So, you may or may not know that I coupon. By no means would I qualify for the extreme couponing shows, nor do I aspire to earn such a role, but I would say I do a pretty good job for my fam. There are certain products, such as deodorant and toothpaste, for which I refuse to pay full price. Likewise, you will likely find a few extras of this week's sale items stashed away in my house. As a matter of fact, I have 4 bottles of Hershey's syrup (I'm the only one who uses it in our family) and 4 jars of peanut butter in my pantry at this very moment. Excessive?? No, just thrifty!
For those of you who don't know much about couponing, it's not *just* about snipping the colorful little rectangles from the Sunday paper. In fact, it's really about research! I combine manufacturers coupons + store coupons + store sales to attempt to find the best price possible for any given item. This means I put in a couple hours work before I even think about stepping foot in the store.
How it's Done
My couponing week starts on Sunday when I pick up at least two copies of the Sunday paper (always checking to make sure my inserts are present before purchasing... It heart breaking to get home and realize I'm missing an insert!). Why two, you ask? To take advanatage of BOGO deals where you can use a coupon on each other the items. Por ejemplo, Ben and Jerry's is BOGO at $4.29. Publix allows me to use a coupon on the tub that costs me $4.29 and another coupon on the one that costs me nothing. So, if each of my coupons gives me $1.50 off, I get my ice cream for $1.29 OR $0.65 a piece!! Glory hallelujah! That extra newspaper has already paid for itself.
Over the next few days, I clip my coups and organize them in my binder (see more below). On Tuesdays, the ads come out with the sales and matchups for my grocery store -- I'm partial to Publix, although I always check other stores for better deals. Once I've familiarized myself with the hot buys for the week, I plan the family menu. From the menu, I compile my grocery list and then I gather all necessary coupons (I usually have to print a few, but most are patiently waiting for me in my binder).
Thursday is the big day. I head to the store, armed and ready. More often than I would prefer, there are variations on the deals (e.g. regional differences, excluded items) and I have to rethink a dinner or revamp the plan a bit. To make sure I'm prepared for such instances, I like to shop with my coupon binder in hand. I used to feel silly doing this, but it has ended up being a conversation starter with a lot of really interesting people. I almost always come away from those situations, having gained an extra tip or some encouragement from a fellow couponer (ther are herds of us out there!).
Now comes the biggest part of the day: checkout! I'd be lying if I said I don't sometimes get a little nervous at this point. With $250 worth of groceries in my cart, and a $100 budget for the week, I can't afford mistakes. So, to tip the scales in my favor, I like to do a little cashier profiling. I've always instinctively done this, but when I read about it on a couponing site, I realized how important it really is. There are cashiers out there who will assist me in my journey and there are those who take every measure they can to make things more difficult. My personal favorites are the young men, ages teens to mid-twenties. They are friendly and eager to get the job done. Once they know my game, they are as helpful as can be. I have two particular ones at mt local Publix who joke with me about my savings ratios from week to week and even ask me where Amelia is, if I sneak out for a late evening shopping trip. My least favorite cashiers are the middle-age ladies. While some are great, I've had several who argue with me about the coupon policies (even though I know it better than they do) and who seem to give me an attitude. The latter really rubs me the wrong way, because I am the kind of couponer who goes out of my way to be courteous. I do not deplete shelves of their stock and I do not abuse the system like some of the crazy couponers do!! Phew, sorry, that's the end of my rant. Back to our topic! As I approach, I remind myself to be organized, confident but courteous, and always (with humility!) ask questions when coupons don't ring how I expected them to. Sometimes the mistake is on my end and I need to learn from it, and sometimes the mistake is with the coupon and it needs to be adjusted. Most importantly, I try to sit back and savor the adrenaline rush as I watch the total plummet. This is very exciting, people!
Couponing Organization... A Must!!
I highly recommend using some type of organizer if you are thinking about using any quantity of coupons. For me, the best utility is my coupon binder. I have a three-ring binder filled with baseball trading card inserts to hold the coupons. The inserts are organized by categories, complete with a Table of Contents. I wish I could say I invented this system, but I did not. For more information, I recommend you check out
The Krazy Coupon Lady. I've altered some of her categories to better fit my own preferences, but I think this is a great place to start. Be sure to read her tip about warning the shoppers in line behind you!
Couponing Sites are Your Friend!
Each week, I do my homework using my favorite coupon site, Southern Savers. Southern Savers actually posts several stores' circulars with the coupon matchups under each sales item. This is EXTREMELY helpful! I find that I still do a little work beyond that, such as finding matchups for the items I need that are not included in the circular, but most my work can be done straight from this site. Southern Savers even tells in which insert (such as the SmartSource insert from the 9/18 paper) I can find the coupons I need. What a blessing! I truly believe I would not coupon if I didn't have this great resource to help wit so much of the work.
Final Thoughts
I'm going to leave you with a few finally thoughts and tips I think are important if you want to try out couponing.
Do your research. Learn your store's coupon policy (google is your friend!). I the process, don't allow yourself to get too overwhelmed in the beginning. There's a lot to learn in order to do it right, but it gets easy! Stay diligent and find your rhythm. You have to be consistent in order to get results. If you don't get the paper every week, you won't have the coupons you need, and your savings will not reflect the amount of effort you put in. When I realized this, everything got easier. Also, keep in mind this isn't rocket science. Once you learn the systems, you know how to work them. There might be tweeks to the policies here and there, but it's not like you have to educate yourself every week!! I promise that if you really give this a go, you will see a return on your investment. I know it's not for everyone, but if you have any level of interest, it's worth exploring. Not to mention, I am happy to help with any questions you have along the way. On that note, I wish you well on your journey, whatever route you chose to take! Happy shopping!
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