Wise Investments: Couponing 101 (the basics)

by Mary Edwards, photo courtesy Elisabeth Nixon Photography

Couponing can be easy and fun! Some people think couponing takes too much time. Other people get overwhelmed with the thought of organizing a coupon stash. You can spend less than one hour a week and save money. Here are some basics.

Where do I find coupons?

These days, coupons are everywhere. The most obvious place is the newspaper. Though the best grocery coupons can be found in Sunday’s paper, there are other coupons in the paper Wednesday through Sunday. Keep an eye out for store coupons, restaurant coupons and service coupons.

My next favorite place to find coupons is at local stores. Coupon books are found in our major grocery store chains and in the drug stores. Ask your cashier to point you to them. Online and mobile coupons are great too. Sites like coupons.com, redplum.com and smartsource.com all have printable coupons. Stores like Target offer mobile coupons, which are texted to you weekly.

How do I organize my coupons?

First, stop clipping coupons! That’s right, there’s no need to clip coupons anymore. Grab a hanging file box at your local office store, put some hanging files inside the box and file your inserts by date. When you get the Sunday coupon inserts, put them in a file with that Sunday’s date on the label. Then go to an online coupon site, like couponersunited.com – which will do the grocery store match-ups for you. These sites tell you what’s on sale at your store. There will be a list of what items are on sale and what week that coupon came in the paper. You don’t have to clip the coupons until you’re ready to redeem them on a sale at your store.

Learn your store policies

Each grocery store and drug store has its own coupon policy. The customer service attendant will give you a copy of the policy. You might be amazed at what you learn. Most stores will allow you to use two coupons on a BOGO (buy one get one free) deal! You pick up two items, pay for one and the second is free, but you can use a coupon on both of the items. Some stores take competitor coupons. Unfortunately, none of the grocery stores in Florida double coupons.

Take a class

If you want to learn how to save hundreds of dollars each month, take a coupon class. In a Couponers United coupon class you will learn everything you need to be a successful couponer. An experienced couponer can teach you where to find the best high-value coupons. You can also learn how stores can pay you to shop! A class will also teach you the local store policies and which stores are the best for couponing.

After you get organized, couponing can be a simple and fun way to save money.

Mary is the mom of 4 young children, a business owner and blogger. She loves to teach others how to save on their grocery bills and improve their budget. Mary began couponing 5 years ago when she decided to stay home with her children. She learned that through “smart shopping” and couponing, she could save almost 90% on her shopping bill. Since then she has been sharing her knowledge with others through her blog and through free coupon classes throughout the community. Visit Mary’s blog to learn more:
www.couponersunited.com