I am SO EXCITED that there are so many people out there who are interested in couponing! I have to say that I never really thought that this would be something that I would get into. Honestly, I didn't even really think it would work. Fortunately, God brought me down to Florida and humbled me by showing what it looks like to NEED to learn how to coupon in order to put food on the table. Then, He blessed me with a new friend named Shannon who took the time to teach me her tricks. My grocery shopping habits have completely turned around, and I'd like to help you make the same thing happen for your home.
By no means will this be an exhaustive solution, especially considering that I am still learning so much myself. Annnd… this post will only concern shopping at Publix. There are plenty of ways to save at other grocery stores, but Publix is the most prominent store where I live, and therefore, the one I devote my time to. (I just ended a sentence with a preposition, and it's killing me, but I don't feel like taking the time to reword it. So…. deal.)
Okay, so every week is broken up into four sections of time:
1. Acquire coupons
2. Clip coupons
3. Match coupons to weekly ads/deals
4. Apply coupons at the store
I think the best way to show you my "tricks" is to walk you through my week. In order to not be COMPLETELY overwhelming, I'm going to break this up into 4 posts… one for each of the above sections of my week. See what applies to you. Start small, and work your way up to the more complicated deals.
ACQUIRE COUPONS
There are numerous ways to gather coupons: on-line, newspaper, etc. It takes time to build up your coupon volume. When I first got started, I was frustrated because all of the deals I saw required coupons that were no longer in circulation. When you first begin to collect your coupons, don't lose hope that your deals aren't the best. It will get better over time.
I get coupons through the newspaper every Saturday (Yeah… our Saturday papers have Sunday coupons). I buy 2 Sun Sentinels and 2 Miami Heralds. Each paper may contain different coupon booklets, so that's why I buy both. I get two of each paper because I want to ensure that I'll have two of each coupon. (That will make sense when we talk about matching coupons.)
In the newspaper, I am looking for these coupon booklets:
-SmartSource
-RedPlum
-P&G Brandsaver
-Publix Green and/or Purple Advantage flyers
Some people keep the weekly ads. I find them excessive since I can just find the deals on-line.
I am also signed up for several e-mails that give me links to on-line coupons that may or may not be in the newspaper booklets. Here are links to some of the sources that I use:
Grocery Coupon Cart
-a large inventory of the available on-line coupons
Target Coupons
-exclusive Target coupons that are considered "store" coupons and accepted as a competitor coupon for many Publix stores (more on that in the "Match coupon" post)
Best Meals At Home
-exclusive Publix coupons that you won't find elsewhere
Kellogg's Family Rewards
-exclusive Kellogg's brand coupons and a way to earn rewards when you buy their products
Betty Crocker
-exclusive Betty Crocker brand coupons
There are many more you can sign up for, but these are the ones I use the most. Keep in mind, when printing coupons on-line, you can only print two of each per computer you use.
When you find a good coupon on-line, print two of them ASAP. Most coupons have a maximum limit, and once the limit has been reached, they will no longer be available to print… and that is a BUMMER when I see a deal and go to look for the coupon and get a "no longer available" message. Super lame. So, I look at the coupons when I have a moment throughout the week and see which ones I think I might use.
Do not feel like you have to print every coupon. Even if a great deal comes up, there is absolutely no reason to worry about coupons for an item you will never use. Don't let couponing become a reason to buy things you wouldn't buy already. That is silly and the complete opposite of the point of saving money! (Unless, of course, you want to create a stock pile of items that you choose to donate… In which case, you are a rock star, and that is awesome.)
Okay… this is the easiest step! It seems like a lot in the beginning, but this has become my favorite part. I just love seeing what coupons are coming in because it's like a get a sneak peek at what awesome foods are about to hit my pantry! Right?! Right.
It's the simple things, folks.
Next up… Clipping!
