Eight Ways To Make Your Money Go Further
Times can be seen as “tough” when it comes to the economy. Globally, companies are tightening their belts, although inflation doesn’t seem to be taking a break. Regardless of the state of the economy, practising responsible spending habits and investing savings where possible are always good habits to adopt.
We have put together eight ways that you can make your money go further, by making small, incremental changes in your life.
Buy Groceries In Bulk For The Month
Buying in bulk often comes at a cheaper cost. Making use of bulk varieties of products or shopping at a cash and carry retailer will save you loads over the month. Buy all your non-perishables in bulk, such as rice, pasta, canned goods, pet foods etc – and keep them stored conveniently for when you need them.
Being aware of what products cost at different establishments will help you manage your expenditure that much easier. The products you use will always be available on special at one time or another. Buy them in bulk during this time to save an extra R10 or R20 with each product.
Use Your Own Reusable Shopping Bags
Not only do using reusable shopping bags prevent excessive waste and pressure on the environment, but they also save you money. Not many people take note of how much each plastic shopping bag costs, but they all add up. Reduce your waste by using reusable bags and reduce the expense of your monthly shopping.
Make Use Of Loyalty Programmes
Loyalty programmes are in place to thank customers for shopping at a certain establishments, or for making use of a particular product. For example: large retailers might reward you with points for every rand spent. These points accumulate and can be used to pay for shopping. There are no strings attached, only rewards. Other rewards could be free gifts or discounts. If you’re going to be buying your groceries or pharmaceuticals at a specific shop, then you might as well benefit from their loyalty programmes too.
Create A List Of Essentials And Luxuries
Often, we mistake luxuries as essentials that we don’t actually need. Creating a list of essentials versus luxuries will help you identify what it is you really need to get through a month, and what is a nice to have. While it might seem important to have matching bag and heels, this is something we could do without. Put the bag and heels on the luxuries list and save them for a month when you have a lot of surplus cash and can afford them. Or you could ask for them as a birthday gift.
Track Expenses
Keep track of all your expenses made on a daily basis, down to your bank charges and other fees. Even the R10 given to a car guard counts as money spent, as does the R35 cappuccino you bought on your way into work. By tracking every cent spent, you can see what areas sap up most of your earnings. It could be buying take-out when you’re too lazy to cook. Or it could be paying for rounds of drinks when you really can’t afford to. Be responsible with your money and say no to the things that are unnecessary.
Create Budgets For Each Spending Group
When you track your expenses, divide your expenditure into different groups. These could be the following:
- Living expenses, such as rent, bond or levies
- Utilities, such as rates, water and lights
- School fees
- Related educational requirements or extra murals
- Groceries
- Contracts, such as cellphone bills
- Insurance, such as medical aid and life insurance
- Pension or retirement annuity
- Entertainment
- Eating out, coffees, lunches etc
- Clothing, including school uniforms etc
- Self-care, such as gym, vitamins, skincare and haircare products
Under each group, create a budget for the money that absolutely needs to be spent in that area, and then also what you would like to be able to spend. Often that divide can be met on a good month, but if it can’t then it doesn’t fit into your budget and you need to be strict about not buying it.
Host A Clothes Swap Party
Get your friends together for a day of fun and food and get everyone to bring a few items of clothing that they want to give away or no longer wear. Everyone can take turns choosing items to swap, making your clothing go further and preventing having to shop for new items. You could walk away with an entirely new outfit for nothing!
Host Events At Home Instead Of Going Out
Entertainment can be a huge contributing factor to overspending. Meals and drinks at bars or restaurants are overpriced, plus you always need to tip your waiter or bar staff, which can become costly. By getting creative about what you do with your friends, you can save money, petrol and also enjoy more intimate company at the same time. Think about the ways that you can entertain from your home, without being overly lavish:
- Get a group of friends together and take turns cooking for one another. You could take it up a notch by making it a “Come Dine With Me” experience where each couple or family gets marked on their dishes and presentation.
- Have a monthly braai at your home, where everyone brings their own meat and drinks, and you supply salads and breads.
- Host a movie night where you rent a movie from iTunes or another online resource, and everyone brings a plate of snacks to share while you enjoy the movie.
- Meet up in public parks for picnics and a game of cricket or soccer. Again, everyone brings a plate of food to share and each person is responsible for their own drinks.
Photo by Blake Wisz on Unsplash.