Archive for October, 2009
Consumers Benefit As Competition Heats Up Among Retailers
The holiday bargain-shopping season has begun. Target has announced it will match toy price discounts of Wal-Mart. Given the current economic climate, and the fact that shoppers will be looking for the best deal, this move is not expected. Target even plans to match Wal-Mart’s list of 100 toys under $10. With classics like: Transformers. [...]
Consumers Enter The Holiday Season With Mixed Feelings
For many Americans the future looks bright compared to recent years in terms of the economy. After what felt like a never ending series of bad news the economy appears to be on the road to recovery. With this change in direction, many consumers are feeling more confident about the future, however recently learned lessons will not [...]
Consumer Confusion Spikes Over Gift Cards
Holidays are a popular time to give the gift of gift cards. Since so many people are hard to shop for, gift givers prefer the ease and convenience of retail gift cards. However, those seemingly brilliant ideas are not always as clear-cut as they seem. In fact, a recent poll conducted by the Consumer Federation [...]
Parents Can Seek Refund For Baby Einstein Videos
There was a time when a simple mobile or a brightly colored set of blocks would prove fascinating to a baby. With each generation new parents are always looking for ways to help their babies learn andgrow in the best way possible. The way we raise our children is different today than when we were [...]
Football Helmet Technology
On September 23, the college football world held its breath as Florida Gator’s quarter back Tim Tebow went down with a concussion. Though he returned on October 10th, cleared to play against LSU, questions about his concussion and brain trauma in general resulting from football collisions continues to grow. A concussion is a brain injury [...]
Cut Back on Home Heating Costs this Winter with a Portable Heater
Although some natural gas customers are receiving a bit of relief in home heating costs this winter, it’s still expensive to very expensive to heat a home for 5 or 6 months out of the year regardless of what source of fuel you use. American Consumer News has previously discussed some strategies to cut back [...]
Swine Flu Fears Fuel Internet Scams
It was only a matter of time before someone would try to cash in on consumer concerns regarding the H1N1 virus otherwise known as the swine flu. In the past two weeks, the Federal Drug Administration has issued warnings to consumers in an attempt to reduce the number of people who may fall victim to [...]
Are You Getting What You Pay For With Your Bottled Water?
Experts tell us that we should be drinking eight to ten glasses of water per day in order to maintain good health, but does maintaining that health also depend on where we are getting our water? As consumers, how do we really know that the bottled water we are drinking is safe and pure? Many [...]
How To Save Money And Go Green in 2010
Are you a homeowner looking for ways to save money on your household expenses and reduce your taxes? Are you tired of high energy bills? Do you want to make a personal contribution to improving our environment? You can go green and save on your tax bill at the same time by replacing energy wasting [...]
The Price of Pollution – Who should Pay?
Pollution affects us all. Our actions can ripple half-way around the world and cause harm to people who we will never see, and of course the reverse is also true. The staggering truth of this is frightening. Who should bear the cost of pollution? At a special forum held in Burkina Faso’s capital, Ouagadougou, UN [...]
Beat Vacation Blues by Capturing Travel Deals
Depressed that your summer vacation is over? You’re not alone. TripAdvisor released results from its “post-vacation blues” survey revealing that 56 percent of U.S. travelers surveyed said they often get the post-vacation blues upon returning from a trip. There are ways to combat this feeling…plan another vacation, and the travel deals are continuing in full [...]
Cash for Appliances is Coming: What Consumers Need to Know
Late this year or early next, you will be able to upgrade your home appliances, furnaces and air conditioners and receive a generous rebate for doing so. Like Cash for Clunkers, this program is being established to help both consumers and an economy which continues to struggle through a recovery period. In addition, the program [...]
How Food Banks Are Coping With Increased Demands
Throughout the country, food banks are struggling. With the economy in turmoil, more and more people every day are going hungry and looking for a relief. Unemployment is close to all time highs and many people who have jobs have been forced to cut back hours or take pay cuts. These circumstances result in individuals [...]
Lay-away Programs – Boone or Bane for Consumers
According to a report on Fox News Business on Oct. 19th; retailers are apparently offering aggressive lay-away programs for the upcoming Christmas selling season. The primary focus of the report centered on Toys-R-Us and Babies-R-Us. These organizations are extending lay-aways options for those interested in purchasing higher ticket toys. Shopping for children during the Christmas [...]
From Women’s Hand bags to Pet Beds – Chemical Toxins Everywhere
After testing 900 common products from women’s hand bags to children’s car seats, researchers at the HealthyStuff.org developed the largest database of toxic chemicals in consumer goods. Sometimes products contain these chemicals because they are added to enhance product properties such as flame retardant ability, and flexibility for example. A quick summary of results are: [...]
What You Should Know If You Are Considering The HPV Vaccine For Your Daughter
For most consumers, following the Center for Disease Control’s (CDC’s) vaccine recommendations for their children has always been a given. Recent reports linking some severe adverse side effects to routine vaccinations, have many consumers taking a closer look at whether their child needs every vaccine that is recommended. One vaccination that has received considerable attention [...]
Consumer Reports Top 7 Cereals Based on Fiber and Taste
Why Include Fiber in Your Diet? Eating a diet rich in fiber is known to help control appetite and weight gain. It may even lower the risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes. The recommended daily intake for fiber is 28 g for a 2,000 calorie diet. With those statistics it is important to [...]
Airlines Extend Surcharges
Remember the days when you would board an aircraft, nestle into your economy seat and rock back to take in a movie, have a complimentary light meal and non-alcoholic beverage? Once upon a time, flight attendants would shake you awake to have a cup of coffee or juice if you happened to doze off when [...]
Coconut Water Trend Hopes To Crack Open The Beverage Industry
Coconut water is the latest health drink craze to take a crack at the American marketplace. Two of the world’s largest food and beverage companies have decided to dive into the coconut water trend. In September, Coca Cola Inc. bought a minority stake into the Hermosa Beach, California based coconut water company Zico (pronounced “Zee [...]
Own a Small Business? Consider an HRIS
Many small business owners aren’t sure if they will benefit from using Human Resources Information System (HRIS) application to keep up with their employee-related data. American Small Business news thanks Brad Flipse, president of BeneTrac, for sharing his insights on the subject. BeneTrac is a Paychex company and provider of powerful, web-based electronic enrollment and [...]
Youth Need Training on Personal Finances
Educating youth on what it means to be financially informed is not on the educational curriculum list in most schools, if any at all. Given the struggling economy, the stock market crash and the job cuts; financial matters are not only in the news daily but weigh heavily on the minds of most Americans. The [...]
Wal-Mart Set To Expand $10 Holiday Toy Deal in 2009
With never-ending talk about the recession and budgeting concerns of families everywhere, this year’s holiday shopping season has shoppers concerned if there will even be a Christmas for their families come December. While many shoppers are taking an early lead to find the deals on gift items for this Christmas, many more are still prevented [...]
How to Get Your Data Back When Your Hard-Drive Dies
If you have a computer that simply will not turn one, one of the most common causes is a failed hard-drive. Since hard-drives are moving parts, they fail much more often than their solid state counterparts. Many people simply accept that their data is gone forever and have their system repaired, but a hard-drive that [...]
How Portable Storage Containers Make Moving Easier
There was a time in the moving industry when in order for one to move they had to call the moving company and make the necessary arrangements. These days the way you move has become much easier and less time consuming. With the introduction of portable storage containers have definitely made packing and moving a [...]
Christmas Sales Predicted to Decline Another 1% This Year
A report based upon a projection released on Kudlow & Co. (CNBC), during the week of October 5th. “Retailers are expecting a 1% decline during this Christmas selling season following the 3.5% decline they experienced last year. Last year’s sales were $442 billion with an expectancy of $438 billion this year. The report further emphasized [...]
Research Shows Consumers Scared Off By Recession This Halloween
The spooky climate of the economy is having an effect on this year’s Halloween celebrations. Research conducted by the National Retail Federation shows that more consumers are planning to cut back or miss out on many of the traditional celebrations of Halloween. Nearly one in three consumers say that budgeting concerns and the economy will [...]
Credit Card Companies Hiking Rates Before 2010 Changes
On February 22, 2010, credit card companies will no longer be allowed to suddenly increase interest rates and penalty fees so many companies are taking advantage of the limited time they have left. Lawmakers have been sending letters to credit card companies, asking them to voluntarily freeze their rates until the new changes take affect [...]
This was a great article. I was just trying to figure out how my family could set up a budget ...
I find that I can nickle and dime myself to death! 
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