I don’t know about you, but I seem to spend a lot of time shopping online. Because I live in a small town, and because I am so much taller than the average person, I NEED to shop online to get clothes that fit me! Oh, and I also spend a large amount of time with my good friend Amazon.com. No joke. I think as we become more electronically connected, ordering things and expecting them to arrive in two days is part of the instant gratification problem growing in society. I really don’t want this post to become a rant about instant gratification, so I’ll get to my point….
Shopping online!
Did you know that you can earn money back for shopping online at stores that you are shopping at anyway – and it hardly takes any effort? I have been using eBates (now called Rakuten) since 2012 and have made over $600 dollars! It is a painless
process to enroll. I even have an eBates/Rakuten button on my web browser. It is so cool because when I am shopping online at a store that participates with eBates, I get a little notification in the top corner telling me to activate my rebate before I check-out!
Here is how it works: You sign up for an Rakuten account. The stores you love to shop have to be participating in Rakuten. You shop online like you normally would, and you ‘activate’ a shopping trip with eBates. eBates then starts tracking what you purchase and reaches out to the store that you purchased from to verify the purchase. And BOOM – they apply the current rebate amount to your account. That is it! That is all! Once a quarter they send you a CHECK.
The rebate amounts per store can vary often, and special rebate discounts apply frequently (for instance sometimes 
JcPenney.com gives back 12% on your purchase). I find these Rakuten to be especially wonderful for back to school and Christmas shopping because I know that some of the cash that I am spending will come back to me soon! Most stores allow all their normal coupons and sales on TOP of the Rakuten! How can you loose???
<This paragraph contains an affiliate link. See my full disclosure.> Here is a link that you can use to sign up if you are interested in giving Rakuten a shot! There is no commitment on your part, other than to shop online like you normally do! The rebates just accumulate for you quarterly!
