AP9 Consumer Gateway Weblog

AP9 Passport to Fun Celebrates National Literacy Month

AP9 Passport to Fun, a premier recreation and entertainment membership discount program offered by Adaptive Marketing LLC®, reports that September is National Literacy Month. It is an excellent time for you, your family and your community to share in the enjoyment and the importance of reading.

Reading is a skill. Like all other skills, we have to practice, practice, practice to become better. Reading helps us learn, improves speech, develops writing and reading comprehension, enhances problem solving abilities, and most importantly, builds self-confidence at school, work, job interviews, social functions – just about everything we do relies on literacy skills.

AP9 Passport to Fun suggests becoming a reading role model for your family and community by doing the following:

--Take your kids to the library. Show your children how the library is set up, how to find topics or specific books and how to act in a library. It is a great way to help them to learn, grow, and prepare for school research assignments – the Internet is not sole resource for information.

--Make reading a daily routine. It is a common practice for families to have a standard, daily routine because it promotes a feeling of structure and stability within the household. By shutting off the television or video game for 15-30 minutes a day to read, allows parents and their children time to relax, bond, discover and explore new worlds together.

--Start a book club. Interested? Here are some suggestions:

• Aim for a group of about six to ensure a range of opinions while allowing all members the chance to share their thoughts.
• Find members with similar reading interests (e.g., mysteries, romance novels, etc.). Shared enthusiasm will increase participation and reduce complaints about subject matter.
• Look for people who share some common ground (e.g., all mothers, all retired folks), or try for a diverse enough mix so that no one person stands out.
• Stick to an agreed-upon day and time (say, the second Wednesday of every month at 7:00 p.m.). This will allow members to plan their schedules around it.
• Pick a convenient location. Public libraries often offer meeting places for book clubs; so do many bookstores. If you’d prefer in-home meetings, share the responsibilities by rotating the location.
• Choose books democratically. Ask members to suggest titles and then let the group vote on the choices.

In whatever you do to promote National Literacy Month, just remember that as the world we live in progresses so will the need to improve on our reading, problem solving, writing, and comprehension skills in order to be successful, concludes AP9 Passport to Fun.

AP9 Privacy Matters and AP9 Privacy Matters 1-2-3 Provides Information that Links Credit Scores to Car Insurance Premiums

AP9 Privacy Matters and AP9 Privacy Matters 1-2-3, leading security and privacy membership programs offered by Adaptive Marketing LLC®, want you to understand the relationship between your credit score and what you are paying for car insurance. The following was an article posted on MSN, “The Secret Score Behind Your Auto Insurance.”

Members can receive unlimited, online access to their credit report and score from all three credit bureaus plus so much more via AP9 Privacy Matters and AP9 Privacy Matters 1-2-3.

DealPass Celebrates Coupon Month This September With Tips for Getting the Most out of Your Couponing Campaigns

Coupon clippers, rejoice! September is National Coupon Month, that time of year when DealPass.com, an online savings portal from Adaptive Marketing LLC®, celebrates the continued growth of the savvy-consumer market, those consumers who know that a penny saved truly is a penny earned. DealPass offers its visitors easy-to-use grocery coupons, online deals, seasonal special offers and a variety of savings programs that can stretch any budget.

According to the National Coupon Month website, not only can spending 20 minutes a week clipping coupons save you $800 to $1,000 a year, but coupon clippers span every income group. Whether you are college student trying to make ends meet or the head of a two-income family, using coupons offers a no-brainer way to save some extra money on items you already buy or a low-cost opportunity to try something new.

Regardless of your income bracket, DealPass offers you a few tips on how to put coupon deals to work for you:

--Keep your eyes peeled. Coupons aren’t just found in the usual locations -- the Sunday papers, magazines and in your mailbox; you can also find them online, on grocery store shelves and on purchase receipts from supermarkets and retail stores. In fact, a number of manufacturers offer coupons through their 800 numbers (which are often listed on their products’ packages); just call them to learn more and request yours.

--Get your clips together. There are few things more frustrating than knowing you have a coupon for something when you’re unable to find it. Store your coupons in organizers, and keep them handy. Be sure to put them in a useful order (by store/by aisle/by expiration date, for instance) so all you have to do is pull out the right coupon(s) during your next trip to a certain store.

--Focus on the family. Coupons can help you save on family needs, so get your family in on the coupon-clipping process. Have your kids clip and your spouse organize while you search for additional coupons. Getting your kids involved can also teach them valuable lessons about budgeting and finances. If your kids need incentives, tell them they can use the coupon savings they find as supplements to (or replacement for) their allowances.

--Time your shopping trips. Many supermarkets offer double or triple coupon days, so be sure to hold onto valid coupons until these increased savings days are offered. If you have manufacturers’ rebate coupons, try to use them on sales days for even greater savings. Regardless of sales days or other offers, though, be sure to use your coupons before they expire, especially those that offer savings on everyday household items that you know you’re going to need.

Whether the economy is good or bad, coupons can help you stretch your household budget and pay for everything from essential needs to just-for-fun items. All it takes is an eye for good deals and the scissors to take advantage of them, reports DealPass.

AP9 Shopping Essentials Provides Personal Care Discounts to Keep Flyers Feeling Fresh

AP9 Shopping Essentials notes that as airport security tightens, passengers must become educated on what is allowed in carry-ons before they pack for their next flight. Women and men spend a lot of money on perfumes/colognes, hair care products, makeup, etc., and having those articles confiscated at airport security can really be a blow to the pocketbook. Liquids such as shampoo, hair gel, perfume, liquid makeup and toothpaste are just a few of the many items that are no longer allowed to be carried on a plane – they must be packed away in checked-in baggage.

AP9 Shopping Essentials, a leading membership discount program offered by Adaptive Marketing LLC®, can provide members-only discounts of up to 20% on practically all of their personal care items. And AP9 Shopping Essentials suggests that members visit the following website to find a few personal care alternatives to those favorite take-with items no longer allowed in your carry-on -- http://carefair.com/html/Liquid_Free_Beauty_Tips_715.html.

As for those passengers who like to freshen up after a long flight, you can still do so with a little advanced planning, concludes AP9 Shopping Essentials.