Who knows the most about a particular product or service? The obvious answer is the manufacturer or service provider. Yet far too often we disregard their advice and spend more by following rules of thumb.

A classic example is determining when to change the oil in your car. When reading the previous sentence, how many of you instinctively thought that oil should be changed every 3 months or 3,000 miles? That rule of thumb is certainly well-known, much to the glee of your local quick lube establishment. The next time you’re in your car, pull out the owner’s manual and see what the manufacturer recommends. You’ll probably be surprised to learn that it’s much longer than the commonly believed 3 months or 3,000 miles. Age of vehicle, driving style, etc., can all affect the appropriate distance and time between oil changes (3 months or 3,000 miles could actually be correct for you, but you shouldn’t just blindly accept that number).

Manufacturers’ recommendations can go in the opposite direction as well. You may find that a product tends to wear out much faster than you expect. Reading the owner’s manual might key you in on a recommended cleaning or maintenance schedule, much more frequent than you’ve been using, to keep the product working at higher performance for a much longer time. Preventive maintenance is usually easy and inexpensive and almost always ends up saving you money compared to major repairs or frequent replacements.

Here on the Lending Club blog, I often mention how specialized advice, tailored to your own situation, is much more valuable than the generalized advice we commonly receive. In the case of products and services you buy, the best advice is often included with the product itself, if you simply take the time to look.

Do you read the owner’s manuals for the products you buy?

By this time of year, many high school seniors have firmed up their college plans for next year. Whatever criteria they used to make their final decision, it’s clear that the economy likely played a large role.

With job losses and declining investment balances, many parents have had to advise more modest choices for their children. Even those with 529 College Savings Accounts, which should have been in highly conservative investments, so close to college, may have seen declines. Some improperly allocated 529 accounts saw major declines.

The College Hopes and Worries Survey, administered by The Princeton Review, summarized many of the concerns faced by students and parents. It found that:

• 67% of survey respondents said the economic downturn had affected their application decisions. Asked what the major way it affected them was: 38% said they were applying to colleges "with lower sticker prices," 34% said they were applying to "more 'financial aid safety' schools," and 28% said they were applying to "schools closer to home"
• 85% said financial aid will be "very" or "extremely" necessary (60% of which said "extremely")
• Respondents’ biggest worry about applying to college: "Will get into first-choice college, but won't have sufficient funds/financial aid to attend it"

An interesting point noted in my post, Top Value from Top Colleges, is that many “prestigious” colleges and universities rank high on value because they significantly offset the costs of attendance with grants and scholarships, which do not need to be repaid. I hope that students realized this and still applied to their dream schools, even if they also added some more affordable options to their list of prospective schools. Evaluating choices with as much information as possible will help you make the best decision. When choosing between schools that have accepted you, remember to consider the true cost of attendance. This will be an easier calculation now that the various financial aid packages (work-study, loans, scholarships, and grants) are known quantities.

All expenses are being monitored more closely during these difficult economic times. Larger expenses get the most attention and college certainly falls within this category. I hope that students are making good choices about which schools to attend and that they are considering the actual costs that will be incurred as opposed to the advertised prices.

Did you (or your child) change your college application plans based on the economy?

Many of the ways homeowners can reduce their energy costs apply to businesses as well. Depending on the size of the company, the importance of smart energy practices increases significantly.

Consider the recent finding that US companies could save $2.8 Billion a year just by turning off unused PCs overnight. Workers may not feel as inclined to save their company money on electricity as they would within their own homes. In other cases, employers mandate that computers be left on so that patches and updates can be applied without hindering productivity. Perhaps a middle ground could be reached where computers were shut down most nights and over weekends, but were left on by request for specific actions to be taken.

Since overall energy use tends to scale with size, it’s also likely that energy waste does as well. The effect of a huge energy consumer reducing its use by 5% is clearly much more significant than the same reduction by a smaller consumer. Still, good habits from all users, both in corporations and homes, large and small, are worth the effort.

IBM has a great commercial in which an executive is dismissing an energy-saving proposal. He says that he’s no tree hugger and doesn’t eat granola for breakfast, so he questions why he should even consider such an idea. The light bulb (hopefully a CFL) goes on in the executive’s head when the subordinate translates the energy savings into the effect on the company’s bottom line.

Most businesses are profit-driven, meaning that they aren’t likely to take action unless it has profitable consequences. Fortunately, energy savings, with all of its many other benefits, has the ability to do just that.

Have you taken steps at work, whether as an employee or owner, to increase energy awareness?

In an effort to lure in the growing number of budget-conscious diners, many full-service chain restaurants have begun to offer menu items at historically low prices. USA Today reports that desperate restaurants are willing to try anything, including significant discounts, in the hopes of bringing back customers.

With lower prices, you’ll be able to either spend less money or keep your budget the same while eating out more. I prefer the former. The cited article also noted how prices in some chain restaurants were approaching those of fast food. While you may feel better getting a “real meal” for about the same amount of money, remember that chain restaurant food is often at least as unhealthy as fast food, and sometimes worse.

Low prices also mean that profit margins are reduced. Restaurants still stand to be better off as a result if higher volume can increase overall profit. Would you rather make a $5 profit on 100 people or a $7 profit on 50 people? Clearly the first option means a healthier bottom line. Menu items with lower prices can also be used as loss leaders to get customers in the door. Once there, they may purchase not only the low-priced items but also those with higher profit margins, such as alcohol.

Chains specifically mentioned in the article included Chili’s, T.G.I. Fridays, Outback Steakhouse, Texas Roadhouse, Cheesecake Factory, and Morton’s. Many offered meals for $10 or less. Other chains are likely to follow suit.

I don’t eat out very often, but lower prices are good even for people like me. To make the most of these latest promotions, stick to the featured items that offer the best deals and pass on everything else. The restaurants would prefer customers with worse spending habits, but in this economy, they’ll take any customers they can get.

Do price adjustments affect your dining habits?

Subscription prices vary, but you can usually get a year’s worth of magazine issues for the cost of between two and three issues at the newsstand. Subscribing seems like an easy choice, but there are less expensive ways to do this in terms of cost and environmental impact.

The first method is to look for promotional pricing that accompanies other purchases you are making. I’m sure you’ve been offered different subscriptions when making purchases at Best Buy. Amazon regularly offers free, or discounted, magazines with a certain type of purchase. I received a one-year subscription to Wired for spending a certain amount on electronics. Note that you should have at least a slight interest in the “free” magazines from Amazon, because you can often write to receive a credit on your purchase for the estimated value of the subscription.

Another option is to subscribe using credit card rewards or frequent flyer points. I prefer the latter. Many airlines have expiration dates on their frequent flier miles. By allowing you to use them towards a subscription, you at least get something of value before the miles become worthless. This is the main method I use to actually subscribe.

A final method is the one I tend to use the most of all: check magazines out of your library. Not only do libraries have a much wider selection of magazines than I would ever subscribe to myself, there is no cost and limited environmental impact, since every borrower reuses the same copy. The only downsides are limited availability and the fact that you can’t dog-ear or tear out pages for reference the way you might with a copy you own. To solve the availability issue, you can read the magazine at a bookstore instead. Many of the larger chains encourage patrons to browse their merchandise, preferably while sipping on a latté.

Magazines are not quite as useful as they were before the Internet. Niche markets, traditionally covered exclusively in magazines, now have wider exposure through blogs and topic-specific websites. Still, magazines add some value. Getting that value for the best price through the most appropriate method will enhance your reading experience.

What is your preferred method of acquiring magazines?