A Word of Caution: Mystery Shopping

Awhile ago, I posted this Tip of the Day Tuesday post about Mystery Shopping. I recently had a reader contact me about a mystery shopping opportunity that she had received. She was wondering if it was legit.

The scenario they wanted her to carry out went something like this: They were going to send her a $3000+ check and she was to cash it and then spend some at Walmart ($100 or so), some at a restaurant), and then take the rest and send it back to them via Money Gram.

If you get an offer like this, please do not sign up and if you get a check in the mail from a company claiming to be a mystery shopping company with an offer like this, please do not cash the check. This is a scam and the check ends up bouncing and you end up losing a lot of money. If a mystery shopping offer sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

You can read more about this particular scam here.

There is a list of legitimate, reputable mystery shopping companies here on Volition.com. Even if you receive an offer from a company on this list and it sounds too good to be true, you may want to do some more research. Some scam companies are using the names of legitimate mystery shopping companies to trick people.

It’s Redbox Wednesday – get your free movie code!

I love that Walgreens has the Redbox machines right there. As I was out making my trips this morning (I’ll post about that later today), I was able to get Marley & Me for our family to watch tonight for FREE!

Today’s free movie code is: MMM401. You can use the code once per card (so technically, you can get more than one if you have the time to watch more than one in one night!)

On Mondays and Wednesdays (through this week), they have promotional codes for free movies.

Sign up to have the Monday code texted to your phone here. You can find the Wednesday codes here on their blog.

If you are new to using Redbox, Dealseeking Mom has a great tutorial here.

Enjoy your free movie!

Instant Win Wednesday: Hellman’s, Little Caesar’s, Nature’s Bounty

Here are the instant win games for the week:

Hellmans/Best Foods Build the Perfect Sandwich: Click here to enter to win a $10,000 check for yourself and 10 $1,000 checks to share with your friends (how popular would you be then?!), a $50 grocery gift card, a Cuisinart Panini & sandwich press and mayo coupons, or a KitchenAid mixing bowl set/silicon spatula/spoon and mayo coupons.

Little Caesars Buzz In to Win: Click here to enter (you will have to register with Pepsi.com to enter). You will need a code and this one works: X7YR4XK7C42. Enter to win a PSP system with a copy of BUZZ!™ Master Quiz OR a PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system with a copy of Buzz!™ The Mega Quiz, a copy of BUZZ!™ The Hollywood Quiz and BUZZ!™ Jr. RoboJam OR a PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system with a copy of Buzz!™ Quiz TV (ends 4/27/09)

Nature’s Bounty Health Journal: Register to enter the sweepstakes and win a spa getaway for 2 to Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn & Spa in San Francisco, CA. Play the instant win game and win $100 Spa Finder gift card, $50 Spa Finder gift card, RePETe ChicoBag, or Nature’s Bounty Reycleable tote bag. Click here to enter (ends 6/30/09)

Here is a link to the instant win games from previous weeks (some may be expired)

GOOD LUCK!

New Target printables and other deals for the week


Here are the current Target deals. If you know of another deal that’s not listed here, please feel free to share!

WEEKLY DEALS:

Buy any 5 Pepsi 6 pk bottles or 12 pk cans, get a $5 Target gift card: prices were not listed in my ad. If you have the coupons from the Frito Lay rebate (and a Target $5 gift card to “roll”), and need Pepsi products, this might be a good deal.

All Leapster games and accessories are on sale. Some games are on sale for $15 (Wall-E and Star Wars Jedi Math are listed in the ad). There are $5 printable coupons on coupons.com (you can print them from the blue sidebar link) and there was a $5 off $35 coupon in a recent home mailer.

Here’s my plan: Buy Disney Princess Leapster game (listed at $18.99 online) and buy Leapster Scholastic Puzzles game (listed at $18.99 online). Use 2 $5 printable coupons and the $5 off $35 coupon. Spend $22.98 OOP.

New printable coupons are up on Target.com:(these coupons expire 4/25/09)

*$1 off Market Pantry® fruit snacks

*75¢ off 11- or 12-oz. Dunkin’ Donuts coffee

*75¢ off 6-pk. Gatorade beverage

*$1 off With purchase of two 8-pk. Nutri-grain bars

*55¢ off Splenda sweetener
.55/1 Splenda, Any – All You, February 20, 2009

*$1 off With purchase of two Betty Crocker Warm Delights microwave desserts
.50/1 Betty Crocker Warm Delights Bowls or Mini Bowls, Any – 02-08-09 GM

*$1 off 1-lb. or more Archer Farms® deli cheese Deli Dept.

*$1 off Archer Farms® pork fillets Herb or Teriyaki or Chipotle

*$1 off Dole bagged saladThese are on sale 2/$5 this week. There were $1/2 blinkie coupons at my store, so this will make a good deal on salad.

*50¢ off With purchase of two Gerber Graduates toddler foodsCheck out Gerber.com for printable coupons. There are also home mailer coupons that match up with this.

*75¢ off Johnson’s baby toiletry Excludes trial size – these coupons are good for almost a month, so wait for a sale on Johnsons products, and then stock up!
$3/3 printable coupon here
$1/1 Baby Bubble bath and wash printable here
$2/2 Johnsons printable here

These coupons are no longer available on Target.com, but you can access them through the coupon generators on HCW and AFC (these expire 4/11/09)

*$1 off Archer Farms® artisan bread Bakery Dept.
There are small “artisan breads” priced at $.99 in the bakery area, so they are FREE with the coupon!

*$1 off 5-lb. bag Green Giant Russet Potatoes Excludes organic

*1.50 off 1-lb. or more Archer Farms® bulk deli meat Deli Dept.

*50¢ off Hostess snack cakes
.50/1 Hostess Snack Cakes, Any Family Size Package – 02-22-09 RP
.50/1 Hostess 100 Calorie Packs, Any – 01-11-09 RP
.50/1 Hostess 100 calorie packs printable here

*50¢ off Ming Tsai frozen meals

*$1 off 40-ct. Bagel Bites
$1/2 printable coupon here

*$1 off With purchase of two Eggo frozen waffles

*$1 off Cheetos snack
Buy the small bags by the registers. They are priced at $1.19 at my stores, so $.19 after coupon!

*$1 off Pop Secret popcorn
$1/2 Pop Secret microwave popcorn, any boxes – 03-08-09 SS
$1/2 Pop-Secret Microwave Popcorn, Any Boxes – 02-08-09 GM
$1/2 Pop Secret Microwave Popcorn, Any – Eat Better America booklet (click on the link to get your free coupon book in the mail – mine came really fast!)

*$1 off 5.5-oz. Febreeze candle
Febreze Candle (1) And Get (1) Febreze Air Effects Free – 03-01-09 PG

*$1 off Pledge furniture care product
$3/2 Pledge products, $2 off Pledge multi-surface cleaner, $2 off Pledge Fabric sweeper for pets printable coupons here

OTHER DEALS:

Gillette Men’s Body Wash/Shampoo – Target carries a smaller size (8 oz) that is $2. use the $2/1 coupons from the 3/1 PG insert and get them for free! (my husband LOVES this stuff). In my stores, these have been on a special end cap display.

Huggies Gentle Care wipes – If you have the “original” Huggies Gentle Care coupon, it says good on “ANY” Gentle Care item. The bags of wipes are priced at $5.49 this week making them $.49/bag with the $5 off coupon. Please check the wording on your coupon. The newer coupons specify ‘on diapers only.’

Awesome clearance deals – Target.com has some AWESOME clearance deals right now. I used gift cards I got from Swagbucks and got my daughter several pairs of PJs for $3.75/each and for boys, they have long-sleeved college sports tees for $3.49 and hoodies for $4.49. If you spend $50, you get free shipping (you can also do returns in store). Don’t forget to shop through Ebates to get 4% cash back (you also get a $5 bonus if you are registering for the first time after your first purchase credits).

Here are the links to some of the clearance deals:
*Toddler girls
*Girls (4-14)
*Toddler boys
*Boys (4-14)
*General clearance

It’s Redbox Wednesday: Here’s your free code

Today’s free movie code is: MMM325

On Mondays and Wednesdays, they have promotional codes for free movies.

Sign up to have the Monday code texted to your phone here. You can find the Wednesday codes here on their blog. The free Wednesday code will continue through the first week in April.

If you are new to using Redbox, Dealseeking Mom has a great tutorial here.

Enjoy your free movie!