If you’re routinely putting up with unwanted daily deal emails in your inbox from websites you’ve long ago forgotten about, there’s a new service that will help you quickly and cleanly cut the cord. Read on to learn how to do away with unwanted emails once and for all.

Email overload

When daily deal websites first hit the Internet a few years ago, most people could not get enough daily deal news. Users subscribed to any and every daily deal website online, often also signing up for daily deal newsletters by default. Fast forward a few months and the online daily deal shoppers were said to be suffering from daily deal fatigue. In other words, shoppers were being bombarded with email after email from websites they’d long since left behind.

These days, many shoppers have moved away from traditional daily deal shopping and are now perusing the best of the best deals with daily deal aggregators. Even if you’re one of those who have moved on, you probably know from experience that that doesn’t mean those email subscriptions you signed up for eons ago are going to magically disappear. Sure, you can spend all day in your inbox and manually unsubscribe from every daily deal newsletter, but who has time for that?

UnsubscribeDeals.com

A new service called UnsubscribeDeals.com simplifies the process of unsubscribing from multiple daily deal emails and newsletters by doing the heavy lifting for you. The free web application connects with your Gmail account, and then gives you the option to unsubscribe automatically from the following daily deal websites:

• Living Social
• Groupon
• Woot!
• DailyCandy
• Lifebooker
• Google Offers
• Amazon Local
• Yipit
• Bloomspot
• Gilt City
• KGB Deals
• Ever Save

The UnsuscribeDeals.com service is 100% free and requires no additional action on your part.

Daily deal vouchers help us to stretch our dollars, making our money go further, and that’s a good thing. In the Internet shopping age, though, where spending money is as simple as clicking a button, it’s easy to cross the line from smart shopper to thrill seeking, out of control consumer. Exercising self-control is necessary, of course, but it doesn’t always work. Let’s face it, sometimes it’s just too hard to pass up a good buy.

We spoke this week to financial experts, professional shoppers and daily deal regulars to learn how they police themselves. Here’s what they had to say.

Budget first, shop second

Gary Morris owned a realtor business in Chicago and retired at the age of 35. How’d he do it? “I always knew how much money I had, how much I wanted to save that month and where to get the most for my money,” claimed Morris. “If you don’t know what’s in your wallet, it’s easy to spend more than you really have.”

Does Morris recommend daily deal shopping? “Absolutely,” he says. “Part of being able to save money is knowing where and how to get the most out of it. “

Treat daily deal websites like actual stores

You go to the grocery store for food, the pharmacy for medication and to your mechanic to get your car oil changed. Likewise, says Minneapolis-based professional shopper Ken Howard, you should turn to daily deal websites for specific bargains too.

“Daily deal websites are the only places I shop these days for cheap vacation packages, gym memberships and local restaurant deals for my clients,” boasted Howard. “Target gives me a good deal on toiletries and daily deals give me the most for my money on trips to Cancun. It’s just common sense.”

Limit your shopping time with daily deal aggregators

Clara Hargrove has been a daily deal shopper for three years. The Miami resident thinks that maximizing your time also means maximizing your dollar.

“I started using daily deal aggregators this year because they show me all the best deals in one place,” says Hargrove. “I used to spend hours shopping online and I can see now that was a waste of time. I do all my bargain hunting in about five minutes a day now.”

Keep a running list of needs

Chicago financial advisor Keven Smith says that watching your bottom line is all about filling your needs and putting your wants on hold. “You go to the grocery store armed with a list, don’t you?” asked Smith. “When you don’t, you spend extravagantly. To keep yourself in check when online shopping you also should keep a current list of needs and put every other good buy you see on a wants list. You address the wants only after you’ve met your savings goals.”

Occasional spending splurges happen and most of the time such goofs don’t really have a long term impact on your budget. Making a habit of overspending, though, can turn even daily deal shopping into problematic behavior.

Times are tough. Just ask Eleanor Beasley, a retired Chicago school teacher who lost everything she owned in a fire and has had to use her retirement to start from scratch again. “I’m 76 years old,” says Beasley, “and I’m still working part-time tutoring children because I have to.”

Beasley also relies on good deals to get by. “Daily deals for food and travel have made it possible for me to put food on the table and visit my children and grandchildren,” Beasley told us. “If it weren’t for that, I don’t know how I could make it all work.”

And Ms. Beasley isn’t alone. A growing number of our nation’s most valuable members, senior citizens, are turning to daily deal vouchers to make ends meet. What are they investing in?

Food

When Richard Smith retired from a Michigan factory job at the age of 67, he thought he was set to enjoy a few years of the good life. “When I retired, my wife and I bought a little condo by the beach and were ready to relax and live out the American Dream.”

For the Smith family, that dream turned into a nightmare the day Mrs. Smith was diagnosed with breast cancer. “It took a cancer diagnosis to wipe out our savings,” said Smith. “A neighbor told us about buying daily deal vouchers and, thanks to those and senior citizen discounts, we’re buying groceries at a discount and even going out to eat a few times a year.”

Health

“A daily deal voucher saved my life,” claims Edwin Baldwin, retired school principal in San Francisco. “I tell everyone this story and they can’t believe it.”

Baldwin, who lives alone in an assisted living apartment, began experiencing mild abdominal pains in July of last year. Baldwin’s children, distraught over their father’s condition and refusal to go to the doctor, bought him a daily deal voucher for a reduced fee x-ray. “That x-ray confirmed colon cancer,” says Baldwin. “I had surgery and today I’m 100% healthy. Now I buy daily deals for visits to the dentist and doctor myself.”

Travel

“I love to visit the grandchildren,” says 82 year old Salt Lake City resident Bessie Arnold, “but my eyesight isn’t what it used to be.” Instead of driving the 500 miles to her daughter’s home, Arnold takes a bus or a plane, and does so with a daily deal voucher. “I didn’t even have a computer when I heard about daily deals,” boasts Arnold. “After buying the first few bus tickets on a local daily deal website from a library computer, I had to get a computer so I wouldn’t miss any of the good deals to come.”

This is just a small sampling of how senior citizens are using daily deals to get more from their money. While daily deal vouchers were originally marketed as luxury goods (cruises, spa treatments, salon visits, etc.), it’s clear to see that many are using vouchers to better their circumstances.

Gift giving is one of those beautiful things in life that leaves both the giver and the receiver feeling better for the experience. For the giver, there’s no better feeling than seeing a smile of appreciation on the face of a friend or family member while they accept your token of kindess. And we don’t need to explain how awesome it is to be remembered and treated to a special present. After all, who doesn’t love getting a gift?

Thanks to the internet and daily deal websites, it’s easier than ever to let that someone special know just how you feel, and you can do it in mere seconds. Don’t believe me? Here are four ways daily deals are besting traditional gift giving.

Daily deal shopping is time saving

Giving a traditional gift means running from store to store in search of something that not only will be appreciated, but also something you can afford. It’s not an easy task. And once you’ve found the perfect present, you have to wait in line to checkout, and take the gift home to be wrapped and eventually delivered. Traditional shopping is a time suck!

Marci Lowerbough, Chicago grandmother of four, told us that it’s been tough to get around since she suffered a stroke two years ago, so she was thrilled to discover daily deal shopping. “My days of mall shopping have come to an end,” said Lowerbough, “but I don’t mind. I can shop for the whole family in one afternoon of online daily deal shopping.”

Daily deal shopping is less expensive

Whether you’re heading to the mall or your local big box store in search of a gift, luck plays a big part in what sort of gift ends up in your cart. If you’re minding your budget, price is your top priority while shopping, which means that unless you find an unbelievable, unadvertised sale, you may not get exactly what you went into the store for. Daily deal shopping, on the other hand, routinely saves consumers 30-90% off the retail price of everything.

Daily deal shopping gives you the ultimate in variety

Driving from store to store or walking from mall shop to mall shop is a must when gift giving, especially if you’re shopping for more than one recipient. With daily deal shopping, you surf to one website and are instantly met with hundreds of choices. Daily deals offer something for foodies, fashionistas, adventurers, tech lovers, kids, grandmothers and everyone else on your shopping list.

Daily deals are perfect for last minute shoppers

Who among us hasn’t forgotten the birthday or anniversary of a friend or family member? Last minute shopping in a brick and mortar store is a drag. When the pressure is on, most of us end up spending far more than we should on a gift we’re not quite satisfied with. With daily deals, however, anyone can pop online and pick out a gift in moments. And because gifts can be emailed to recipients, you’ll never miss celebrating another special occasion again.

What benefits do you enjoy with daily deal shopping? Tell us in the comments.

Doctors remind us often to reduce the levels of stress in our lives, pay attention to our physical fitness habits, eat better, and learn to relax. Despite their repeated warnings, most still list things like obesity, stress, financial worries and not having enough hours in the day as the areas of their life they wish would change. And, ask a handful of your closest friends what New Year’s resolutions were made in 2012 and the odds are good you’ll find at least a few that promised to get fit and spend more quality time with their families.

Though we think of daily deals as bargain-rich websites that can help us save money, they’re also helping to improve our overall health.

Daily deals + physical fitness

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that more than one-third of U.S. adults are categorized as obese and 17% of children (that's 12.5 million American kids) ages 2-19 are also overweight.

Linda Bade, owner of Pink Sweat, a gym in Chicago, says she sees things changing. Bade offered up a year-long gym memberships at a 50% discount at the start of 2012, and increased her membership two-fold.

“We were overwhelmed with new families, new moms and busy dads that wanted to get back into shape,” claimed Bade. “We keep a leaderboard up on the wall at the gym and already our new members have lost over 2,000 pounds combined since the start of the year.”

Daily deal websites frequently offer health improving bargains like:

·✔ Gym memberships

·✔ Physical fitness classes

· ✔ Bike rentals

·✔ Sports store discounts

·✔ Swim lessons

·✔ Martial arts training

· ✔..and more!

Kyle Perri, a once overweight businessman from Atlanta, says that getting involved with daily deals saved his life. “My cholesterol was up, my blood pressure was through the roof, and my doctor’s nerves were frazzled,” said Perri. “I bought a gym membership off a daily deal site in 2011 and today I’m 100 pounds lighter, my numbers are normal and I’m in better shape than I was in college.”

Daily deals improving happiness

It isn’t only our waistlines that are shrinking with daily deal bargains, but also our stress levels. Carter Anderson is a single dad and the sole business owner of a bagel shop in St. Paul, MN. According to Anderson, it’s daily deals that have helped sustain his family. “We used to go out to dinner as a family, and then I’d spend days working extra hours, worrying about how much we’d spent,” said Anderson. “Now I buy a daily deal voucher for dinner at less than half the price of its value, and we have fun spending time together. No worries at all.”

Daily deal websites offer numerous ways to unwind, spend time with friends and loved ones, or just have some “me time.” Browse daily deals any day of the week and you’re likely to find all the following, and more:

·✔ Restaurant vouchers

·✔ Hotel stays

·✔ Bargain travel

·✔ Massages

·✔ Spa certificates

·✔ Vouchers for classes

· ✔Theater tickets

Daily deals have made it affordable to get healthier. And with more of us than ever before shopping for daily deals, that can only be a good thing.

With the price of gas expected to surpass $4 per gallon this week in the United States, it’s important to remain frugal-minded about everything these days. Thanks to daily deal vouchers, it’s easier than ever to do just that. Here are just a few ways that smart shoppers are using daily deals to help care for their car.

Oil changes

My neighbor told me this morning that she made the mistake of getting her car oil changed in one of those quickie drive-thru oil shops last weekend. The total bill: $61.89. Ouch!

You can easily cut down on oil change costs by shopping daily deals. Groupon sold a daily deal voucher a few months back that gave consumers three oil changes for just $20, and other daily deal sites are doing the same with regularity.

Maintenance

As every smart driver knows, it costs more than just gas money to keep your car on the road. Fivecentnickle.com recommends putting away $1,200 per year to handle potential car maintenance costs, which could include things like A/C service, tire rotation, diagnostics, brake inspections, and so on. Thankfully, you can slice this cost by more than half by buying into daily deals. Last year, LivingSocial sold vouchers for transmission service at more than 50% off their value, and vouchers like that are not an unusual find.

Tires

According to Consumer Reports, one All-Season tire can cost as much as $160, or $640 to outfit your whole car with new treads, not including tax or labor charges. If you’re an avid daily deal shopper, you can expect to pay much less. It’s not at all uncommon see tire package deals when daily deal shopping that can save you as much as 80% off the retail price of new tires.

Repair

Need new brakes? Unless you’re an amateur mechanic, costhelper.com says you can expect to shell out $90 to $250 per axle. And that’s just for basic brake pad replacement. Daily deal shoppers know that you don’t ever have to pay full price for car repair. Watch for vouchers available from your local mechanic, national chain repair centers, and body shops. There are plenty out there!

Car wash

Washing and waxing the family car can be an enjoyable way to spend a Saturday afternoon. If you live in an apartment building or condo though, it’s likely you don’t have the space or ability to scrub down your own vehicle. Complete car wash packages purchased through daily deal websites can save shoppers as much as 80% off the full price of a car wash.

You may not be able to control the price at the pumps, but you can have a say in just how much you spend caring for your car. Putting daily deals to work for you saves a little wear and tear on your car and your wallet.

How much tax should you pay on a daily deal? Many states in the U.S. are pondering this question now and the answer could change how much you invest in daily deal shopping in the future.

Why taxation matters

Let’s say you pay $50 for $100 in restaurant food courtesy of a daily deal. Local sales tax rates currently average 9.6% nationwide in the United States according to Vertex, Inc.,which means that imposing a tax on the value price of your voucher ($50) would add approximately $4.80 to your bill. This is how the state of California treats discount vouchers, and how most seem to think taxation should work. In New York and other states, however, daily deal vouchers are taxed at full face value. At those rates, bargain friendly shoppers are paying $9.60 in taxes for a $50 voucher--or a 19.2% sales tax. That's not such a good deal any longer, is it?

24 states get behind the Streamlined Sales Tax Agreement

By and large, most U.S. states have made no formal taxation rules regarding daily deal vouchers. Back in early 2011, Forbes Magazine ran a headline story questioning the perplexity surrounding daily deal purchases and tax laws.

That confusion may finally be starting to clear up. There are 24 U.S. states that are now part of the Streamlined Sale Tax Use Agreement. The group's Governing Board hopes to devise a uniform tax policy. Sherry Hathaway, a senior tax policy analyst for the Tennessee Department of Revenue and head of the group in charge with coming up with new policy, says that there is consensual agreement among states that tax issues need to be clarified, discussed, and adopted. The map below shows current Streamlined State Status as of late 2011.

Based on a recent survey, it seems that most of the 24 states are leaning toward charging consumers taxes based on the actual purchase price of their daily deal voucher and not on the retail value. Good news for bargain hunters!

The two dozen states that have made themselves a part of the Streamlined Sales Tax Use Agreement say that new policy could be adopted as early as May of this year.

A new survey by Epsilon, a Dallas-based marketing firm, shows that Canadians know their daily deal stuff. The report, issued this week, found that Canadians are more tuned into group buying and deal of the day websites than Americans.

The numbers

The Epsilon report surveyed Canadians only, comparing findings to similar studies carried out in the past. Among the findings:

· ✔ 53% of surveyed Canadians are familiar with at least one More...

When AmazonLocal launched in mid 2011, the welcome news reverberated everywhere, making headlines around the world. Amazon.com, considered by experts to be a more mature company than many of the original daily deal website kings, was expected to score big in the social buying network arena. Add to that the fact that AmazonLocal launched itself in Chicago, home to daily deal giant Groupon, and you had the makings of a superstar arm of Amazon. This week, Amazon offered a deal that was not only a hit in the daily deal market, but outsold every other daily deal that came before it, and made daily deal history.

The Amazon deal that rocked the web

On Tuesday, March 20, AmazonLocal offered members the More...

Daily deals are still relatively new, at least as far as the internet is concerned. Though flash sales websites have been aroundsince 2001, daily deal websites weren’t introduced to the masses until the late 2000s.

MightyDeals.com has put together this fascinating infographic which shows the evolution of group buying and daily deal websites.