1)     Shop for groceries in the 1^st week of the month

 

During the 1^st week of the month, most online and offline marketplaces and retail stores come out with offers. These offers include a combination of deep discounts on individual products on MRP from the marketplace/merchant, credit/debit card discount offers, cashback from the marketplace, etc.

 

For example, usually, Amazon comes up with the “Super Value Days” sale on Amazon Fresh products between the 1^st and 7^th of every month. The sale primarily consists of the combination of the following three benefits:

 

a)     Up to 45% discount on individual products on MRP from the marketplace/merchants

b)     Up to 10% discount on credit/debit cards from various banks

c)     Amazon Pay cashback on Amazon Fresh purchases of or above a specified minimum order value

 

Amazon Super Value Day offer for March 2024

 

Source: Amazon website

 

The above image shows the combination of cashback and credit/debit card offers on Amazon Fresh during the Super Value Days sale (applicable for March 2024).

 

Similarly, you can find offers on the BigBasket website usually during the first 10 days of the month. These offers are a combination of discounts on MRP and credit/debit card offers. When you visit the BigBasket website through the Tata Neu App or Tata Digital website, you can get additional Neu Coins (1 Neu Coin = Re. 1).

 

Offline retailers like Reliance Retail, Star Bazaar, etc. also come out with good sale offers during the 1^st week of the month.

 

2)     Buy medicines through online apps

Do you or someone in your family suffer from some lifestyle illness like diabetes, high blood pressure, etc., that requires medicines regularly? In such a scenario, you can order medicines from an online app/website like Tata 1mg, Apollo 24/7, Flipkart Health+, Netmeds, Amazon Pharmacy, etc. You can get up to 25% discount on MRP for prescription medicines. Along with that, you can get an additional discount on usage of credit/debit cards.

 

For example, Tata 1mg is running the Health Refuel sale from 1-5^th March. When you purchase medicines during the sale, you can get the following benefits:

 

a)     Up to 23% off on MRP

b)     Additional discount of up to 5% for Care Plan members (subscription plan)

c)     Up to 5% Neu Coins for payments with the Tata Neu Infinity HDFC Bank Credit Card

d)     250 Neu Coins under the Neu Payday Sale when you place the order through the Tata Neu App / Tata Digital website. Minimum order value Rs. 2,500. (This offer is usually applicable on the 1^st weekend of the month)

 

Tata Neu Payday sale offer

 

 

 

Source: Tata Neu App

 The above offer is applicable on orders placed on various Tata group brands (including Tata 1mg) through the Tata Neu App / Tata Digital website. The offer is applicable on specified dates for a specified minimum order value.

Similarly, for prescription medicines, you can get a combination of various offers, including discounts on MRP, credit/debit card discounts, cashbacks from the marketplace, etc., with other pharmacy/wellness apps.

 

You can also explore discount offers with other pharmacy companies with offline stores like Apollo Pharmacy, MedPlus, etc.

 

3)     For movies, opt for BOGO offers

For movies, you can go for the Buy One, Get One (BOGO) offer that is available on some debit/credit cards on BookMyShow. You can check the offers page (https://in.bookmyshow.com/offers) on the BookMyShow website, which has the listing of all offers on credit cards, debit cards, wallets, pay later programs, and any other loyalty programs.

 

Some of the offers that you will come across include:

 

a)     Buy One, Get One (BOGO)

b)     Up to 50% discount on tickets

c)     Up to a specified amount of discount on tickets, etc.

 

Some cards give you the option for choosing BookMyShow vouchers on fulfilment of certain offers, such as:

 

a)     Monthly/quarterly milestones

b)     Spend based offers

c)     Welcome/renewal benefits, etc.

 

4)     For dining out use membership apps

Eating out on weekends is a trend these days. However, eating out with family every weekend can burn a big financial hole in your pocket. To save money in this category, you can subscribe to an app like EazyDiner or Swiggy Dineout. These apps give you up to 50% discount on dining deals at partner restaurants. You can get an additional discount of up to 15% on credit/debit cards. Some credit cards can give you free membership of these apps as a regular feature (card renewal) or for a limited period as part of some offer.

 

Similarly, for ordering food at home/office, you can use Swiggy/Zomato. You can get a combination of benefits like discounts from listed restaurants, discounts from Swiggy/Zomato, additional discounts and free delivery for Swiggy One and Zomato Gold members, discounts on debit/credit cards, etc.

 

5)     Utility bill payments

Certain credit cards give you benefits in the form of discounts/cashbacks for utility bill payments. For example, the Airtel Axis Bank Credit Card gives the following benefits on utility bill payments:

 

a)     25% cashback on Airtel mobile, broadband, WiFi, and DTH bill payments via the Airtel Thanks App.

b)     10% cashback on electricity and gas bill payments via the Airtel Thanks App

 

Please note, there are limits on the maximum cashback that you can earn in a month.

 

Similarly, you can save money on fuel (petrol, diesel, etc.) through various co-branded credit cards. These are offered via tie-ups with the three oil marketing companies (BPCL, HPCL, and IOC) by banks like IDFC FIRST Bank, Axis Bank, SBI Card, etc.

 

6)     Go fashion shopping during a sale

Garments and personal accessories are a big-ticket expense for some people. To save money in this category, you can shop during sale events. For example, the Myntra End of Reason Sale (EORS) is held 3-4 times a year. During the sale, you can get high discounts of up to 70% along with additional discounts on credit/debit cards. During the same time, other online merchants like Amazon, Flipkart, Nykaa, etc., also announce their sales events.

 

Offline retailers like Lifestyle, Shoppers Stop, Pantaloons, Westside, etc. announce sale events multiple times during the year on events like Republic Day, Independence Day, Monsoon, Diwali, etc. You can make the most of these sale events and maximise your savings on fashion and personal accessories.

 

7)     Salon and spas

Just like fashion, salon and spa visits are another big-ticket expense for some people. To save money in this category, you can buy prepaid vouchers from a website like www.NearBuy.com. On this website, you can get discounted deals on categories like:

 

a)     Salons

b)     Spas and massages

c)     Restaurant dining offers

d)     Health offers (body check-ups, dental procedures, etc.)

e)     Entertainment offers (games, amusement parks, outdoor activities, etc.)

 

8)     For consumer durables and gadgets shop during the Diwali sale

During Diwali, Amazon (Great Indian Festival) and Flipkart (Big Billion Days) announce their biggest sale of the year. Other online and offline merchants announce their sale during the same time. It is the best time to buy big-ticket items like consumer durables, home appliances, gadgets and other electronic appliances.

 

During the sale, you will get benefits like:

 

a)     Huge discounts of up to 50% on MRP

b)     Up to 10% discount on credit/debit cards

c)     Additional discount on credit/debit cards, if your order amount is above a specified amount (usually slab-wise, with higher the order amount, the higher the discount amount)

d)     Cashback from the merchant

e)     Extended warranty on products either free or at a nominal cost

f)      Good exchange offers

 

During Diwali, some banks announce spend-based festive offers. If you spend a specified amount during the offer period, you get additional benefits in the form of a gift voucher of choice. So, you can club this credit card benefit also along with the above benefits.

 

For example, American Express comes out with a festive spend-based offer during the Diwali period. Different cardholders may get a different offer. An example of an offer can include: Spend Rs. 50,000 during the offer period and get an Amazon/Flipkart gift voucher of Rs. 2,000.

 

9)     Domestic or international vacations

An annual domestic or international vacation with family can by far be the biggest annual expenditure for some people. Here too, you can save money by booking flight tickets and hotel accommodation during sale offers announced by online travel aggregators (OTAs) like MakeMyTrip, Yatra, EaseMyTrip, etc.

 

However, the best way to enjoy a vacation is by doing it free of cost. Yes, it is possible to do that using your credit card reward points. When you use credit cards for all the above categories discussed so far, you will save money in the form of direct discounts and also earn reward points. The reward points can be used for booking flight tickets and hotel accommodation for your vacation.

 

Some banks like HDFC Bank allow you to book flight tickets and hotel accommodation through their SmartBuy portal using credit card reward points. Axis Bank allows you to transfer your credit card reward points to Club Vistara (CV), the Frequent Flyer Program (FFP) of Vistara and to FFPs of some international airlines. The loyalty points of the FFP can then be used to book free flight tickets .

 

Banks like HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, American Express, etc. allow you to transfer credit card reward points to some hotel loyalty programs. Some of these include Accor Live Limitless (ALL), Marriott Bonvoy, Club ITC, etc. You can then use the hotel loyalty points to book your free hotel stay[. You can also use credit card reward points to buy gift vouchers of brands like Taj Hotels and further use the vouchers for booking hotel accommodation.

 

You can continue enjoying life and still save money for investments

In this article, we have discussed nine important categories on which most individuals spend money. However, you may or may not be saving the maximum possible money in each of these categories. After reading this article, you will have a clear idea of how you can maximise your savings from these categories without compromising on the lifestyle that you are currently enjoying. The savings from these categories can then be channelled into investments through mutual fund SIPs towards fulfilling your future financial goals. Thus, using the above saving techniques, you can continue enjoying the present, and at the same time save and invest towards securing your future.