Tag Archives: Shopping

Five Coupon Myths BUSTED!

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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!

What Is Black Friday and Cyber Monday?

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What is Black Friday?
The day after Thanksgiving is referred to as Black Friday. Black Friday is one of the major holiday shopping days & is the official start of the Christmas shopping season.
The origin of Black Friday comes from the shift to profitability during the holiday season. Retailers went from being unprofitable, or “in the red,” to being profitable, or “in the black”, at a time when accounting records were kept by hand and red indicated loss and black profit. (Info from about.com.)
Retailers publish special sale ads on Thanksgiving Day to get customers into their doors the following morning. “Doorbusters” and “Early Bird Specials” help lure customers in with deep discounts on retail items.
Early Bird seems to get earlier every year, with many stores opening at 5 am, and people camping out overnight in parking lots to get these specials.
Black Friday can also be an online shopping experience. Many retailers publish the same ads online offering discounts with free shipping promotions. This gets customers onto a retailer’s online shopping portal.
For more information, and strategies for shopping Black Friday deals, see this thread.
What is Cyber Monday?
Cyber Monday refers to the Monday immediately following Black Friday. Black Friday is the term applied mostly to brick and mortar stores, whereas Cyber Monday is the day for online deals.
The idea is that people who missed the Friday deals would go back to work on Monday and shop online from there.
Although that concept hasn’t really held up over time, it has become a fairly significant day for marketing holiday deals online.

For a complete listing of ad scans from all of the major stores nationwide, please visit our Black Friday 2011 page!

Drug Store Shopping Tips

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Contributed by member SwapSavers owner of www.swapsavers.com

You can find great deals in the drugstores (CVS, Rite Aid, and Walgreens). Often you can find items for free or even earn money (if the store allows it) when you combine sales, coupons/in-ad coupons, rebates and Register Rewards (Walgreens) or Extra Bucks (CVS). Here are a few tips to make sure you get the best deals.

1. Make a List-Before you enter the store make a detailed list of what you plan to buy and what coupons/rebates are necessary. I also include the weight or size of the product to make sure I purchase the right item. If you know the information you may want to include the area of the store where the items are located to save you time when shopping.

2. Get the Circular/Rebate Book-Upon entering the store, I grab a circular and rebate book (only at Rite Aid and Walgreens). This way I can double check the sales, making sure I purchase the correct item, size, weight as I shop. I can also use any in-ad coupons. You can combine in-ad coupons with manufactures coupons.

3. Check your receipt-Before leaving the store always check the receipt to make sure the items are the correct price and the coupons were deducted.

4. Save your receipt-Always save your receipts since you will need the receipt numbers for the on-line rebates. You also never know when you might need to return or exchange an item.

5. Rebates-Walgreens and Rite-Aid both offer on-line rebate programs, no mailing necessary. The checks are mailed to you or at Walgreens you can get a gift card and earn an extra 10% back from the rebate (i.e. if your rebate check is for $100 you would earn an extra $10). This program is a great way to get a lot of free items or even earn money when combined with coupons (if the store allows). However, you do need enter your receipt on-line and you should always check to make sure the rebate was issued. On a number of occasions the rebate was not issued to my account. I called to find out what the problem was and they either issued the rebate or I returned the product. You should also keep in mind that the sales tax is not included in the rebate so you will have to pay that out of pocket. I have a credit card that I earn 5% cash back at drugstores which happens to be the sales tax where I live. You may want to consider doing this, but of course remember when using credit cards only charge what you can afford.

6. Use your Extra Bucks or Register Rewards-Walgreens or CVS offer these coupons when you purchase certain products. Sometimes the product will be free when you consider the fact they are awarding you the coupon amount for the price of the item (i.e. you pay $5 for the product and earn a coupon for $5 off your next purchase). Keep in mind it is a coupon and does expire. You should keep the coupon in a safe place and make sure to use it before it expires. You can even use the coupon to purchase another product that is free after the rewards.

Sounds like a lot of work? It is time consuming but it is worth it. In only three months I have accumulated enough I have enough shampoo/conditioner, toothpaste, moisturizer, razors, and body wash to last for the next year!

Find out more about drug store shopping in our Store Forums

Preparing for the holidays a year in advance

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Frugal shoppers know that the best time to get a deal on holiday items is to purchase them after the holidays are over and save them for next year. You can pocket some major savings by thinking ahead and saving 50-70% or more on holiday items now rather than paying full price for them right before the holidays.

The biggest after holiday savings is seen after the Christmas holiday. Retailers usually put all holiday merchandise at 50% off the day after Christmas and you will usually see 75% a week or two later. Some retailers will do further markdowns just to move the merchandise off the shelves to make room for Valentine’s items.

Look for deals on items like wrapping paper, gift bags, tissue paper, gift tags, holiday lights, festive decorations, potted poinsettias and other potted holiday plants. Holiday gift sets and baskets can be a great bargain. This year, I picked up Yankee Candle gift baskets online at 50% off retail. They make great gifts later in the year for teachers, friends, and family members. Other holiday goodies worth watching for include holiday cards, napkins, paper plates, Ziploc baggies with holiday designs, candy, and candles.

Most people don’t know they can negotiate with the store manager for further markdowns. At one of my local grocery stores they put all of the holiday clearance in shopping carts and park them near the front store entrance. I’m not shy about asking the store manager what kind of deal he can make me if I purchase the entire basket full of merchandise.  I’ve walked out with hundreds of dollars worth of products for a mere $20 for the entire cart.

Christmas is not the only holiday that offers great post-holiday savings. Each major holiday is a great time to stock up on items to use the following year. Valentine’s Day, Saint Patrick’s Day, Easter, Fourth of July, Halloween and Thanksgiving all provide a great opportunity to save money.

Storing your post holiday bargains is an important thing to remember because poor storage can result in melted candy or forgotten gift items. Here’s some helpful tips for storage:

* Freeze all candy that could possibly melt like chocolate. All other food candy such as jelly beans or valentine heart candies should be put into zipper bags with as much air removed as possible. Most candy has a very long shelf life and should be just fine the next year.

* Holiday wraps and decorations should be stored with your other holiday items in a cool dry place such as a garage or basement.

* How you store gift items will depend on when you plan on giving them. Gifts you plan on giving the following year should be stored with your holiday decorations so that you will remember them the following year. Label your storage containers with the holiday name and contents on the outside so you know what is inside.

* For gifts that you planning on giving year round (think gift baskets of coffee, tea and spa type items) set yourself up with a gift closet, cupboard or chest so that you have your gifts at hand for any occasion that arises.

Putting aside a small amount of money to stockpile holiday gifts and items after the holiday is a smart way to save lots of money and be prepared ahead of time saving you less stress next year.

NRF Calls For National Sales Tax Holidays

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From: Retailing Today

     The National Retail Federation has asked President-elect Barack Obama to incorporate a series of national sales tax holidays into upcoming economic stimulus legislation as an important step   toward rebuilding consumer confidence, saying short-term gains from consumer spending and long-term growth from job creation are both needed to achieve economic recovery.

     NRF proposed that tax holidays be held during March, July and October 2009, each lasting 10 days including two weekends. Tax-free treatment would apply to all tangible goods subject to a state sales tax ranging from apparel and home furnishings to restaurant dining and automobiles but would exclude tobacco and alcohol. The federal government would reimburse the 45 states that have sales taxes for the lost revenue, and would provide the five states without a sales tax (Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire and Oregon) with revenue approximating the sales tax reimbursement that would be received by states with similar population.

     NRF also called for infrastructure investment in roads, rails, ports, public schools and renewable energy projects, saying it would have a double benefit of creating jobs and repairing systems that are critical to commerce.