Consumer United launches online wireless store

Consumer United, an online membership-driven consumer group that offers savings on basic services such as heating oil and home insurance, has teamed up with Simplexity, the Internet’s leading authorized retailer of cellphones and service plans, and launched Consumer United Wireless, a new online store for cellphones, services and accessories.

Built and managed by Simplexity, this new one-stop shopping destination here features hundreds of the latest wireless devices, including BlackBerry and Android-powered smartphones.

Consumer United Wireless features exclusive online savings on wireless devices -up to hundreds of dollars less than retail stores--from top handset manufacturers including BlackBerry, HTC, LG, Motorola and Samsung and every major U.S. carrier.

Now, members have the convenience and opportunity to research, compare and shop for cellphones on a new optimized website from the comfort of their own home. They can quickly and easily explore the extensive catalog of cell phones and view unbiased information on the latest Android-powered smartphones, BlackBerry devices and PDAs from every major U.S carrier.

Utilizing Simplexity’s fully integrated e-commerce platform, Consumer United members can quickly and easily shop for the latest cellphones either by manufacturer, service provider or rate plan. They also have the ability to upgrade their current phones, transfer service-and phone numbers- to new carriers, or add new lines to an existing family plan.

It's a good time for members to buy or renew your cellphone or wireless plan through Consumer United. Start shopping here and take advantage of huge savings, convenience and greater selections.

Click here for Consumer United Wireless.

Inside Consumer United :: Sara Delande

Sara Delande first joined the Consumer United team back in June 2009, working in the New Jersey auto insurance division. Born and raised in Ipswich, MA, Delande graduated from UMass Boston, where she majored in International Management.

Since joining the team over a year ago, Delande has witnessed the company's workforce triple in size and expand its money-saving products and services to several new states. When asked about her favorite part of the job, Delande replied: “I enjoy the people I work with and the opportunities Consumer United has given me.”

When she's not busy helping our members save money on their auto insurance, Delande enjoys working out, being outside and spending quality time with her friends.

What is Delande's favorite piece of financial advice for consumers? “My favorite piece of financial advice is to spend in moderation and assess your needs before your wants."

Weekly Deals: Halloween tricks and treats

Deal Of The Week:
Restaurant.com: Take 80% off $25 gift certificates from Restaurant.com with Consumer United's special code TREAT through Sunday, Oct. 31 here. Also, snag a free $20 Mrs. Fields online gift when purchasing either the $25 gift certificate, dinner of the month club or their new $25 gift cards.

Other Weekly Deals:
Best Buy: Sony has introduced the world's first HDTV powered by Google TV™. This week shoppers will get free Google TV™ setup with select Sony Internet HDTVs. Discover the next level of home entertainment here until Saturday, Oct. 30.

Hotels.com: Looking for a pre-holiday getaway? You're in luck. As a Consumer United member, you qualify to get at $20 gift card if you book with Hotels.com until Nov. 02 here.

GiftCards.com: Take 15% off AMC Theaters gift cards here.

Mint.com unveils online debt reduction contest

Think you have what it takes to be the biggest loser when it comes to reducing your debt? You're in luck.

Mint.com, an Intuit-owned online start-up that offers free financial advice and easy-to-use budget planning tools, recently launched its "Drop Your Debt Challenge" urging debt-cutters to team up with folks in their city to reduce their debt. The idea is for people to work together by sharing savings techniques and offering each other support during the process.

After six months, the city team that trims the most fat from their debt will snag one of four $1,200 cash prizes. There's a $5,000 prize for the most referrals.

"Think about it as 'The Biggest Loser' for debt -- adding competition and teamwork to help people deal with something they need to undertake," says Aaron Patzer, vice president and general manager of Intuit Inc.'s Personal Finance Group and founder of Mint. "Every day, competition motivates people to lose weight, win at sports, or grab a parking spot before the next guy. This is a chance to have a positive impact on your finances."

According to the release, challengers will receive regular updates through Facebook on their city's progress and get money-saving tips from others on their team.

Click here for the details.

Spooky costume ideas for the budget minded

On the hunt for an oh-so-clever Halloween costume but on a budget? Don't fret. There are a slew of creative costume ideas that won't suck the blood out of your wallet.

Can't sew? No problem. There are a slew of do-it-yourself ideas that are super easy. For example, a cardboard box can easily be transformed into robot or race car outfit.

Here's our list:

For women
Marilyn Monroe: Wear white dress, blonde wig and red lipstick
Martha Stewart: Apron with "It's a good thing" signature, blue oxfords, and khakis
Ballerina: Wear an old leotard with socks or ballet slippers

For men
Green Giant: Wear all green including a hat
James Bond: A hand-me-down tuxedo with a martini glass
Harry Potter: Preppy clothing and black-rimmed glasses

For couples
Sonny and Cher: Wear hippie style clothing and high heels for Cher
Peanut Butter and Jelly: One wears all brown, the other one wears all purple

For anyone
Egg: All white with a yellow construction paper circle taped on you..or a yellow hat
Pig in a Blanket: Wear a pig nose and wrap a blanket tightly around you
Ghost: Cut two holes for eyes in a white sheet
Jelly Beans: Multi-colored balloons taped all over you

Weekly Deals: Fruit, GPS receiver and hotels

Deal Of The Week:
Restaurant.com: Take 70% off $25 gift certificates from Restaurant.com with Consumer United's special code DINE through Wednesday, Oct. 20 here. Also, get $10 off $30+ orders at The Fruit Company with every order.

Other Weekly Deals:
Best Buy: With the holiday shopping season quickly approaching, all roads lead to BestBuy.com for their shopping needs. This week’s offer is a free GPS receiver (shipping extra) with any 4th Generation iPod touch® here until Saturday, Oct. 30.

Hotels.com: Looking for a pre-holiday getaway? You're in luck. As a Consumer United member, you qualify to get at $20 gift card if you book with Hotels.com until Nov. 02 here.

GiftCards.com: Take 15% off AMC Theaters gift cards here.

Beware of energy-sucking vampires at home

Does the prospect of high energy prices this winter make your blood run cold?

With Halloween around the corner, Google has come up with a clever solution to help save consumers money on their monstrous heat and energy bills. The site serves up various techniques on how to combat "energy vampires," or electric and heating appliances that literally suck the blood out of the average consumer's bank account and has the ability to worry folks as winter approaches.

So, in order to help users save a good deal of money per year on these appliances, the ghost busters at Google came up with an application called the Google haunted house which gives users a few Halloween-themed tips on how to help minimize home-energy consumption this winter.

Haunted by ghosts? Close the fireplace flue damper. Wanna combat energy vampires? Turn off game consoles when not in use.

Shown on its micro-site here, they serve up savings tips and ways to cut energy waste. The application also gives an estimate of the amount of money one could save if they follow the tips.

When one enters the number of each appliance such as game consoles, computers or lamps that are being used in the house, the haunted house savings calculator automatically gives users a rough figure of the amount of money they could save and the pounds of carbon dioxide that are not not being consumed.

Also, here are a few tips to combat so-called energy vampires:

• Use a power strip with an on/off switch to fully power down home electronics while in standby mode.
• Use a power strip for multiple battery chargers so it can be easily switched off when not actively charging.
• Unplug or switch off all nonessential devices when preparing to travel out of town.
• Unplug your charger for your cordless phone, portable music play or other portable device after its recharged.
• Plug home electronics, such as TVs and DVD players, into power strips and turn the power strips off when the equipment is not in use (TVs and DVDs in standby mode still use several watts of power). However, while unplugging DVRs can save money, they will not be able to record programs while turned off and program scheduling may need to be reset when turned back on.
• Turn off your computer and monitor when not in use. Alternatively, set to hibernation or sleep mode rather than using screen savers, which do not save as much energy.

Click here for the spooky details.

Weekly Deals: Washers, hotels and restaurants

Deal Of The Week:
Best Buy: Check out some home-cooked deals on major appliances at Best Buy. This week shoppers will get 35 percent off select Frigidaire kitchen major appliances. Now's the perfcect time to upgrade that dated refrigerator, oven, microwave and dishwasher to stainless-steel until Saturday, Oct. 16 here.

Other Weekly Deals:
Restaurant.com: Take 80% off $25 gift certificates from Restaurant.com with Consumer United's special code ENJOY through Tuesday, Oct. 12 here.

Hotels.com: Looking for a pre-holiday getaway? You're in luck. As a Consumer United member, you qualify to get at $20 gift card if you book with Hotels.com until Nov. 02 here.

TiVo: Score free shipping on a new TiVo Premiere or Premiere XL box here. The system is compatible with Comcast, Time Warner, Cox, Dish Network, DirectTV and many more cable solutions here.

Inside Consumer United :: Jessica Conley

Jessica Conley joined Consumer United last November. Originally from Salem, NH, Conley attended Bryant University where she played on the girl's soccer team and now works in Consumer United's insurance division focusing specifically on working with members in Texas.

Conley believes in Consumer United's vision to help members save money on basic services and enjoys the work environment. “I love the atmosphere and the people that I work with,” she says. “Consumer United gives me the opportunity to work with others, as well as gives me the independence that I need to achieve my goals within the company.”

What is Conley's favorite personal financial advice? “My biggest piece of financial advice is no matter how much or how little you make, always put some of that money into savings every month,” she insists. “If you have any sort of money coming in, I advise that some of that is put aside because you never know what may happen.”

Conley continues, “Today, in this economy, it is very important to start saving money."

BillShrink launches real-time savings platform

Looking for savings delivered directly to your online bank statement? BillShrink, a site designed to help people lower their bills through a money-saving search engine, launched an extension to their online platform that enables consumers to save on common expenses like wireless bills or television service.

BillShrink's transaction search engine classifies purchases into specific merchants and categories and then accurately determines what content to display. BillShrink's matching technology leverages knowledge of both historical and current transactions to present consumers with the most relevant savings available.

For example, a transaction for a mochaccino might trigger a $25 loyalty reward for the cost of $10 at the user's favorite coffee shop. Similarly, gas purchases generate cheaper gas station recommendations.

Schwark Satyavolu, co-founder and CEO of BillShrink, insists that consumers are interested in real-time, contextual rewards based on their spending history.

"In our research, nearly 90% of consumers indicated they would switch their spending to cards or bank accounts that offer this functionality and 68% said they'd switch to a new card just to get a service like this," Satyavolu says. "StatementRewards will give financial institutions a powerful way to increase spend and loyalty by providing customers with rewards and savings while they are considering their finances."

Click here for the lowdown.