When I find something that I love I like to share it.  Here is a list of all of the resources, tips, tricks and tools that I use to make my life better. I’m always asked about these things like how I save money doing this or that, blogging tools and more.  I compiled this list for those who are asking me and everything is here in this one spot.

This post contains affiliate links, you can read more about that by reading my Disclosures here.

Saving Money

Don’t leave your money on the table, make the most of it!

• Ebates.  Do you shop online?  Of course you do, and so do I.  But not before I go through Ebates.  Ebates is an easy way to earn cash back when you shop online.  Let’s say you are going to order some shoes from Foot Locker.  Before you go to Foot Locker log in to your Ebates account (my computer keeps me logged in) and type in Foot Locker.  You’ll be provided with how much cash back you can get plus any available coupon codes.  You click on it and Ebates will take you to Footlocker.com and you will shop as usual.  But you’ll get paid for it.  Ebates does not take your information or know your credit card numbers.  It knows that you used their link to get yourself some extra coins for shopping as you usually would.  I’ve used Ebates for years now and I always tell my friends and family about it all the time.

If you have never used Ebates then join with my exclusive link and when you make your first purchase you’ll get $10 in your cash back account or a $10 gift card.  It’s super easy.  You can thank me later. 🙂

Also you can download the Ebates toolbar and it automatically lets you know how much cash back you can get at that store.  And you can use it some actual brick and mortar stores.  I’m telling you…best thing ever!!

• Ibotta— I love using Ibotta.  If you haven’t seen the commericals and you don’t already have it you can sign up here and get a $10 welcome bonus!  Ibotta is an easy way to save money in your favorite stores.  You don’t have to clip coupons if you don’t want to.  Just go into the Ibotta app before you shop and save the offers you want.  When you’re done shopping scan the barcodes and receipts and you’ll get money in your account!  I’ve saved hundreds of dollars with Ibotta and I use it all the time!

• Saving Star — Saving Star is similar to Ibotta, in that you look through the app for the offers you want and then when you purchase them you scan the receipt and get the cash back in your account.  Some stores make it even easier like Food Lion, where they have your mvp card on file and the savings automatically transfer to the app.  The great thing is that they have a low payout threshold at only $5 so it’s easy to get there and request a payout to your paypal account. Update as of 4/30/18:  Saving Star just upped their payout threshold to $20 but I still use it all the time.

BLOGGING

Hosting

Hosting is like paying rent.  It’s not where your blog resides but how it resides if that makes sense.  In order to have your domain (ex. blogsbyaria.com) you have to have a host (ex. landlord) in order to have that space.  Hopefully that makes sense.

• Bluehost – Bluehost is one of the most recognized names in blog hosting.  They’re great for their low cost options and they definitely have plenty of options!  You can get started with Bluehost for as low as $3.45/month.

• Siteground – Siteground is another top blog hosting company.  It is the company that I’ve chosen to host BlogsbyAria.com and I’ve been very pleased with their service.  You can get started with web hosting as low as $3.95/month.  I can also stand by their customer service.  You never know what real service is until you need them.  When I had my site mess up early one morning, I contacted Siteground’s customer service and in moments they had me back up and running!  Truly a life saver.

Blogging Tools

• StudioPress Themes — When you come to a blog and everything looks cohesive, that’s a theme.  There’s tons of themes out there, but the one that I use for my blog is StudioPress, specifically the Lifestyle theme.  I love how classic it is and it’s not too busy looking.

This page is always going to be “under construction” so check back often to see my latest updates 🙂