CVS For Rookies 101

[cuzisaidso]

Rookies:Suggested Reading

I am going to try to use this thread to teach folks how to consistently make "money" at CVS using the Extra Care Bucks system. Rather than me spending all my time planning shopping trips for a few this will hopefully help many more people to learn to roll their ECB's.

This will probably take a few days to get set up and I welcome any tips from Veterans and Rookies alike. I will probably incorporate visual aids since I am a visual learner myself.

Step 1: If you are a true coupon newbie then be sure to read EVERYTHING you can in this forum and most specifically in this thread.
Post, post, post! You need to get your post count up so that you can access the coupon database. This becomes more important when you get to step 4.
Start buying 3-5 sets of inserts every week and hang on to them. You don't have to clip every coupon in them. Just clip the coupons as you need them.

Step 2: Read the CVS FAQ's and just about every thread in the CVS forum you can find the time for including Tips & Tricks for Rookies. This is the best way to learn CVS and there is no shortcut. Read, read, read!
Things can change at any given moment (for example, the Right Guard body spray monthly limit) so try to stay up to date on the CVS forum.

Step 3: Save any and all CRT's from CVS. These are the coupons that print out on the bottom of your receipt. As a newbie you may not have many if any at all. Once you do start receiving them do not throw them away. You never know when they might come in handy. Also, be sure to check out the pharmacy waiting area and counters and the front register counters for any CVS coupons. Be sure to update your Extracare account online with your email address so that you can receive emails from CVS. Sometimes they email out $4/$20, $10/$50, etc. coupons.

Step 4: Weekly ad threads are almost always posted here 1-2 weeks before the actual ad comes out. Look them over and read what others have to say about particular deals. Someone else may have noticed something you didn't or may know of a coupon that will make an okay deal a hot deal. This is the time to get your coupons in order. You have 1-2 weeks to trade for or order the coupons you need.

Step 5: Once you get the weekly ad in your hot little hands check it over. Make sure the deals match what you read in the preview thread. Different regions may get different deals so be aware. Sometimes a deal may be in the preview ad that isn't in yours. This doesn't necessarily mean you can't do the deal. Just read about what others in your area have found out about it. Someone is bound to try it and report back.

Next up. Moneymakers. What are they and why does everyone say I have to buy them no matter what?

[cuzisaidso]

Moneymakers

A moneymaker is any item(s) you can purchase where your amount spent OOP(out of pocket) is less than the amount you get back in ECB's. As you progress your moneymakers will help you to "grow" your ECB's.

The following 2 pictures are examples of moneymakers. The first one is advertised as free after ECB's and there was a coupon out for it from a weekly insert. The second one is an example of a deal that offers a certain amount of ECB's for spending a certain amount. If those 2 amounts are equal, as in get $10 when you spend $10, and there are any manufacturer's coupons out for those items then it is a moneymaker.

continued below


If you are starting out brand new these are the deals you want to look for first so that your initial OOP is as low as possible. It is not important what these items are and whether or not you can or will use them. They are merely a means to an end which is getting your dollar amount in ECB's as high as possible with little OOP.

Here is an example to give you an idea how this works.

Originally Posted by Mom2my3sons OK if you have never shopped at CVS here's a few shopping lists to get you started. Trip #1 $2.77 Crest Nature's Expressions -$1 man coupon spend $1.77 OOP earn $2.77 ECB Trip #2 $3.77 Listerine tooth defense -$1 printable use $2.77 ECB $0.00 OOP earn $3.77 ECB Trip #3 $4.49 SoftSoap $1.99 Big E gum -$1.50 Softsoap coupon -$1 BigE coupon -$3.77ECB =$.21 OOP Earn $1 ECB, $4.49 ECB Trip #4 $5.97 Oral B Pro health toothbrush -$1 man coupon -$4.49 ECB =$.48 OOP Earn $5.97 ECB Trip #5 $2.77 Crest natures Expression $2.77 Crest natures Expression $3.77 listerine tooth defense -$1 man coupon -$1 man coupon -$1 man coupon -$5.97 ECB =$.34 OOP Earn $5.54 ECB. $3.77 ECB Trip #6 $6.49 Benefiber $5 Mylanta $5 Mylanta $5.99 AquaVelva -$4/$20 -$2 Benefiber man coupon -$1 benefiber heartbeat booklet coupon -$6 Mylanta printables -$5.54 ECB -$3.77 ECB =$.17 OOP Earn $5.99 ECB Trip #7 $4.49 Softsoap $6.49 Benefiber $5 Mylanta $5 Mylanta -$4/$20 -$6 Mylanta printables -$2 Benefiber man coupon -$1 benefiber heartbeat booklet coupon -$1.50 Softsoap coupon -$5.99 ECB =$.49 OOP Earn $10 ECB, $10 ECB, $4.49 ECB And you still have a $1 ECB from the gum that you haven't spent yet. Your Total OOP = $3.46 total value of products = $71.76 Have $25.49 ECBs to roll next week

Following this example ...
Your Total OOP = $3.46
total value of products = $71.76
Have $25.49 ECBs to roll next week

Even if you disregard the $71.76 in products you can see that its worthwhile because for $3.46 you now have $25.49 to spend on almost anything else in the store. Now you can buy those items that you do need/want but, don't spend them all. You'll need to save at least $10 in ECB's so that you can roll and grow them.


Here is what an ECB looks like

Up next: Rolling, rolling , rolling.. keep them bucks a rolling!

[cuzisaidso]

Rolling Your ECB's and the Snowball Effect

Okay, now you have a decent amount of ECB's so what's next? Well, look at the ad again. Now on top of moneymakers your looking for things that you break even on.

There are 2 main ways of breaking even on a deal. The first way is with an item that is free after ECB's for which you have no other coupons. The second way is with an item that comes out free after ECB's and coupon(s) combined. For example, the item is $5 and earns you $3 in ECB's and has a manufacturer's coupon for $2.

Again, it's not imperative that these items be something you need/want and I'll tell you why. When your ECB's print out the clock starts ticking. You have approximately 30 days before they expire. Let's say you buy something on April 18th that generates an ECB. That ECB will expire on or about May 18th. On April 25th you take that ECB and roll it by buying something else that earns an ECB and now you have an ECB that is good until May 25th. You've just extended the expiration by a week. That's what we call rolling.

If you consistently roll your ECB's into deals that are moneymakers then you get a snowball effect. You can easily turn $10 in ECB's into $50 or more in a few short weeks. At this point you can get pickier about which deals you do although I still recommend doing most of them so you can keep rolling.

Build up your ECB's and this is where you will start really seeing the savings to your budget. Let's say you've built up your ECB's to about $30. As I stated previously you only need to save about $10 in ECB's for rolling. So this leaves you with about $20 to play with.

Grab your ad again. By now it should be pretty ragged. Now you're looking for items that you can use. Even still you want to stretch your bucks as far as you can so look for items that are a good price and that you have coupons for. As a couponer you should have already learned by now that you can't be brand loyal. Look for the best deal and buy what's on sale.

Next up: CRT's

[cuzisaidso]

This is what a CRT looks like.

There are different types of CRT's. The one shown above is an example of a CRT coupon that is good on a specific product. There are also CRT's that are good for a certain amount off on specific products such as $2/$10 Life Fitness products or $3/$15 CVS brand products. Then there are the coveted $/$ any purchase.

You may shop at CVS regularly for a month or more before you see any of these CRT's on your receipt. Have patience. It takes a while for the CVS computers to learn your shopping habits so that it can give you coupons geared towards you.

Save these coupons until they expire even if they seem to be useless at the time. Many times you will get a CRT for an item that will soon be an ECB deal. These CRT's can turn an okay deal into a hot deal and even a moneymaker. They can be used along with manufacturer's coupons.

Next up:$/$ coupons and how to use them:

[cuzisaidso]

$/$ coupons and how to use them:

There are different ways to obtain $/$ any purchase coupons and they come in many different amounts which range from $2/$10 to $10/$50 and sometimes more. The most common I have found are $2/$10, $3/$15 and $4/$20.

These coupons can be found....

• In booklets or new Extra Care card applications by the pharmacy or front registers.
• In weekly ads.
• On a CRT printed at the end of your receipt. (These are card specific)
• In magazines at times.
• In an email.

These are not absolutely necessary to your success at rolling and growing your ECB's but, boy do they help.

These can be useful in two ways. The first way is that they can help to lower your initial OOP when you're first starting to shop CVS for the ECB deals. For example, if you're just shopping the break even ECB deals and you get $20 worth you can use a $4/$20 to get your OOP down to $16 and still be getting back $20 in ECB's. I know $16 OOP is high. This example is only to simplify the scenario so the basic idea is understood.

The second way these coupons can be useful is they can allow you to get that amount in stuff you need that you generally don't have coupons for or can never seem to get a good deal on. For example, you have $16 worth of moneymakers/break even ECB deals in your cart. You have a $4/$20 coupon. You might as well buy that gallon of milk you need or 2 loaves of bread, etc. to get you up to the $20 and the $4/$20 coupon will pay for it. You will either have ECB's to pay for the other $16 in ECB deals or you pay the $16 OOP and you will still get back at least $16 in ECB's plus you have the milk, bread, etc. I'm not factoring in other coupons that will help get your OOP down but, you will surely have some.

Another thing that these coupons go good with are manufacturer's coupons for free items. These manufacturer's coupons can either be to get an item free or they can be for an amount that when paired with a sale the item is free. The Pledge dusters that went on sale for $2.99 and had a $3 manufacturer coupon is a good example. If you had a $3/$15 coupon you could buy 4 Pledge dusters @ $2.99 each and $3 in any other item(s) *restrictions may apply, use the 4 Pledge coupons and the $3/$15 and get all of it for free. *you may have to pay some tax

Next up: What is going through Kim's mind at CVS

[cuzisaidso]

What is going through Kim's mind at CVS.

A few people have expressed interest in how I do my CVS deals. Either that or the voices in my head have come back. Either way I will try to explain the method to my madness. Just remember, what works for me may not work for you. It may not even make much sense.

I begin my journey here at the CVS forum at HCW. I peruse the weekly ad thread looking for obvious and not so obvious deals. I read all the posts and garner as much information as possible from them. I try to get all of my coupons ready and patiently await Sunday morning.

On Sunday morning I awaken to find the newsaper laying next to my groggy head. I read through the CVS ad in case I missed anything in the weekly thread and this is when I'm sometimes happily surprised at a $3/$15 coupon on the front page. Yay! I then go back on to HCW to see if anyone else noticed anything else good in the ad before I set off for CVS.

After all of my preparation I now have what coupons I need, including some coupons for clearance deals I have read about in the clearance thread, and I have an idea in mind of what to look for when I get there.

I pull up to CVS and I familiarize myself with what ECB's I have, which ones may expire soon, and which ones will probably give me trouble. As I walk into the store I casually glance over to see what cashier is working. I like to be prepared. LOL

I grab whatever items are on my mental list that are in stock and add them up in my head as I go along. Sometimes I add the full price of everything up first and then subtract the total of all of my coupons and sometimes I add each item up using the price of the item after coupons have been deducted. Sometimes I have to add them up over and over because I'm distracted by my mom calling me on my cell phone or there's a Clay Aiken song on and I stop adding to sing along.

When I'm done shopping and I have my total after coupons firmly implanted in my mind I then start looking for ECB's that add up to that amount. For example, if my total is $30 - $10 in manufacture's cpns - $5 in asst. CVS coupons= $15 then I know I can use my $8.98 and $5.97 ECB's to pay for the rest.

Before checking out I glance over everything in the cart and mentally add up how much in ECB's I'll be getting back. Almost always this total is more than the amount in ECB's I'm using to pay for the purchase. I put my coupons in order. CVS $/$ coupons on top followed by ECB's and then manufacturer's coupons. If my total goes negative I always know where the Blow Pops or my DD's favorite gum is. I grab one, hand it to the cashier, and pay my $1 or less OOP (usually) and I'm out of there.

I then sit in my car, tear apart my CRT's and ECB's, file them away with my card and I'm off to the next store.

[riffparker]

we did this a long time ago

if you want to learn how all the programs work in 45 minutes listen to this:

YMMV RADIO #306
link

[VJWilson27]

Originally Posted by tightwadtips You are more patient than I am. I rip mine off at the register, using the edge of the counter for guidance. I have a paper clip that I use to keep all the ECBs (different colors for different card) and they go in the tray in the top of my tool box, um, I mean coupon box. I like to keep each cards ECBs and CRTs together, so that I know whose card goes with which ones. I even have little stickers on each card with a coordinating color, so that I am never confused, and don't have to actually read the coupons to find the matching card. Just look at the sticker and paperclip, and --Bob's Your Uncle--I have it. Thanks for all the great information.

ROFLMAO!!! Bob's Your Uncle--has me ROLLING for some reason.

But I really really really like your idea. Right now I have my cards/ecbs/crt seperated by binder clips. But I LOVE your idea for color coding... I'm gonna work on this.

[Mom2my3sons]

Originally Posted by Bingoblue I don't know if this is the right thread to ask this question but.... When CRT's expire...can you still use them on the date they expire? Example, I have a Playtex Sport tampon $1 CRT that expires April 30th, can I use it on that date? Or does it expire at midnight of the 29th? (I didn't use to use many of my CRTs but they definitely come in handy sometimes)

From the FAQ:

Regarding expirations on the ECB and coupons:

The CVS expiration is not only tied to the date, but the TIME they printed out (either online or at the store). This explains why the coupons sometimes beep, even though you are using them on the day they expire.

EX: You get a $4/20 coupon that printed at the register on xx/xx/2005 at 11am, and you scamper off to use it on the last day that the coupon is valid. You do this at 4pm. The coupon will beep, because according to their register's "logic", it is already expired.

It's not a huge issue, since they can do their magic and put it through, but is something to be aware of!

[MrsPinecone]

Originally Posted by loveitmom Kim, I skimmed this info posted above and couldn't find an answer to this. Can you buy CVS gift cards with your ecb's? Thanks, DeAnna

No. Gift cards are specifically excluded.

This information is in the FAQs stuck at the top of the forum.