Feeling crunched?

Now we're all well aware of the financial crisis that has been dominating our headlines, in fact, we're probably yearning to hear of something more uplifting however I fear this will be surrounding us for some time yet.

We are always looking at ways to keep costs down for our clients and how to think more creatively getting more bang for their buck but it's at times like this, it does make you stop and think about your own personal finances and where you can penny pinch....or indeed pound punch.

There are quite a few obvious ways in which one can be more frugal; cut out the luxuries, stay in one night at the weekend, cook at home instead of eating out, walk instead of tube/bus/cab but if these are things that make you smile after working hard all week then my advice is don't stop doing those things, find other more simple ways to save some cash and continue the things you love!

Some really simple ways of cutting back can be found all over the interweb and here's a few favouites;

• Try not to leave appliances on standby - up to 10% of the total electricity used in your home is due to appliances left on standby
• Turning the thermostat down by one degree C can cut more than 10% from the average central heating bill
• Never shop for food when you are hungry - it can increase your spend by an average of 20%!.
• To find the cheapest petrol in your area, sign up to www.petrolprices.com and get emailed weekly updates of pump prices
• You should buy an annual rail card for £18-£24. Find the discount card that suits you at www.railcard.co.uk, or at your local ticket office, and start getting a third off all off-peak travel
• If you have something in your fridge and struggling to know what to do with it, visit www.waitrose.com/recipes/search.aspx and enter your ingredient as a "keyword" for ideas
• Go food shopping just before the supermarket closes, they offer loads of discounts
• Look out for BOGOF deals, if you work in the media/pr/marketing world, you're bound to get the discount vouchers always flying around
• Sample sales - make sure your friends in fashion keep you posted with the dates, these are especially brilliant and pentiful in the lead up to dare I say it, Christmas!
  
• Check out http://www.uswitch.com/ - it's brilliant for finding the best deals on just about everything

And to leave you remembering the lighter side of life.......

I went to the ATM this morning and it said "insufficient funds".
I'm wondering is it them or me.