This is Dave Gates reporting in for my third Jewel-Osco Saturday Morning Sampler Savings Report.
Are you wondering what this is all about? Well for starters, I though it would be interesting to report how much I’ve saved by redeeming the coupons for free items at our local grocery store.
Secondly, I like building blogs and this experiment offers me the opportunity to create content and learn new skills.
We live in the Chicago-Land area and one of the major groceries stores is Jewel-Osco. This year I signed up for their MyMixx rewards program and downloaded their smart phone app.
A lot of blogs publish income reports on how much their blogs are earning. I’ve decided to take this concept and turn it around a bit.
Instead of reporting on how much my blog is making, I plan to report on how much I’m saving by redeeming coupons for free items. It’s just a little experiment, but it will be interesting to see how this plays out.
disclaimer: Some of the links below are affiliate links. If you have any questions about any of the information from this report, please leave a comment and I’ll reply very early in the morning before the wife and kid wake up.
Our report includes the following.
- SAVINGS THIS MONTH
- YEAR TO DATE SAVINGS
- NUMBER OF COUPONS REDEEMED
- LIST OF ITEMS
- WEBSITE TRAFFIC
- EMAIL LIST
- BLOG UPDATES
- MOVING FORWARD
SAVINGS THIS MONTH March ($28.40)
YEAR TO DATE SAVINGS ($49.46)
NUMBER OF COUPONS REDEEMED = 11
LIST OF ITEMS
1. Cinnamon Pebbles Cereal 11 oz ($3.49)
2. Yoplait Dippers or Custard ($1.67)
3. Body Armor Sports Drink 28 oz ($1.99 )
4. Milka Oreo 1.4 oz ($1.00)
5. Chobani Flip 5.32 oz (1.50)
6. Starbucks Black Iced Coffee 11 oz ($1.99)
7. Simply Organic Doritos 7.5 oz ($3.99)
8. Sunny D (1.49 )
9. Ling Ling Frozen Fried Rice ($6.99)
10. Teddy SoftBakes 6.1.6 oz ($3.29)
11. Milka Oreo 1.4 oz ($1.00)
WEBSITE TRAFFIC
Traffic Overview
Most the traffic was from me updating and modifying the blog. We do see a slight increase in activity. Not a ton of traffic, but we are slowing growing. Any blogger will tell you there is a lot of work behind creating the articles and maintaining a blog. But it is actually fun and interesting. I’m glad I found the Jewel-Osco Saturday Morning Sampler items as something to blog about.
If you are enjoying these reports please share and comment. I’d really appreciate it.
March 1 – 24, 2017
Here are the top traffic sources.
Once again the traffic is me working from my computer and phone.
And finally mobile vs desktop vs tablet statistics.
Yes, that would be me on my phone and computer. The numbers are still pretty low. But I have no way to go but up. Building a blog is a slow process. It’s not a get rich quick business. I’m here for the long haul, so I don’t mind.
EMAIL LIST
One of the things I find most challenging is developing and growing a mailing list. I’ve signed up and registered for an email newsletter service with MailChimp.
My plan is to track the growth of this list. Since I just joined in January, we have a great base to start with. Oh, and that one additional subscriber would be me. Yes, another beginner statistic. I used another email address to make sure my list is actually working. I should spend more time on this. One reason I haven’t been focusing on it is because I’m wanting to add more content and evergreen articles.
For all you long time bloggers, I know you’ve always said to start growing your list. Well, now is your opportunity to join my list and help grow this thing.
BLOG UPDATES
I’m still loving my theme from Studiopress. I highly recommend them.
I’ve also put together a page that shows “How to Start Your WordPress Blog Today.” This is filled with affiliate links for Bluehost, the web host of our choice. Yes, I’m still happy with their hosting and services.
I’ve been working on the monthly report you are reading here. My plan is to publish a report each month, or until they stop offering free items.
I’ve been writing other content for the blog. Most notable is that I’ve added books to the sidebar on what I’m currently reading. I have a long list of books I’ve read in the past and plan to add these to some sort of list in the near future. I’m looking forward to revisiting some older books I have both in my personal library and one’s I’ve borrowed from my local library.
Thanks to those of you who have commented and for keeping me on my toes. It is greatly appreciated.
MOVING FORWARD
The plan for now is to continue visiting my local Jewel-Osco on Saturday morning’s for their Free items. Three months have gone by pretty quick and I’m amazed at how much I’ve saved and how this blog thing is turning out.
I’ll also be working on tweaking the blog, newsletter and writing. Stayed tuned, and please leave me a comment, don’t be shy!!
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Sign up for our newsletter. I look forward to hearing from you.
Dave
