Ashley's Coupon Lesson

My best friend came to visit last weekend.  I promised her a coupon lesson.  I failed. I promised her I'd email her. I've failed. So far.  It was my goal to work on this tonight.  I decided to post it on here 1) because she is my only "subscriber" and I know she'll see it and, 2) so if anyone else wants to read it they can.

First, get organized.  There are 2 ways to organize your coupons. You can 1) clip all coupons that you think you would use and organize them by "type."  This is what I do.  I have a half sized accordion folder, and the tabs are what makes the most sense for me.  They've changed a few times as I've learned what works best for me.  This is it:

Don't judge me by my blanket.  It's the softest thing you'll ever touch.  Except for my dog.  The other option for organizing your coupons is to take the entire "booklet" out of the Sunday paper.  Websites will tell you about a coupon and next to it will say "RP 12/2"  This means it was in the Red Plum on December 2nd.  The inserts are usually Smart Source, Red Plum, or P&G.  You don't clip these coupons, you save the entire insert, so when you see a deal online, you can look it up by date.

I prefer the clipping method.  I clip anything I MIGHT use.  If I don't, no biggie.  I also like this method because I have a lot of loose coupons that don't come from inserts.

Second step is to watch.  Everything goes on sale at some point (except for maybe iPhones).  The key is to use coupons when your item is on sale.  This means learning to buy things when they are the cheapest, not when you need them.  For example, David loves Zatarains Red Beans and Rice.  I don't want until I plan on cooking this to buy the Red Beans and Rice.  If it's on sale, and I have coupons, I'll buy 4 of them, and then wait for the next sale.

Now, start collecting.  Buy Sunday papers. Visit your favorite food company's websites.  Add your favorite products to Facebook.  Subscribe to All You catalog (besides good coupons, they have great recipes, cute DIY projects and seasonal ideas!).  Visit couponing websites.  Some of my favorites are:

http://www.southernsavers.com/
http://kentuckycouponin.blogspot.com/
http://thekrazycouponlady.com/

Keep in mind most of these are Manufacturer coupons. I'll discuss why this is important later.

If you haven't already, get loyalty cards to the places you shop most often.  I get most personal care items from CVS and they give out great coupons, not to mention Extra Care Bucks.  I do my grocery shopping at Kroger.  Their loyalty card is also great.  This year I saved over $500 with JUST the loyalty card (not including coupons, etc.)  Another great thing about Krogers Value Card is that if you go online and register your address, they will send you coupons BASED ON WHAT YOU BUY.  Basically every coupon they send you, you will use.  Some of these are Store coupons (vs manufacturer coupons). Many times they will send you FREE item coupons.  It takes about 6 months after you start shopping there before you get the coupons.  They need time to figure out your normal products.

Watch for good sales.  Kroger has "Mega Events" where if you purchase 10 participating items, you get $5 off.  So basically, each item is $.50 off.  So then you want to use a coupon on top of that. And if you're REALLY lucky, you'll have a manufacturer coupon and a store coupon.  And on top of that, if your coupon is for $.50 or less, Kroger will double the amount.  For example, if I have a $5 item and a $.50 off coupon, Kroger will actually take $1 off and call it a "Bonus" coupon.

Most stores have posted their coupon policy online since the "extreme couponing" craze began.  If not, if you request it, they will mail it to you.  If you have more questions, the first of those websites has some great information.  I suggest looking your store up on that page and seeing how that website is organized.  It's how I determine my grocery shopping!

Good luck!