The Basics

So you're an Anglo-Israeli like me, loving the weather and the people here in Israel, but hating the high cost of living and the lack of access to cheap, quality products like you were used to back in the old country. Maybe (also like me) you have a bit of the shopaholic in you, or even just need to put food on the table and keep your kids in decent clothing, but don't feel like going into debt for the privilege. You may have heard about all these fantastic ways of making a little extra money online, but when you try to sign up for the programs, find they aren't open to Israelis. Or they *say* they're open to people from all countries, but in practice, you'll rarely if ever hear from them again.

That's where I and my blog, Save Our Shekels , come in.

I'm not rich by any means. Both my husband and I have day jobs, but over the years I've been online (over 15) I've looked into various ways of saving and making money online from Israel, and have gained some experience doing so. I'm happy to share that experience with you. It may not make you rich (or it may, and if so I'd like to hear about it!), but a little extra for the small luxuries in life never hurts.

To start saving and earning online, I suggest you do the following 3 things:

1) Open a new free email account. Unless you want your primary email address at risk of being swamped with spam or promotional offers, I strongly recommend you open a new account just for your money matters at Gmail, Hotmail or a similar free email host. You can forward the address to your primary email if you like, but at least have the option of detaching it if the account is compromised in some way.

2) Open a Paypal account. Paypal is a reliable, safe method of paying and getting paid online without revealing your credit card details. It's supported by thousands of online businesses, in Israel and internationally. An added bonus is their arbitration system - if you don't receive your item or it's not in the condition you expected, you have a good chance of getting your money back (though you may be expected to return the item and pay return shipping. We'll go into how we can make this cheaper in a future post).

Registration is easy and entirely free, so go and register for a Paypal account ASAP if you haven't done so already. Here's a video detailing how to open a Paypal account even if you don't have a credit or debit card:

3) Open a Facebook account. Many coupons, free samples and online contests are available on Facebook, so you definitely don't want to miss out.

Are you anti-social and don't want to be found online? While Facebook doesn't allow you to create a profile under a false name, there is no rule that says you can't use an uncommon nickname of yours, your maiden name only, or an alternate spelling of your name. They don't ask for ID, and you don't have to post your status every day, or even at all. So if you have yet to create a Facebook presence, do it right here . Then go to the Facebook pages of companies you like and "Like" them to receive regular updates.

Now that you've done those 3 things, you're in a position to save and make money online. Best of luck!