Although I have a store on Teachers Pay Teachers, I also buy products for my own students there. I am definitely not an expert on all the things, and there are so many resources that I don’t have time to make, or that I simply am not interested in making. For all of those, TpT to the rescue!
Now, I also love to save money (I mean, who doesn’t?) and so I try to find the best ways to get the most value out of the money that I spend. Over the years, I have been surprised to discover that there are certain things that even seasoned buyers were not aware of about TpT, and as a result, they are not getting the biggest bang for their TpT buck, so I thought I would run down a few pointers here, and hopefully you will find some useful information, or at least a reminder about some easy-to-overlook ways to save money.
1. Look for Freebies (Obviously!)
Ok, so this is a no-brainer, but still worth mentioning. Sometimes you just need a quick activity on a specific topic or for a bell ringer, fast finisher activity, etc. You don’t always have time to do the research needed to find just the perfect activity, and check it carefully before committing money to it. You can just find something that looks promising, download it, and scan it quickly to see if it meets your needs. There is no risk if you don’t like it; you can download a bunch of free items and see what works best for you. Keep reading to discover 3 FREE resources from my store!
This is also a great way to try out resources from a variety of stores to see what works best with your teaching style. We all have our own educational and design style that we like to find in resources that we use, so this is an easy way to get an idea of the stores that we will go back to again and again. And on that note…
2. Follow Stores You Like
Many stores offer discounts on new resources, and as a follower, you will be alerted when a new resource is posted. For example, the majority of my resources are priced at 50% off for the first 48 hours. If you already know that you like the style and quality of the seller’s work, you may want to take advantage of a deep discount when the resource is new. Of course, not all sellers offer this, but for those that do, this is a great opportunity for savings. To follow their store, just click the green star at the top of their store page. If you are interested in receiving alerts for new resources by Real Cool English that are offered at 50% off for the first 48 hours, click HERE to follow me.
3. Follow Social Media and Blogs of Sellers You Like
Often they have discounts on new resources (as mentioned above), and in addition to the alerts given by TpT, which are easy to overlook, they may also send an email to announce the release of a new product and how much you can save. They also often have giveaways, freebies, or other promotions or announcements so you don’t miss out on great opportunities.
This is another risk-free opportunity; if you find they are sending out more emails or posting more than you would like, you can always unfollow or unsubscribe. I know that I am very mindful about how many emails I am sending out and always make sure that I am offering something of value, and I think most sellers feel the same way. Grab these 4 fun freebies when you subscribe to my blog!
Similarly, I do not post a lot on Facebook, but it is a great way to hear about great sale opportunities, such as huge dollar hashtag sales that I participate in a few times a year.
Another way to save that you might not be aware of…
4. Leave Reviews on Your TpT Purchases
I was surprised to learn that many people did not know that they can earn credits to use toward their TpT purchases simply by leaving reviews on products they have already purchased and used. By this, I mean you will literally earn $$$ to use toward purchases in any TpT store, just for leaving a review. This is helpful for you as a customer of course, but it is also super helpful for the seller. Please note, that you only earn credits for paid resources, but our freebies need love too, so we are always thrilled to hear back from teachers about our free resources, even if they don’t earn you credits!
Not sure how to leave a review? Just go to your “My Purchases” tab, find all your recent purchases and go through them, one by one, leaving a rating and comment. I know it’s tempting to just leave a short response, but sellers really do read their feedback, and genuinely want to know that their resource worked well for you. Hearing from a teacher that the resource saved them so much time or that their students really enjoyed it honestly makes our day!
Not feeling that your purchase was quite 5-star worthy?
Before you leave a review for something you thought was lacking, a typo, or something you wish were in the resource but wasn’t, reach out to the seller through TpT’s Q&A or their email if it’s listed in the resource. On a related note, sometimes we get very excited about a product and quickly purchase it before really checking to see if it meets our needs. I have been guilty of that, and when I went back to look at the description and preview, I realized that if I had taken the time to check it carefully, I would have realized it wasn’t exactly what I was looking for. So the moral of the story: before spending your hard-earned money, take a few extra seconds to read and review all the information that is included for that resource. If it’s still not clear, and you are looking for something specific, send a quick Q&A to the seller and ask them.
Generally, sellers are very responsive to questions and suggestions, and we strive to make quality resources that are helpful to teachers. There have been several times that buyers mentioned something they wished I had included with my resource, and I thought it was a great idea, so I updated the product. This is the beauty of digital materials. Once a book is purchased, that’s it. Nothing can be changed, corrected, or added until the next version is published, which has to be purchased again. With TpT resources, your $5 purchase can bring you years of valuable use, and any critical corrections/changes can be done very quickly and reflected in an updated version. This brings me to my next point.
5. Check Your “My Purchases” Regularly
I often go through my resources and give them a facelift, adding fresh fonts and graphics, and frequently adding content, including digital versions. Sometimes I have decided to make a product line based on a single resource, which I then convert to a bundle. So if the buyer downloads the resource again, they may find that their single purchase has magically transformed into a bundle of 3 or more related items!
And don’t forget about growing bundles that you have purchased! You may not get a notification about updates, so you will want to check regularly to get all the new resources added since your initial purchase. One way to help you keep track is by downloading the TpT app. You can set the notifications to alert you when there are updated resources. Just click on the notifications tab to quickly see if there are any recent updates.
Here are just a few examples from my store of growing bundles that I’m regularly updating, or single products that have been transformed into larger bundles or had significant content added:
Word Puzzles and Games Endless Bundle
Spelling and Vocabulary Companion Activities to 4th Grade Reading Street
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Something else that happens to me: When there is a big sale, for example, I find a bunch of great things and buy them, and then forget to download them all. Months later as I’m checking my “My Purchases” to leave reviews to earn $$$ before a sale, I discover resources that I had bought and completely forgotten about! So, make a plan to check your “My Purchases” at least once a month. It’s often like receiving a surprise gift! |
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6. Use Your Wish List to Keep Track of Resources You Are Interested In
Sometimes during a TpT search, we find resources that look great, but are not a priority right now because we know we don’t need them right away (such as holiday resources) and we don’t want to spend the money if we don’t need them yet. Other times, we find high-ticket bundles that look great, but we are just not ready for that kind of investment yet. Put those items in your wish list because if you found a great Halloween item in February, you may have forgotten about it by the time October rolls around. But if you have it in your wish list, when the time comes that you are looking for Halloween resources, you will already have something ready to go.
Speaking of Halloween, here is a FREE activity you can download now! Also grab this free Christmas activity HERE and a free Valentine’s Day activity HERE.
7. Check Your Wish List Regularly
You may find that an item you were looking at earlier has since been updated with new content or a digital version, and now you are definitely ready to purchase it. Also, you never know when a store might be having a sale, so you may find that the big-ticket item you weren’t ready to pull the trigger on, or the resource you were planning to buy later, is now on sale, so it’s a perfect time to grab it! Speaking of sales:
8. Take Advantage of TpT Sitewide Sales
Every so often, TpT offers sitewide sales, and most sellers participate by putting their entire store on sale for 20% off. On top of this, TpT offers an additional 5% discount, so you have the potential for incredible savings! NOTE: be sure to enter the discount code at checkout (each sale will have a different code) to get the extra 5% savings.
So be sure to check your wish list whenever TpT is having a sale, and get all those items that you were holding onto for later. By the way, there is no specific schedule for TpT sales, so the best way to learn about them is to follow a TpT store or the store’s social media or blog. To be in the know about sitewide or other big sales you don’t want to miss, you can follow me here:
9. Check for Bundles
Maybe you just found a great resource that you know would work perfectly in your classroom, so you quickly add it to your cart. However, many resources are part of bundles that have related resources, which can add significant value for you at a deep discount. Most sellers use the bundling tool, which displays the bundle that the resource is included in at the top of the description, but this can easily be overlooked. Others do not use the bundling tool for various reasons, so you may need to read the description carefully to find a link to the bundle.
One of the reasons they may do it this way is because TpT only allows a maximum of a 50% discount on items bundled with their tool, which sometimes is not realistic. For example, on my States Research Bundle, each state is sold separately, and if I had bundled them all together, I would be forced to sell the bundle at nearly $90, and of course that makes no sense. So, the bottom line is that it is a good idea to check for opportunities to bundle because it is a great way to get a lot of value for your money.
Important note about purchasing bundles: If you put a resource in your cart, and then later decide to purchase the bundle, be sure to remove the individual resource from your cart. It will not happen automatically just because you added the bundle to your cart, and you definitely don’t want to pay for the bundle plus the individual resource, unless you are purchasing that specific resource for another teacher. Which brings me to the next point.
10. Purchase Extra Licenses for Fellow Teachers at a Discounted Rate
Let’s say you bought a resource that worked great for your classroom, and you want to share it with a fellow teacher who you think would also appreciate it. Please remember that the purchase of a single license means the resource is allowed for use by a single teacher, and that considerable time and resources go into the research, planning, designing, and creating of an activity, game, or lesson. We love it that you found such value in our products that you want to share them; however, if you wish do to so, an additional license must be purchased.
The good news is that each additional license can be purchased at a discounted rate. To do this, simply go to “My Purchases” and find the resource you wish to share. Then click the “Purchase Additional Licenses” button, where you can buy as many licenses as the number of people you wish to share the resource with.
This can be especially useful if your school is paying for certain resources to be used with multiple classes and teachers. They can quickly purchase as many licenses as they need. Or another way to reduce the amount of your personal money spent on resources…
11. Encourage Your School to Participate in TpT’s School Access Program
In this program, your school will have access to over 3 million resources that can be instantly used in your classroom or during remote learning. With this program, teachers can choose resources that they want to use with their students, without having to pay out of pocket for them. Not all stores participate in this program, but it is another great way to discover new stores that you might not have known about. If you would like to introduce this program to your school, complete this form to have an email sent to your administrator with details about the program and how it can benefit your school.
I hope you have found something useful in these tips, and you are able to put them to use to help save you money on your TpT purchases!
Happy teaching!
