There are a lot of common misconceptions and myths around coupons floating around out there. I hear them all the time. Here we will dispel those myths and remove the mental barriers that keep people from using coupons to save money on their grocery costs.
Myth #1 – Only poor people use coupons.
Nothing could be further from the truth! People from all income levels use coupons. In fact 84% of people making $100,000 or more a year use coupons. Spending money smartly and saving money in all areas possible is the way wealthy people get wealthy and stay wealthy! And if you are struggling financially using coupons is one of the best ways to stretch your money and get the most out of whatever dollars you have. Couponing is a smart and sound money managing strategy!
Myth #2 – Most coupons are only for highly processed foods.
Another myth that is just not true, most coupons are in fact for non-food items like toothpaste, razors, toilet paper and haircare products. But if you are looking for food coupons you can find plenty of coupons for everything from your favorite brands of cereal, frozen or canned vegetables, staples like rice, sugar and flour to many popular organic and natural brands. Most major manufactures (and many small ones too) have coupons for their products at some point or another. You just need to keep your eyes open for them and know where to look, or ask for those coupons. While there are a lot of coupons out there for “junk foods” the fact is that there is also a lot of junk food in the grocery stores. The coupon to product ratio is about the same. And if you have a special diet like gluten-free, dairy free, etc. there are coupons out there for those products and brands too!
Myth #3 – I never see coupons in the Sunday paper for brands my family likes.
The fact is, you probably have not tracked the coupons that come out in the Sunday paper over a longer period of time, because just about every manufacture puts out coupons at some point in time or another you can find coupons for your favorite brands. Perhaps you are in love with a certain brand of laundry detergent, for example, you can be sure that your favorite brand probably has coupons for it. When your favorite brands are on sale and you have coupons for it, then you can go ahead and stock-up. But not everything you purchase will need to be brand specific. For example, one brand of razors works just as well as another brand, especially when you can get those razors cheap, or even free!
Myth # 4 – Clipping coupons is too time consuming.
At first clipping coupons and learning to use them to your best advantage can be time consuming, that is true. But just like anything, once you practice it and it becomes part of the way you live you will find the time spent to be less and less. On average coupon shoppers spend just 4 to 6 hours clipping, organizing and shopping with coupons. And clipping and organizing can easily be done while doing other things like watching TV, talking on the phone or other activities that do not take a lot of mental brain power. Coupons are like found money. Inside the average Sunday newspaper there could be $25, $30, $50 or more worth of coupons. Now ask yourself, if these coupons were dollar bills that you have to clip out to use, would you take the time to pull out the scissors and clip them? Of course you would!
Myth #5 – Generics are cheaper and I don’t have to bother with coupons.
The truth is that when you walk into a grocery store and do your regular grocery shopping and you compare prices on name brand versus generics, most of the time generics are indeed cheaper. But generics rarely go on deep discount and they rarely have coupons to further reduce the price. What you need to know is that 99% of all name brand products will go on sale at some time during the year (usually a few times a year) cheaper than the price of generics, and you can combine those sale prices with coupons to bring the cost down even further. So for example the store brand generic barbecue sauce is priced at $1.50 a bottle, everyday. But we know that in the summer months name brand barbecue sauce is on sale for $1.00 and you can bet your bottom dollar that there will be coupons for that name brand barbecue sauce for $0.25 off, $0.50 off, $0.75, or even $1.00 off making your barbecue sauce much cheaper than generic, possibly even free!
To find our more information on how to use coupons, check out our Coupon Basics forum!
Tags: Coupon, coupon basics, coupon myths, Coupons, grocery coupons, how to coupon, Shopping, Shopping Tips
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Asking for a discount does not come naturally to me. It is one of those things in life that requires me to muster up boldness from the depths of my soul. Okay maybe I am being a little melodramatic, but you get the point–it requires effort. Effort that I have learned is well worth any momentary feeling of discomfort on my part.
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