school supplies included time spent scouring the newspapers and weekend ads for early-bird sales notices and clipping savings coupons. Today, saving money and keeping up with fall trends is much easier with stores right at our fingertips through online shopping. It is an experience the entire family can be involved in, keeping kids happy with the latest trends and parents smiling with significant savings.

Here are a few tips for taking advantage of the best back-to-school shopping deals, without ever leaving the comfort of your home:

1) Have a Single Site Do Your Savings Homework. Instead of endless Web searching for the best deals--visiting one site for backpacks, another for clothing and yet another for electronics--enjoy the ease of one-stop shopping at sites like MasterCard MarketPlace™ (www.mastercardmarketplace.com). MasterCard cardholders receive access to special discounts and deals from thousands of merchants on everything from that trendy first day of school outfit to computers and must-have school tech gadgets.

2) Get the Kids Involved. Take advantage of this opportunity to teach the importance of saving and budgeting, and the value of finding great deals. Through this interactive shopping experience with your kids, they can see how programs like Overwhelming Offers™ on MasterCard Marketplace can save money and they can have fun while doing it. Every weekday at noon Eastern (except weekends and holidays), MasterCard provides you with access to deep discounts of 50 percent or more on popular products. A special countdown clock featured on the site tells you how many seconds remain until the reservation is available.

3) Go Mobile. These days, you don't have to be tied to your desk to get discounts. Use your smartphone to take advantage of the best back-to-school deals that retailers have to offer by finding coupons and discounts and getting up-to-the-minute sales information. Download the MasterCard MarketPlace Overwhelming Offers iPhone® application (available for the iPad®, too) to have these deals delivered to your mobile device daily.

Today, saving money and keeping up with fall trends is much easier with stores right at our fingertips through online shopping.