In these troubled economic times, every penny counts. While people struggle to pay the bills of their everyday lives, buying discounted gift cards can not only save you money when you shop, but they can also make an excellent gift for a friend – and she doesn’t have to know you paid a discounted price for them. Saving money is the name of the game, and people who purchase gift cards at a discount can save literally thousands of dollars a year. You may even be able to save enough money to take a vacation.

The top reason to purchase discounted gift cards is, of course, to save money. And if you buy the cards in penny auctions, you can buy them at deep discounts, and save even more. At BidBlink.com, you can get some discounted gift cards at 90% off their face value! And at PlasticJungle, you can save 5 to 10% on gift cards. Keep your eye on eBay, too, where you may be able to grab a deal. Most cards at eBay go for closer to their face value, since so many more people "shop" there.

You can also combine gift cards with coupons and sales, on your purchases. The money that you’ve saved by buying gift cards at discounted prices can be combined with coupons and other store special offers for even more savings. If you combine 20% savings from a discount gift card with a 25-30% off store sale, that leads to tremendous overall savings.

If you have a friend or relative who is hard to buy for on their birthday or holidays, you can give them a gift card and they will assume you paid full price for it. People can always use gift cards, as long as they are from stores where they shop. If you give your friends $50 gift cards that you only paid $35 for, that saves you a lot of money.

Take the money you save from buying discount gift cards at penny auctions and pay extra on your credit card bills. This will help you work down the balance much more quickly.

If you or a member of your family has a new baby, you know that expenses for the little ones add up very quickly. It seems like you just bought clothes for them, and they’re in a larger size already. If you can save even $1000 a year by buying discounted gift cards at penny auctions or eBay, you can use the extra money to help buy things for your youngsters.

When you know where to shop for discounted gift cards, you can save a lot of money online. Gift cards that others don’t want or need can mean extra money for you to spend where you need to. Buying unwanted gift cards is like buying cash – at a discount! If someone offered you $100 for $80, would you take it? Of course. If you see a great deal, even if it’s not at a store you frequent, you can always regift it, to someone who will really appreciate it.