Saturday, April 9, 2011

What do coupons look like?

In an earlier post we talked about all of the different types of coupons but I thought it would be helpful to know what each kind looks like as well. I found a blog with some great examples, see source at the bottom of the post.

Newspaper Inserts



This is an example of what the inserts will look like when they come in your newspaper.



This is a great example of what the actual coupons will look like once you cut them out of your newspaper.

Internet Printable Coupons



There will be slight variations as to what each Internet Printable looks like depending on where you print from but for the most part, they will look exactly like this or very similar.

Blinkie Machines



These machines will hold coupons that could potentially save you money, even down the road. I often will grab a few copies of the coupon if it's for something I might buy and I keep them in my binder for later. Often these machines will have a blinking light on them to draw your attention, hence the name.

Peelies on Product



Common couponing courtesy says you should only take these coupons if you are going to be buying the product. 

Tearpads



These will usually be found next to the product the coupon is for. These are also ones that I like to take a few copies and keep for later use. Please remember to leave some for others though.

Catalinas



These are coupons that will print from a special machine after you have finished your order. I most often get them at Smith's, Walgreens, and Target. They can be just a manufacture's coupon, or a coupon for a specific amount back on your next order, or sometimes they will just be advertisements for upcoming sales. 

Walgreen's Register Rewards



These will print out of the catalina machine and they are for a specific amount off your next purchase.

Printed on Receipt



I haven't seen as many of these at Target recently but that is where I see them most often. They are Target coupons that can be used on your next order. They will print off after your receipt. 

Store Ad



Many store ads will have store coupons in them. Sometimes they will be manufacturer's coupons so just make sure you read the print. You will need the coupon to get the deal but you can often find a copy of the ad in the store or the cashier will have one handy if you forget yours.

On Product



These are the coupons that can be found either on the packaging or in with the product. They are often rare coupons and can be higher value than coupons you can find on the same product.

Mail



Smith's often sends out packages of coupons that look very similar to these. They are usually for products that you purchase a lot of. Sometimes they are great coupons and sometimes they aren't but they don't cost you anything to print or to buy (like the paper) so they are great to hang on to.

Those are all of the main types of coupons that you will find and hopefully since you know what to look out for, you'll start to find it very easy to locate all of these great coupons.

All pictures taken from Schmidt Family Blog.

Blogs We Love

There are two blogs that get checked multiple times a day at our house. They always have great deals!

The first is Hip2Save. Collin, who writes the blog, lives in the Eastern U.S. but she posts mostly national deals that will apply to basically any area of the country. From time to time the prices of products will be a little different at local stores but she has a lot of readers from Utah so if you ever have questions you can always post a comment and I've always been able to find someone to answer. She also posts a lot of great online deals that anyone in the U.S. can get. Her readers are super friendly and if you ever have questions, they are always willing to do what they can to help. She posts helpful videos and has tons of great tips!

The second blog we check daily is Utah Deal Diva. Jessica is the girl that writes this blog and she obviously lives here in Utah. She doesn't post quite as many deals as Collin does on Hip2Save but all of her deals will be local. She almost always has great Smith's posts and they are always helpful. Her readers aren't quite as active but usually if you do have a question either she will answer if you post in the comments or a few of her readers will.

Between these two blogs, we've been able to score tons of great deals! When couponing it's important to have some sort of a network. It could be just a group of friends or people on the internet but it's easier to find great deals when there is a larger number of people out looking for them!

Friday, April 8, 2011

Couponing Example #2

Here is another example for you. This one is slightly more confusing because it includes two store sales, store coupons, and a rebate.


This is a great example of why couponing is important too. I know that we will be having a baby in the near future and so I've decided to start stocking up on baby supplies that aren't gender specific and that don't expire. Since I'm doing that, I can buy any size diapers that the store has on hand when they are deeply discounted and hopefully end up with enough diapers to make it so we don't have to go to the store for awhile after we have a baby.

What I bought: 6 packs of Walgreen's brand diapers (a total of 228 diapers)

Regular Price:
$8.99/pack or $53.94 for all 6 packs
(.23/diaper)

Sale Price:
$5.99/pack or $35.94 for all 6 packs
(.15/diaper)

After special Walgreens discount day:
$4.79/pack or $28.74 for all 6 packs
(.12/diaper)

After using 6 $2/1 store coupons:
$2.79/pack or $16.74 for all 6 packs
(.07/diaper)

After $10 Mail In Rebate:
$1.12/pack or $6.74 for all 6 packs
(.02/diaper)

Regular Price: .23/diaper
After combining sales: .02/diaper

90% Savings

Couponing Example #1

All of this couponing talk is great but it's nothing without an example or two! Trust me, this is all much easier to understand when you actually SEE how it works.

A few weeks ago Smith's had a promotion going on that was called "March to Savings". There were quite a few items that were included in this promotion where you got $5 off any participating 10 items. One of the participating items was American Beauty pasta.


When I called tonight to find out the regular price, it was $1.69. With this promotion it was on sale for .99 and after your purchased 10 they were .49 each. I also had coupons to use. This all sounds confusing so I'm going to try to break it down so it's easier to see the savings

What I bought: 10 boxes of American Beauty quick cook macaroni pasta

Regular Price: 
$1.69/box or $16.90 for all 10 boxes

Sale Price: 
.99/box or $9.90 for all 10 boxes

After March to Madness Promotion: 
.49/box or $4.90 for all 10 boxes

After five $1/2 Coupons:
10 boxes FREE

Total savings: 100%

Store Guides

Collin over at Hip2Save has some great store guides that she has put together. These store guides go into depth with almost every single detail of how to shop at each store. One thing Collin suggests is starting with one or two stores as you are learning how to coupon and then branch out from there.

You can click on the logos below to be taken to the individual store guides on Hip2Save.





Couponing Tip #9

Take baby steps, be positive, and remember: Every coupon you use is money you save!

This tip is from Hip2Save

Couponing Tip #8

Make couponing work for you! It can be time consuming and tiring but remember your limits and also don't forget the benefits. Consider clipping coupons at night in front of the TV, get the kids involved as a fun activity, team up with friends and family and socialize while organizing your coupons.

Couponing Tip #7

Understand how coupon overage works because overage can play a HUGE role in reducing your grocery bill.

Here is an example to help explain how overage works:

A product which is on sale for $1 is purchased with a $2/1 manufacturer coupon. The value of the coupon is $1 over the product price. The overage of $1 can then be applied to the cost of other products which are purchased on the same transaction. This is a great way to help discount items like produce or meat.

Note: Many stores won't allow overage with coupons and will just adjust the value of the coupon down to the price of the product.

Couponing Tip #6

Consider buying products, which you may not need, to get products you do need. This was one of the hardest concepts for me to wrap my head around when I first started couponing.

Here is an example that might make this weird tip make more sense:

Let's say Walgreens has a promotion in which you earn a $5 Register Reward on your next purchase if you buy 10 Gillette shaving products. The least expensive Gillette product is shaving gel, priced at $2 each. You can get this for free by stacking a Walgreens $1/1 coupon with a Gillette manufacturer $1/1 coupon. With 10 Walgreens coupons and 10 Gillette coupons, you get 10 shaving gels for free plus a $5 Register Reward to use like cash on your next purchase.

So you end up getting 10 shaving gels for free and make $5 to spend on your next transaction.

Couponing Tip #5

DON'T BE BRAND LOYAL!!!

You can save so much money by not being brand loyal. If you have a lot of coupons that will allow you to get something for a great deal but you aren't sure if you will like it, maybe just get one and try it out before you decide to stock up.

Couponing Tip #4

If you have the time, plan to look for unadvertised sales and clearance items. If you have a coupon for an already heavily discounted item, the cost can be free or very little.

Couponing Tip #3

Keep in mind that sometimes a smaller quantity item is a better deal. For example, with a coupon you might be able to get a travel-sized item for free. With several coupons, you can stock up on these items for free!

Couponing Tip #2

Bring a calculator with you to the store and don't just rely on your phone. You can use this to keep track of your purchases and make sure you are actually getting a great deal.

Couponing Tip #1

As you start couponing you need to understand that your shopping style needs to change. You are no longer going to go shopping on Saturday for everything you need for the next week. Instead, your goal is to stock up on items at the lowest possible price. You might as well buy four jars of pasta sauce for half the price while you can so you won't have to pay full price next week when you actually use it.

What is couponing?

Couponing has many definitions and it is a great way to save some money. Whenever you use a coupon you could consider it couponing but the best way to save the most money is by matching coupons with store sales, rebates, and other promotional offers to get the lowest possible price and help you stock up on much needed supplies.

Where can you find coupons?

Once you start looking for coupons you will probably realize that they are everywhere! It's surprising the places that you can find coupons but as you train yourself to be on the lookout for them, you'll spot plenty to be able to make couponing seriously beneficial. This is just a basic list of places that I regularly look for coupons.

- Sunday Newspaper: In our area you can choose from the Deseret News, Salt Lake Tribune, or Daily Herald. In the section with all of the ads for the week you will find the coupon inserts. The main inserts you'll find in all of the papers are SmartSource, Proctor & Gamble, and from time to time there will be a General Mills insert or coupons in the Parade magazine. The Deseret News and Salt Lake Tribune both have the exact same coupons in them. The Daily Herald is the only paper in the area that still gets the Red Plum insert.

- Internet Printable Coupons: There are many websites that exist just so you can print coupons. Some examples of these are Red Plum, Coupons.com, and SmartSource. You will also find links to coupons from blogs like Utah Deal Diva or Hip2Save. You will almost always be able to print two copies of a coupon from each computer in your house. In order to do this, you just need to hit the back button on your browser or go back through the link you originally followed.

- Mailers: From time to time you'll get samples in the mail or different advertisements for local companies. DON'T JUST THROW THEM AWAY! Often, even when a piece of mail looks like junk it will hold a very valuable coupon inside.

- In Magazines: There are magazines like All You that focus on coupons. Just because a magazine doesn't focus on coupons though doesn't mean that you won't find coupons in it. Keep your eye out for actual coupons or coupon codes for online sites that you visit.

- Inside products or on the box of a product

- Shopper Cards: You can load coupons to your Smith's card to be used at Smith's on websites like Cellfire or Shortcuts. You can also find coupons on the Smith's website.

- Weekly Store Advertisements: Make sure you pay attention to see if the coupon is a store coupon or a manufacturer's coupon. There is a difference between the two and at many stores you can stack store coupons with manufacture's coupons for an even bigger discount.

- In Store: There are many different places to find coupons in stores. One of these is Catalinas (CAT). These are coupons that print out from a special machine after you have completed your order. They may be a manufacturer's or store coupon for a different product or they could be for money off your next order. Another place to find coupons in stores are on blinkie machines or tear pads. These will be located in the aisle close to the product the coupon is for. Always keep your eye out for these coupons! Even if you don't want to buy the product right now, you can always keep the coupons to see if a great sale will come up. The last place you will often find coupons in stores are peelies. These coupons will be on the product itself. Coupon etiquette says you should only use these coupons if you are planning on purchasing the product. There is nothing more annoying than going to the store and finding something that should have a coupon on it but it has been taken.

Couponing Terms

There are so many different terms associated with couponing. When reading blogs about coupons or trying to figure out coupons it's almost like you need a dictionary. This post is a list of common coupon abbreviations that will hopefully help you translate what you see online into words and concepts that you can easily understand.

Sunday Newspaper Insert Abbreviations
- GM = General Mills
- PG = Procter and Gamble
- RP = Red Plum
- SS = SmartSource
Dates for each insert can be found on the side (similar to binding) in very small print

Walgreens & Rite Aid Jargon
- RR = Register Reward (Walgreens Catalina coupons)
- +Up = +Up Rewards (Rite Aid coupons for a discount on your next order)

Other abbreviations & Money-Saving Terms
- B1G1 or BOGO = Buy one, get one free
- B2G1 = Buy two, get one free
- Filler = Item purchased to reach a minimum total to get a "deal"
- GC = Gift Card
- IP = Internet Printable
- MQ = Manufacturer's Coupon
- OOP = Out of Pocket (the amount you pay out of pocket)
- Stacking = Using both a store coupon and a manufacturer's coupon on one item
- TMF = Try me free offer
- YMMV = Your mileage may vary - deal may work for someone else but may not work for you

This list of terms was taken from hip2save.