1. Be Organized
2. Be Prepared
3. Be Patient
4. Be Polite
5. Pay it forward
6. Prioritize
#1 Be Organized
There will be so many different stores, policies, websites, and deals that it will be impossible to keep everything straight without being organized. Unless you have a successful system that works for you, you will not reach your savings potential and may decide that all of the work just isn't worth it. So, make it easy on yourself. Make a plan and have the proper tools to execute it.
The Tools
3 inch Three Ring Binder That's right, the big boy. I'm not going to lie; You will probably feel like an idiot the first few times you lug that thing into Safeway. But wouldn't you feel like a bigger idiot if you continued to overpay for groceries by hundreds of dollars? My first month of using it, I would sometimes leave it in the car if I was just popping in for one or two items. BIG mistake. Every time without fail I would run across something on sale that I could have paired with a coupon and gotten for free. I got tired of always going back out to the car, so now it is with me always.
30 Trading Card Protectors These are the perfect size for coupons and allow you to easily see and organize your coupons into different categories. If you don't want to preclip your coupons you can just use 8 1/2 by 11 sheet protectors and organize your entire ad by date with the intention of clipping as you buy. We will go over how each method works in a later lesson.
Table of Contents/Dividers There are a few templates on the Internet that you can start with. I have found that it's best to make your own. Some people organize their binder by aisle, some by food categories, some by store. Here is the list I started with (Thanks thekrazycouponlady.com ). I have since modified it to work better for me.
The Current Coupon Policies for the stores that you shop You are going to be doing some things with coupons that no sane person would think possible. But, they will all be totally legal moves. From time to time you may run into a cashier that challenges your coupon policy knowledge. This is usually a new cashier, but sometimes even managers may be unaware of their store's policies. This is when you can politely provide them with your copy of their policy. Most major stores post their coupon policy on their websites. Target Walmart Walgreens RiteAid If you need one not listed here, you can always email the store and request one if you don't see it on their website.
Printer Ink and Paper I use more online coupons than ones found in the newspaper. No, you will not spend more in ink than you save. But, you don't want to miss out on a great deal because you ran out of ink or printer paper.
To be continued....
The Tools
3 inch Three Ring Binder That's right, the big boy. I'm not going to lie; You will probably feel like an idiot the first few times you lug that thing into Safeway. But wouldn't you feel like a bigger idiot if you continued to overpay for groceries by hundreds of dollars? My first month of using it, I would sometimes leave it in the car if I was just popping in for one or two items. BIG mistake. Every time without fail I would run across something on sale that I could have paired with a coupon and gotten for free. I got tired of always going back out to the car, so now it is with me always.
30 Trading Card Protectors These are the perfect size for coupons and allow you to easily see and organize your coupons into different categories. If you don't want to preclip your coupons you can just use 8 1/2 by 11 sheet protectors and organize your entire ad by date with the intention of clipping as you buy. We will go over how each method works in a later lesson.
Table of Contents/Dividers There are a few templates on the Internet that you can start with. I have found that it's best to make your own. Some people organize their binder by aisle, some by food categories, some by store. Here is the list I started with (Thanks thekrazycouponlady.com ). I have since modified it to work better for me.
The Current Coupon Policies for the stores that you shop You are going to be doing some things with coupons that no sane person would think possible. But, they will all be totally legal moves. From time to time you may run into a cashier that challenges your coupon policy knowledge. This is usually a new cashier, but sometimes even managers may be unaware of their store's policies. This is when you can politely provide them with your copy of their policy. Most major stores post their coupon policy on their websites. Target Walmart Walgreens RiteAid If you need one not listed here, you can always email the store and request one if you don't see it on their website.
Printer Ink and Paper I use more online coupons than ones found in the newspaper. No, you will not spend more in ink than you save. But, you don't want to miss out on a great deal because you ran out of ink or printer paper.
To be continued....
Thanks for creating this blog Traci. I'm loving this idea and want to get started ASAP. My problem is I don't understand the rules that come with coupons. I always thought that one coupon was only good for one of the items. The wording on them is foreign to me :S
ReplyDeleteWow this is perfect. Thank you so much
ReplyDeleteMichaelle Graves
@ Amanda Day, It really depends on the store. I am going to cover Target and Safeway to start. Hopefully I will get it all on here this weekend. Target for example will accept one Target coupon and one Manufacturer's Coupon per item. Where as Walmart will only accept one coupon per item. The cool thing about Walmart though, is that they allow overages. This means that if you have a coupon for $3.00 off an item and Walmart has that item on sale for $0.99 Walmart will actually hand you $2.01 in cash to take that item out of the store. I am going to cover coupon lingo more in the "Be Prepared" section that is coming up. Thank you and keep the questions coming!
ReplyDelete