I know how it’s like living a college life. After all, I spent 5 years on books, fast food and counting my money to make sure that I could survive the next semester. When it comes to saving, buying discounted stuff matters a lot to students and that’s what College Budget website is all about. But are their offers really that good? This review will unveil the truth.
How Does College Budget Work
This site is very similar to Groupon online shopping, except that it’s catered to college students. You will need an .edu email in order to purchase the deals at a discounted rate. After that, you can claim the voucher from the product company before the deal ends. Besides that, you can also earn $5 within 10 days when you refer a friend to purchase something from the site.
In case you are wondering, here’s how a deal listing looks like.
Sounds like a good offer, right?
But…This Site Could Be Outdated
Well, upon further investigation, these are things that I found;
1) College Budget claims to offer deals on a daily basis, but when I checked the site over several days, there were only 10 (same) listings. Out of the 10 products, only 3 led me to a valid merchant website, 1 to an outdated site and the rest weren’t available/accessible.
2) When I attempted to purchase a deal, this message shows up;
In case you don’t know what this is, it could mean two things a) Someone might be tampering with your connection to the site or b) The site is using a weak security setup. In either cases, this type of sites has been flagged due to potential online scams and you are discouraged from entering or giving your personal information to them.
3) Based on some YouTube videos that I have reviewed, this site was apparently active until 5 years ago. There were a lot more activities going on and their deals were more valid back then. But now, the engagement is almost non-existent and most of the links appear to be broken.
So my verdict is that, this site is not reliable anymore if you want to buy discounted products. There are better sites life Gift Card Granny which connects you to prominent companies like Starbucks and HomeDepot where the deals are more flexible.
Most importantly, these sites are more up-to-date in terms of online payment technology and hence, your personal information and credit card data are better protected from spam attackers.
From Online Saving to Investment
It wouldn’t be fair to end this review without sharing something that can actually help you financially throughout college and beyond. You see, I discovered it the hard way that any amount you try to save during college will not prepare you for some hard realities that you’ll be facing after graduation.
With high student loans, inflation and unemployment on the rise, all these situations could lead to a very crazy and stressful life. These are the bigger problems that you didn’t see coming. At some point, you’ll question on how to turn things around and this is where you need to think outside of the box.
Believe it or not, college is the best time to invest in an asset that will reward you financially 5 to 10 years from now. I am not talking about tangible properties; I am talking about virtual real estate like an online business.
With a very small capital investment, you can build a website, create a monetization strategy and start making money online, even while in college. Give the system a few years to mature and you’ll be running a full time business in whatever niche that you desire.
Affiliate Marketing – The Best Way to Start an Online Business
The affiliate marketing revenue model is legitimate, popular and very easy to start with. You don’t need to create/produce any products of your own; simply refer customers to a good product/service and earn a sales commission.
Find a niche that you like. It can be anything from fashion, sports or music. Within that niche, think about an interesting physical/digital product that you would like to recommend to other people. Chances are, this product is already out there in the market and with some diligent research, you should be able to find a few companies that will pay you to promote them through affiliate programs.
Your initial earnings might be just a few dollars, but as you grow your site with content, you’ll get more traffic, more referrals and hence more sales. By the end of college, you could be generating a substantial online income to start paying off your bills – even before you are employed. Now, isn’t that better than spending money on coupon deal sites?
There are so many niches that offer affiliate programs and it would be unintelligent not to take advantage of them with all the time that you have right now. With commitment, this income will not only support your living expenses as a college student, it can potentially help you build a platform to launch an aspiring online business. How awesome is that?
Stop Spending, Start Investing
The internet can be a very tempting place to spend excessively. Even with discounts and gift cards, you are sending money away from your savings and that can put a strain on your overall financial situation, now and into the future.
All of us strive to live a successful life, so why not create something that can give you a better control of that through an online business? If you like to read some successful stories from college students who have chosen this path, you can find them in this awesome online training here.
Have any thoughts or questions about this topic? Please leave them in the comment below and I’ll get back to you as soon.
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Hi Cathy, this is a very informative review and hopefully college students will see this and take your advice to avoid the College Budget site. No one wants to get scammed for sure. I really like your suggestion about starting an online business with affiliate marketing but not sure where to start. Can you recommend any sites that would offer training on this? Thanks.
Sure Tony. I started mine with the Wealthy Affiliate University. They not only come with step-by-step training, but also provide website hosting, keyword research and a ton of community support. You can learn more about the platform in this in-depth review.
I appreciate the good honest review Cathy.
What a shame that the College Budget isn’t what it use to be! It seems like it was a really good website back in its’ day. I guess they didn’t get enough traffic to it.
I totally agree, if you don’t spend your money wisely in college, it can lead to a world of STRESS afterward. My brother is stressing over his student loans right now too.
It’s nice that you talk about making money with affiliate marketing. I think that’s a smart option that everyone should consider.
Cathy,
This is an eye opening review. You have probably save a lot of college students from being ripped off. With their limited budget, they cannot afford to lose money. It is amazing just how many sites that are out there only to steal some innocent person’s money. Finishing up your review with a great suggestion to make money with a website is very rewarding for your readers.
Bob
Thank you for the review. Any system that helps college students is a good one, but you have to be professional about what you are doing. I think this budget website fall short in that to some degree. As a person who is interested in finance, business, and budgeting, I strongly feel that investing in yourself using your unique skills is a great start for most young people these days.