According to Consumer Reports, more then 13 million shoppers are still in debt from last years holiday spending. Check out these 12 holiday money mistakes to avoid.

1. Discount Fixation: Just because the item is on sale doesn’t mean it’s a good deal on a quality product.
2. No Budget: Create a list of all the people you need to shop for an associate a budget to each gift…stick to it.
3. Debit Dangers: Debt cards don’t have the same protection that a credit card does, if you have an issue with a product you must report it to your bank within 2 days to prevent being stuck with the entire cost.
4. Return policy missteps: SAVE THE RECEIPTS!
5. Being low-tech: Coupons and specials are always circulating twitter and facebook, not having a smartphone puts you at a disadvantage.
6. Extended Warranties: The manufacturers warranty should protect you from product defects, don’t waste money on an extended warranty up front when you can put that money into savings for repairs if needed.
7. Black Friday Blunders: Long lines and crowds can cause panic and careless shopping, always come with a plan.
8. Gift Card Gaps: Be weary of gift card auctions since cards may be counterfeit and/or obtained illegally.
9. Shipping Costs: Everyone seems to be offering free shipping as an incentive to purchase goods, make sure they are items you really need, not just because you get free shipping out of the deal.
10. Store Credit Cards: Using your store credit card seems like a good idea when you’re saving 20% but remember the high interest rates and late fees that can come with those cards.
11. Exposing your ID: Take precautions when online shopping so you don’t become a victim of identity theft.
12. Fear of Negotiating: Don’t be fearful of negotiating better prices on items such as appliances or jewelry.

Follow these 12 surefire tips to staying in budget and being holiday debt free on 2011.

The anticipation of checking your email and finding out what the Groupon deal of the day will be brings excitement and many desirable discounts! If you have not heard of the website Groupon which offers 1 deal per day according to your zip code, you have probably been living under a rock.

Two years ago, 29 year old Andrew Mason founded Groupon and now employees nearly 1,000 people. The Groupon site emails its members daily with over 200 discounts on multiple retail websites – deals only become “active” or avalible to be purchased when the first person agrees to make the purchase – the deal expires if it does not reach the minimum number or people willing to purchase and becomes unavailable to anyone.

Groupon is currently described by Forbes as “the world’s fastest growing company”, which may give insight to Google placing an offer on the table to purchase the site for $5.3 billion. Yahoo reportedly offered Mason $2 billion in April of 2010, but the deal did not close because the dollar amount was not enough.

Groupon makes its money by taking a cut of each sale and has a projected turnover of $500 million this year. In June Groupon registered 8 million subscribers to its daily email, with nearly 12 million unique visitors monthly to its website.

CALLING ALL PUBLISHERS!!!!

Leadpile is looking for additional traffic to our holiday payday loan offer. This is the time of the year when trying to match up those consumers with the much needed holiday cash is important. If you are looking at generating additional revenue during this holiday season, reach out to your Leadpile Affiliate Manager. We will accept PPC, SEO, email, and banner traffic to this offer. Payouts are up to $96.00!