Everyone is looking for a way to save money! How do you save money at the store? Do you clip coupons? Look for specials in the ads? Maybe you are a family that doesn’t use coupons because you see the task too daunting, time consuming, or not worth the “few dollars” you would save.
What if you could save at least half off of your grocery bill? Would the thought of using coupons possibly not be so bad? Of course, you would not have to go to the extent of those on Extreme Couponing.
Those individuals are some serious couponers and are really obsessive in using coupons. I would never recommend anyone to purchase any item they would not use or even stock up on a product that they couldn’t use before the expiration date. It’s not practical and in reality, you really are not saving any money.
While you may not immediately save half off your grocery order when you first start to coupon; there are definitely strategies one should follow. Here are a couple of things that you should do first when starting your coupon journey:
· Set up a coupon system. You want to create a system that works for you and is easy for you to use. I would highly recommend a binder. You can start small with a 1 inch binder and always expand as your coupon inventory expands. You will also want dividers, baseball card holders, and some vinyl envelopes that have a Velcro flap for those larger coupons (I use these for my Bed, Bath & Beyond coupons).
· Start studying the ads. Yes, study them! After a few months you will start to see a trend on what items are frequently on sale, how often they are on sale, and if the price is a good sale price or not. You will also be able to do this with coupons as well. Some coupons are better than others. I tend to not use the coupons in which I need to buy multiples of a product to save $1. More times than not, you are spending more just to save a dollar.
· Only cut/collect the coupons that you will use. If you clip a coupon and save it “just in case” you are more likely to buy it because you have a coupon, not because you need it.
A few tips to get you started…
· See if your store has previews of the next weeks ads. Here in Indianapolis, I am able to see the ads for the three stores I shop at prior to the current week ads ending. With that, I am able to see if an item that is on sale this week will be on sale next week and helps me plan ahead. Since our ads run Thursday-Wednesday, I always clean out and create my list (if I need to do grocery shopping that week) on Wednesdays.
· Start collecting coupons by either receiving them in the mail, purchasing multiple newspapers on Sundays from the dollar store, or even trading with friends. (If you do purchase multiple newspapers, make sure you will use most of the coupons in them before you buy them) When I was purchasing newspapers from the dollar store, I would buy at least 13 of them; but only if I was going to use the majority of them.
· Create your binder tabs. Mine are: paper/plastic, pantry, snacks, canned food, kids, pets, personal care, pharmacy, baking, freezer, fridge/dairy, and breakfast. You may want to add/delete sections to best fit your needs. Another fun tip, if you write on your tabs with a Sharpee, you can easily change the tab name as needed by erasing the ink with a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser.
· Visit your local Kohls store to purchase the reusable fabric bags. I use these all the time for our groceries. One of our local stores and Target actually pay you .05 for each bag you use. I promise if you use them consistently you will have them paid off quickly. Typically, you can fit 5-6 plastic bags worth of groceries in 1 reusable bag or even 3 gallons of milk. These are the best bags because they are large, fold up and button conveniently, and then can easily be carried over your shoulder.
One frequent question I get is, “How do you remember to bring your bags and coupons with you?”
My response? “You never leave home without your coupons. If you are going to go into the store for a quick trip, bring your coupons. You never know what you will see that you may need/it is on sale/you have a coupon for. I always put my binder in my Kohls bag with some additional bags and just bring it with me. Saves me another trip to the car” J
My golden rule for grocery shopping (and my three year old understands it) If it is not on sale/not a necessity/there is not a coupon for it, it is not bought. There are rare exceptions to this rule…milk/eggs/bread (we purchase our bread from our bread store). My most recent visit to our bread store was $9. With that I purchased, 2 packages of Aunt Millie bagels, 3 loaves of white bread, 1 load of wheat bread, 3 packages of sub buns, 2 packages of hotdog buns, and 2 packages of hamburger buns. All were of Aunt Millie brand. If I would have purchased that from my local grocery store, I would have easily spent $32. I love to save money and help others do the same.
Throughout the weeks/months to come I will continue to share with you how to save money and still eat healthy. At the same time, I will also share couponing tips as well as electronic coupon codes as they become available to me. Please share my blog with your family and friends as we all have the same goal: save money.
If you have any questions you would like answered or if there are specific tips/information you would like on saving money please email me or leave me comments here on my blog.
Happy Savvy Savings!
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