THIS IS PART THREE IN THE SERIES if you missed it you can read part 1 here and part 2 here
SMART COUPONING
I was introduced to smart couponing three years ago. I was a busy mother with three very small children (the oldest was only three). Many days just finding time to have a shower was a chore. Finding hours to coupon seemed like the imposible. I had been invited out to a class on couponing. I thought "I will go see". My real motivation for going was to have a night out away from the kids and to enjoy some adult conversation. I was still not sure about it. I had a freind who was a nanny. The family asked her to work extra hours on tuesdays. They did this so that the mother could spend time clipping coupons and getting ready for shopping trips. She told stories of this woman spending hours clipping, and sorting coupons. Then she spend hours looking online to find the best place to use all those coupons. I thought to myself "Is it worth it to let someone else raise my kids so that I can save money?" Long story short, The Frugalista inside of me woke up and I found that you can clip coupons and save money even with very little time. I like the clipless method for organizing coupons. Jessica Willams Of Utah Deal Diva has a great tutorial on coupons. You can read about her clipless coupon method here
FINDING COUPONS
Coupons are everywhere. Companies are trying to get you to try their products. The Sunday paper has been the standard for many years.The internet has brought about a new way of couponing. There are several sites dedicated to printable coupons some include coupons.com, coupon suzy, and red plum. You can also add coupons directly to your stores loyalty card. I am near Smith's food and drug I can load coupons to my card here. Another place to add coupons to your card is cellfire Facebook has coupons when you like a particular company. You can also write the companies that make your favorite products and request coupons. I use all these in addition to the traditional Sunday newspaper. Many of these sites require you to join or sign up. I would use a junk E-mail for this. Sometimes there are alot of ads sent to your computer after you sign up.
A note about internet coupons You can usually print out two coupons per computer. The coupons cannot be photocopied. There are some places that will not accept internet coupons because of others actions. Please be courteous and follow these basic rules so that we can continue to use these services.
We have found coupons NOW WHAT?
THERE IS A RIGHT TIME TO USE A COUPON
Just because you have a coupon does not mean you have to use it. There is a saying out there that coupons are like "free money" and not using them is like throwing money in the trash. It is a bunch of Baloney. Buying a product just because you have a coupon can be a big money waster. Buy only items that you will use.
Using a coupon when an item is on sale is the right time to use a coupon. The product is already on sale and you can stack the savings of the coupon on top of that you have yourself a deal. If you have more than one coupon then you can really add up the savings. You can stock up with several months worth of the product.
HOW DO I MATCH UP MY SALE ADS WITH MY COUPONS?
Knowing when to use coupons can be tricky at first. There are many sites that help in matching up coupons with the sale flyers. My favorite internet site and the one that I first learned is grocery smarts There are many others. I heart the mart Matches up coupons with Walmart. wild for wags matches up coupons at walgreens. coupon mom is also a useful site.
If you can't find a site that matches up coupons with your local store never fear. When you look at the ad and see that a product that you use, check out a coupon database such as a full cup They have an advanced search option that lets you check and see if there is a current coupon available for a specific product.
REBATES
This is something that I personally do not do alot of. Some people find great savings in reabates. With the advent of the internet it is alot easier. I just really do not want to take the time to jump through the hoops to get it done. Also I hate spending money now to get it back later. I worry that they may forget me, or it will get lost in the mail. I worry that I will miss something or not follow the instructions just right. For me it is not worth the worry. If you do decide to do rebates, just make sure to follow the instructions. They usually have to be done a specific way and in a specific time frame.
Beer rebates can be a great way to get free food. Look for them in the beer isle of your store. How it works: 1. Buy beer. 2. buy the food listed on the rebate form. 3.Send in your receipts and get a rebate for the food purchased. In Utah (and a few other states) you do not have to buy the beer. That means just buy the food listed and send in the rebate form. Totally free food! It works for some but is not my style.
IF IT IS OVERWHELMING!
Take it a bit at a time. Don't try to coupon at every store, or every time you go shopping. Pick a few coupons for the things that you will use. You do not have to know everything all at once. It took me quite a while to learn how to coupon. I am not an expert, but I know that the time I put into it saves me a bunch. Attend a class in your area. Read up about it. See if it could work for you.
AS AN ADDED NOTE
I have started eating more "real food" I use alot less food coupons. I do however, use coupons to buy all my toiletries for supercheap so that I do have more room in the budget for better quality food.
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