Virus Protection : This is something i recommend to everyone doing these deals. When you click on different link after different link you’re bound to run across some malware which is typical but that doesn’t mean you don’t need to protect your system. I highly recommend everyone having an anti virus program and running scans often. A great free spyware program to use is Microsoft Security Essentials (this is what I currently use)
Seperate Email : We all know how these deals entail you giving your email. Create a separate email account to sign up with all these offers on so they don’t possibly junk up your good email account. I actually have four emails. I have one for my blog only, one for my sign ups and offers, one for all my surveys and one main one that my hubby and I share. That’s a lot of emails I know but it works for me.
Credit Card Required : This is mainly for the sites that offer $1 Trial membership for first month and you get gift cards or what not. On these I do not suggest using your personal card but instead to use a prepaid card. This frees up all worry that you might forget to cancel in time or they might charge more than promised.
For other promotions that require a credit card, make sure you are wanting to sign up with them for that product. If a survey site is asking you for a credit card number do not use it, do not hand your CC number out to just any site even if it is listed on here.
Freebie Notice : Please keep in mind that a lot of times companies get overwhelmed by the response for their free products/samples and do not send out to everyone. This is not a common occurrence but it does happen, so you may not receive everything you submit for.
These are my personal tips for using online promotions and freebies, while they are great to get (trust me, I love doing them) there are still ways to make it easier and safer for you to participate.
