How to Find a Big Deal

In a former life I was a bargain shopper.

That was my job. I would write about and appear on TV to talk about sales. My bestselling guide was called The Joy of Outlet Shopping.

And it was a joy. Shopping. Saving money.

Then I had kids. I have never over-spent so much in my life.

But things are changing. With the advent of smart phones a bargain is right on my phone. How great is that?

I discovered this concept when I was at my local CVS pharmacy and the clerk asked if I had a $10 off coupon. Was she kidding? It was a miracle I had my keys. Then I remembered: I received an e-mail on it. I fumbled for my iPhone and there was the coupon. I showed it to her as proudly as I show off my children’s photos.

I receive a lot of e-mails from manufacturers asking me to write about their products. I turn most of them down because they’re really not beneficial to me or to you. But LivingSocial has one that I believe is fantastic.

LivingSocial members with Apple or Android devices can log in to the “Instant Deals” feature of its mobile app to purchase and redeem deals where they live.

Unlike LivingSocial Daily Deals, which are live for 24 hours, Instant Deals are good for just a few hours and they go fast.

As a special one-time only bargain, restaurants throughout San Francisco will offer $1 lunch items on July 13 through Instant Deals.

Even if you miss this deal you still don’t miss out. Instant Deals are like instant karma — every day there will be insanely low, short-term bargains. So check your app daily to see who is having a sale that day and at what time.

No matter how rich or how poor, EVERYONE loves sales, including celebrities Madonna, Julia Roberts and Michael Douglas.

Mobile app coupons are the new bargain frontier.