Coupons, coupons, coupons!
Does it take time... YES!
Do I buy stuff that I would not normally buy... YES
Is it worth it... YES!
So let me give you the scoop on coupons. I began cutting coupons about 5 years ago through a website called
The Grocery Game. This website taught me many things about couponing. One of the major lessons I learned was there is always a rock bottom sale price to each and every product AND this is when you want to use a coupon in order to get your best deals. Couponing is a "job", it is work, but with some organization and some help from others it is well worth the time you spend.
You need to understand the cycle of sales at your grocery store. Many products will hit their lowest-price every 8 weeks or so. What you want to do, is buy enough of a certain product when it is at it's lowest price to last you till it is on sale again. I try to do this with things like cereal, cleaning products, and toiletries.
How do you get started? You will need help! Find a website that will give you the deals. There are many sites out there that can help and walk you through it. Some charge a small fee others are free. I have been using
Southern Savers. I like her style it is clean and crisp. I get overwhelmed when websites are cluttered. I think that is why I like hers the best. And best part is it is FREE! I have heard of others such as
Money Saving Mom. There also is
Coupon Mom. Many other sites exist these are just ones I have heard of. I would love for you to comment on others if you know of them.
Once you find a site you like that works with the stores in your city you are ready to begin.
Where do you get the coupons? I get the coupons from all over. I do buy the Sunday paper. Southern Savers will tell us when there is a online coupon that I can just print. I also sign up for other coupon books that come in the mail, such as Kraft.
Stores- I think one of the first steps would be to research your local stores and their coupon policies. When I lived in Cali, Vons and Ralphs at the time would double any coupon up to $2.50. Which is amazing! Gosh the two stores I shop at now will only double a coupon if it is under 50 cents! There are so many things I can talk about in regards to store coupon policies! Some stores will let you use competitor coupons. Some stores will let you put coupons on their "club cards", some stores have triple coupon days. There are just so many details I could talk about, but I would check with your stores. And these websites should also help.
Does it really take 2 hours? Sometimes! From the time that I cut the coupons, organized them, file them, then researched, make my list, and finally pulled the coupons for that shopping trip many times it is an hour or longer. I often do things in chunks to break up the time. But again it is worth it!
Products- I am not a brand person. There is nothing that I wont try. But here is the deal, if someone was outside the grocery store handing out a product for free would you take it? I would! That is how I look at it. I got some free sour cream dip the other day. I would NEVER buy it because I would rather make it but because it was free it was perfect for my dinner party the next night. You do have to be creative but again, with the money you are saving you will be able to buy the certain things that YOU CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT!
Let me say that I have had a huge gap in my couponing! When I moved here The Grocery Game did not work as well. So I basically stopped. It was not until my friend
April showed me Southern Savers that I got back into the grocery game. I can't tell you the validation I feel when I pay a so little for so much!
So I guess that is the intro to coupons. Please let me know of other sites you may use. I welcome other questions too! H
Recent Comments