Do you keep track of daily, weekly and monthly spending? If you’ve planned out a monthly budget, chances are you do. Or not. I can show you how to easily manage your money with the American Express Serve Cash Back prepaid debit card.
“I participated in an Influencer Activation on behalf of Influence Central for American Express Serve. I applied for the Serve Cash Back card to facilitate my review and received a promotional item to thank me for my participation.”
When my husband and I first got married, we didn’t have a lot of money. Lots of credit cards, but not nearly enough cold.hard.cash. We quickly learned how important it was to create and stick to a budget. In fact, I recently shared 5 tips on how to stick to a budget. Mr. Disorganized and I have used several techniques to manage our budget and get out of debt. It’s not always easy, but, with a little patience and consistency, it can be done.
When we first got serious about getting out of debt, we cut up our credit cards and paid cash for everything. Once we figured out our total monthly income and expenses, we kept cash for gas, groceries, clothes & entertainment in separate envelopes. Everything else, {mortgage payment, utilities, etc}, came directly out of the checking account.
If we wanted to eat out, the money had to come from the envelope. It caused us to really think about the items we were purchasing, whether or not we truly wanted or needed them. As our family grew, eating out and fast food became the largest area of waste. Using the cash envelopes helped immensely, however, it was too easy to take from one envelope to use for another.
We needed to find a better way. With the American Express Serve Cash Back prepaid debit card, we can simply load the budgeted food allowance to our card and when the money is gone, the money is gone. No more stealing from other envelopes simply because we didn’t feel like making dinner. Plus, a prepaid debit card is much safer to carry than cash.
Not only that, but you get 1% Cash Back for every dollar you spend when you shop in store or online. Sweet, right?
Here’s how it works:
- Get 1% Cash Back for every dollar you spend when you shop in store or online.
- Log into your account to redeem the cash back that has been added to your account. It can be used whenever you choose.
- American Express Serve Cash Back is the only prepaid debit card that gives you 1% back on your purchases.
There are also convenient money management tools available to you at no or low cost. My favorite, though? If I want to know where my money went, all I have to do is log into my account and look at my insights page.
Once I log in, I click ‘Insights’ under the ‘Plan & Manage’ tab. This then takes me to a graph that breaks down my spending into categories, which is perfect for people who want to use it for more than just one category.
You can track as many categories as you like, simply go to the ‘Track Spending’ tab and start tracking. you can even create your own categories. And then there’s the ‘Spending History’. This graph shows side-by-side monthly spending, which is awesome when you’re really trying to spend less than you did the previous month. You can even set monthly maximums in each category, then be alerted before or when you go over.
Since our over spending occurs mainly in the food area of our budget, we decided to use the card strictly for food. So far, I’ve used it to eat lunch at work twice, for sodas at the convenience store, and eating out four times including going to a popular wing joint to watch our favorite football team. {Yes, the wings really are that good!}
American Express Serve Cash Back card is great for saving, too. You can set money aside with a Reserve account. Move money from your available balance to keep it separate from normal spending. Keep adding to it until you reach your goal, and then move it back to your available balance and use it for a vacation, rent, or a rainy day.
More features and benefits I love about the American Express Serve Cash Back card:
- You can register on-line to get a prepaid card in the mail, plus, no need to worry about credit checks, minimum balances or hidden fees.
- You can easily pay bills, buy groceries, shop online, and even withdraw cash from over 24,000 MoneyPass® ATMs. You can also use the American Express Serve mobile app to check your balance and recent transactions, pay bills and send money to friends and family {18 years and older} that have a Serve account.
- Your American Express Serve account includes Purchase Protection, protecting your eligible purchases for up to 90 days from the date of purchase. *Visit the American Express Serve Cash Back website for details*
- Convenient and easy access to money management tools at no or low cost
- Roadside Assistance
- 24/7 customer service
- Special offers, content and more
I’ve been managing my food budget with my American Express Serve Cash Back Debit Card, and now it’s time for you to get yours. Visit the American Express Serve Cash Back website to register for your free American Express Serve Cash Back card – the only debit card that let’s you earn 1% back on purchases, making it easier for you to manage your money and save money, too!
How will you use the American Express Serve Cash Back card to manage your money?
Be sure to visit American Express Serve Cash Back on Facebook and Twitter!
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