Couponing has never been my thing. I’ve tried in the past to clip coupons a few times but I ended up either forgetting them when I shopped or let them expire before I was able to use them. Pretty much, I was a couponing FAIL of epic proportions, so I chalked it as something that I wasn’t cut out to do in life. It was when I visited BlogHer last month in San Diego that I was introduced to a lot of coupons during the conference—good ones too for free or half off on a lot of products that I actually buy and use. It was then that I set out to make this couponing thing work for me and my family, because, who doesn’t like to save money?
My first trip to the grocery store post BlogHer, I saved $35 off of the total price of my bill. And I didn’t even use all of the coupons I was given. Seeing that reduction on my bill made me realize that it was worth me putting in some time into it to try to save money each and every week.
So now that I am almost 4 weeks into couponing, I have learned the following things:
- Do your homework: The savings come, not just in coupon’s face value, but in what the price of the product is BEFORE you use the coupon. The goal is to ultimately spend as less as you can on the item. So if the item is on sale at Place B and you are at Place C, you aren’t getting the most out of your money. Find and compare the actual price of items before you hit the road and shop where the item is lowest, increasing the savings with your coupon.
- Be organized: I don’t shop with a coupon binder (I am in the market for one, though, so if you know of a good one, please let me know), but I do shop with a list on my smartphone and I pull and separate my coupons before I enter the store. This helps me attack my savings and make sure that I am getting everything I need.
- Only buy what you need: On shows like Extreme Couponing, you see families stockpiling items. I do believe you should have a surplus on the items you use, but I am really picky about food and feeding my family a lot of packaged and processed foods. I also don’t have a lot of space for storing a lot of overflow, so I only buy what I need. I think when you are truly buying to save, you aren’t in it to overbuy. And in the end, it really isn’t necessary.
- The goal is to SAVE: The most I have saved on a shopping trip at one store has been the $35 I mentioned earlier. The least amount I have saved has been $7. I am realistic in my expectations and understand I may not save big each and every time I shop. But when I add up my monthly savings, there is a significant amount still left in my account because of couponing.
- Use the Internet: There are items that I buy that I have yet to see coupons for in the newspaper. I have learned to use the Internet to my advantage and go to the company’s website to see if they have a printable coupon I can use in the store. This has worked for me several times, and I don’t leave the house until I have checked all of the websites to see if printable coupons are available. There are also many couponing sites that will let you print out coupons at your leisure. You can check out Crate and Barrel coupons and Harry and David coupons.
- Know the store’s couponing policy: Holding up the line because you don’t know the store’s couponing policy is not a good look. If you have any questions, consult a store manager before heading to the checkout line.
- Participate in store savings clubs: A lot of drugstores and grocery stores have discount or savings clubs that you can enroll in (usually for free) and earn points and rewards that you can use when you shop. Great for using, you guessed it, with coupons!
Don’t let television shows and atypical couponers give you a bad taste about clipping coupons. On an average, I have saved $15 per shopping trip using my coupons and quite pleased with that. Hopefully I can get better sniffing out deals and bargains in order to put my coupons to work even more for me, but so far so good.
What are your thoughts? Do you clip coupons? What is your average savings per trip? And what tips do you have for me? 🙂
I’ll be following your story about couponing with interest. I have conflicted feelings about it. Obviously I’m all for saving money and being savvy. But where I am confounded is: in the time it takes to coupon, could you have used that same time to increase your income? I don’t necessarily think the answer is yes, but I’ll be interested in your take on it.
Nancy, you ask a good question. For me, if I am saving money, then I am making money. Or so the saying goes, a penny saved is a penny earned. I wouldn’t spend more time on couponing than I do on my income endeavors, but I think they do compliment one another at the end of the day. I think being smart about money is also knowing how and where you can save so that it benefits you and your family. Thanks for commenting. 🙂
I actually appreciate this post. Mostly because the ladies on Extreme Couponing (all due respect) are a BIT much for me. I cannot get with those huge stockpiles. It’s quite intimidating. I, like you found myself trying to coupon and either forgetting the coupons or letting them expire. I told myself I would start back but I can at least take advantage of the little savings. So maybe I won’t end up with the grocery store “owing” me money but saving $20 here and there does not hurt either. Thank you for this post.
Andrea, thanks for taking the time to comment. I am not looking to make money couponing. But if I can cut my grocery bill by 20% or even half, then I consider myself a success. I am not knocking the women of Extreme Couponing and what they do but they spend hours (like a full time job) on cutting coupons and using them. I don’t have that much time to devote to it. But I spend about an hour or two a week compiling my coupons and checking deals. It’s something I would like to do WHEN time allows.
When it comes to couponing you have to either want to coupon or not. I am a person who was on the show and does not have a large stockpile. You have to get what you need for your family and move on. If you are trying to do what was done on TV, it will never happen. Saving $20 – $30 on your first shopping trip is great. It takes time, skill, and patience to want to be an Extreme Couponer.
Antoinette, I never did see your episode on TLC. Will they be doing a new season or showing reruns?
It came on thi spast weekend. The new season starts on 9/28/2011 on TLC. I will not be on that show, but I am working with them for something new with them. You can download the episode on Itunes. I wil be sure to let you know when the rerun come backonof my episode. Keep up the good work with the blog and I am working on being in STL for in October for your social media event.
Antoinette, I will be looking out for your episode. Also, Ia m looking forward to meeting you if you come to Show Me the Blog next month. 🙂
I thought about doing the couponing thing just to save money on things I either eat or used the most. The hardest part is finding the coupons. I enjoy watching Extreme Couponing. I love that one lady was so detail and had an spreadsheet on her ipad. I will definitely be following your story.
ArtDeal, you are right—finding the coupons is the hardest part (along with matching them to the lowest price). It is really time consuming, and the people who save hundreds each trip spend A LOT of time compiling and cutting coupons. I don’t think I will ever be at THAT level but I do enjoy saving. We will see how this goes… 🙂
Finding coupons is easy. They are everywhere. I think where everybody gets it wrong is that they have a grocery list and want a coupon for each of those items. EC only shop sales. They get the coupons each week; they print them from the computer and wait for a sale. You have to keep in mind and this is what I teach when I teach coupon classes. Sale+ Coupon = FREE or Cheap. It is full price and you are adding a coupon, you are paying full price.
Doing the coupon thing is hard and I think the Extreme Couponing show leads people to believe they can go and buy hundreds of dollars worth of groceries for $50 and forget that it’s called “extreme”. Personally I have fun with couponing and the show did reveal some tips to better organize the process (especially for the organizationally-challenged people like myself). It can be fun if you view it as a scavenger hunt in finding the best price. Personally I just converted to a zippered Mead Five Star binder and spend several hours a week cutting and finding coupons, but every few weeks I take a break because it can get overwhelming and all consuming. I am very much looking forward to future updates you have about your couponing experience!
Hey Jenni. I remember seeing you tweet about you couponing earlier this year. Yes, it’s a constant struggle to stay on task and do it each and every week, especially when you are super busy with other things. Hopefully, I will be able to maintain. We will see!
These are all good ideas. I agree about buying only what you need. I’ve watched a few of the couponing shows and it seems that while they’re saving money, they’re spending money on shelving, storage units, etc. And what are they doing with all of that extra stuff? Would love to see it go to a homeless shelter and other worthy charities. Thanks for the reminder to check the Internet for coupons before leaving the house.
Great tips for a beginner like me. I always feel like I need to use coupons, but have a hard time getting organized. Seeing the savings on my receipt is a great motivator, though!
Jen, yes, I am with you. When I saw that I was saving money on my first visit, I was sold. The clipping and organizing is so worth it.
I’ve been at this since April and I can truly say that it’s made an impact on my family’s finances. I enjoy it and I love watching the balance go down once I start handing over my coupons.
One tip for you: follow local couponing bloggers in your area…they already did the legwork of matching coupons to sales for you, which is how you get the REALLY good deals. I read both nationwide and regional couponing blogs in order to get a good idea of what’s out there and what’s in my area.