One way to stretch your hard earned dollar is to buy discounted gift cards.
This is especially true if you are loyal to a particular retailer or merchant.
But before you start shopping for cards, you have to do your homework.
Here is how: The most secure place to look is the secondary market.
A number of websites have popped up within the last 5 years that buy and sell gift cards.
Do a Google search for the keyword "Buy Discounted Gift Cards" and review the first five companies that show up in your search results.
Here is what to look for: 1.
How long has the company been in business? Anything less than two years is a red flag.
Websites pop up every month claiming to buy and sell cards only to shut down a few months later, so you want to make sure the company you are dealing with has been around for a while.
2.
See what customers are saying about the company buy further refining your search to focus on each company and what kind of reviews they've gotten, both from customers and the news media.
In this day and age, a company that is running a dishonorable service is guaranteed to be exposed online soon.
3.
Once you have settled on the companies you think are potentials, visit their website and make sure they have a 100% money back guarantee on the gift cards they sell.
You want to deal with a company that stands behind their cards.
4.
Finally, call the company or email them to see how responsive they are.
When you are buying committing your hard earned money to make online purchases, you want to be sure that the company will be responsive should something go wrong.
If you call or email and do not get a response back within a reasonable period, stay away from that company.
Once you thoroughly go through the four criteria outlined above, you are ready to explore the world of discounted cards.
The average discount is usually 10%, but can go as high as 30%.
However, this all depends on the popularity of the card.
The more people want the card, the less the discount is going to be.
But planning ahead and being patient can land you some great deals on some of the most popular brands.