Financial incentives to go paperless

What paperless systems can put money back into your pocket? Here are some ideas for how you can save a tree and some cash.

Opt for e-receipts Paperless receipts de-clutter your wallet while allowing you to organize your sales info in an electronic file. This new system will make it much easier to deal with refunds, apply for rebates and track price-protected purchases. You'll want to create a separate email address, however, to keep your receipts separated from personal email; stores will likely use this address to forward promotional info.

Pay bills online Internet security has greatly improved so paying your bills electronically is much safer these days. Dealing with bills online helps ensure payments are made on time, even if last-minute, to avoid late fees.

Stop catalogs and phone books Remove your name for free from catalog mailing lists and stop receiving useless phone books. Simply search online, look for free shipping deals, pay-up, and you're out of there.

Use mobile coupons Forget clipping, filing and juggling paper coupons with apps that allow you to download coupons on the go. Some apps even have a mobile service that lets you search for a supermarket by ZIP code and, while you shop, download their mobile coupons to your store loyalty card. You then receive credit for the coupon at checkout.

Digitize photos Load your precious photos up to a cloud server, like Flickr, and never worry again about a fire destroying all those memories. Digitized photos are cheaper than prints and can be displayed in a variety of electronic forms.

Electronic invites Do you remember the last time you received a party invitation in your mailbox? Even weddings are being announced with digital invites, saving the bride and groom a pretty penny at the printers.

E-readers There's a world of free e-books available through your library, Project Gutenberg and other outlets. Eliminate the expense of buying books or simply save gas and time because you don't have to run to the library. You might also save on library fines, if you tend to run late or lose books.

Tap into loyalty cards Instead of sifting through your wallet every time you need to swipe a store loyalty card to receive perks and points, load them up to your phone. File all your reward, club and loyalty store cards into one, easily accessible place so you never miss a sale or a reward.

Printer paper The less verbiage and visuals you have to print out, the more you'll save on both paper and expensive printer ink. Also, consider ditching the sticky notes - you can use electronic ones that post right to your computer desk top instead.