Couponing/Money Saving Basics

***There is A LOT of info here, don’t let yourself get overwhelmed.  Instead, pick a few to start with***

Coupons

Where do I get them?

• You can get coupons from many places and really there is no way to list all of the places but a few of my favorite/most common places to find them are the Sunday Paper, Facebook (If it takes you away from facebook don’t do it!!!), Coupons.com, Cowboy Book and the Student Union Bookstore - Stillwater (These are good for food coupons in Stillwater, you don't have to be a student either!), Contacting Companies.
• Contacting Companies - 
• This is where you can score some really awesome coupons! 
•  Contact if you like an item, if you don’t like an item, if you have a problem with an item definitely contact them!  Give Examples.  Companies appreciate your opinion and want happy customers, use these free product coupons to score extra deals and moneymakers at CVS or Walgreens!

Getting Organized

*The best way to stick with couponing is to make it a routine and take the time to be organized!

• Have a Coupon organizer, this doesn't have to be huge, mine is a small one that I can carry in my purse (I got it from Hobby Lobby in the Stationary area - by the cards)
• Put it in an order that works for you (Mine is organized in order of the WalMart I go to)
• Make sure to have your coupons out and be organized with price matching to make checkout quick and easy!
• Items I am price matching I put in a separate part of the cart.  It’s best to do these all at the beginning or all at the end.  Tell the cashier before they scan it.
• If it’s for a free item it helps to hand them the coupon with the item so they can write in the price.

Tips for Using Coupons

• You can use 1 manufacturer coupon per item (even if it’s B1G1!) If a store has a B1G1 deal and you have 2 $1 off one you can use both of them.
• Wal-mart will actually pay you if your coupons are over the total price!!!  I have never personally had them pay me because I am almost always buying more items.  Cashiers would probably freak out if it happened so I just avoid having a negative balance. 
• Get to know your Wal-Mart cashiers.  Find ones that are good with coupons and deals.  Some don’t know how to do it, some are CRAZY nit picky and take forever.
• If a store has “store coupons” you can use a store Coupon and a Manufacturer Coupon. 
  • There is a little black box on the top of coupons and this is where you can see if it says manufacturer coupon or if it says ex. "Target Coupon" or "CVS Coupon"
  • Wal-mart will take other store coupons (target, CVS, walgreens, etc.) but they run it like a price match so it won't scan.  If it's $1 off glad trash bags target coupon and they are $5, Walmart will ring them up as $4, then you could still use a manufacturer coupon.
• Money Makers – deals so good that you actually MAKE money buying them!  If you find toothpaste on clearance for $0.50 at walmart and have a $1 off coupon this makes it a $0.50 money maker - meaning you actually get paid $0.50 to buy it!

 Stock Piling

Stock Piling is having a few extras of items that you buy on sale to avoid running out of an item and having to pay full price.   Stock piling does NOT mean hoarding or hogging!

• Unfortunately there are people out there who clear the shelves when there are bargins or who think they need 40 bottles of mustard.  I don’t like these people and I don’t encourage this at all!
• There are certain things I stockpile more than others. 
•  Cosmetics, moisturizers, etc. I try to keep 1 extra on hand (start looking when you open that last box)  Cosmetics go on sale a lot at drug stores.  It’s often buy one get one 50% off.  My moisturizer and facewash is a little harder.
• Shampoo, Conditioner, toothpaste, detergent, dish soap, cleaning products, cereal, meat, canned goods, etc. I keep several on hand.  These I just buy one or two every time I have a good deal (within reason).  These are some of my FAVORITE items to buy because they are great to give away!  I can’t pay much for babysitters/dog sitters/house sitters so I love to give away money and occasional gift bags of these things.  They’re great because everyone uses them and you give them quality stuff that you paid little for.   

• Look for clearance sections, if you can find something clearanced and have a coupon you can get a super bargain!

 Wal-Mart

• Price Matching – In Stillwater we have Food Pyramid, Staples, Walgreens, CVS, Best Buy, Consumer’s IGA, Big Lots, Family Dollar, Dollar Store, and more.
• When you price match it has to be for the EXACT item.  Check sizes closely.
• Buy 1 Get 1 (B1G1) – if a store has a B1G1 deal you can price match ONLY if it has the price listed.
• Wal-Mart Price Matches Store Coupons (See above)
• You can’t price match an ad and use another store’s coupon, it’s one or the other
• My favorite things to price match: Toilet Paper, Paper Towels, Meat, and Produce
• Make your weekly menu according to what is on sale
• Double Coupons – IGA and Food Pyramid double coupons up to $0.50, this means you will probably want to evaluate each week if it’s worth making a special trip.  I like to go to Food Pyramid every now and then.  Sometimes they have unadvertised deals too.  I like to go at the end of the month and pull out all of my $.50 or less coupons to see if I can get some hot deals!

Walgreens

• Walgreens has always been complicated, but if you want to take the time you can get some good deals
• You can use a Store Coupon and a Manufacturer Coupon for a single item (however Walgreens makes you have the same number of items as coupons for a purchase...making it extra complicated)
  
• They also do Balance rewards and register rewards.  I have heard that you can’t get balance rewards when you cash in balance rewards and you can’t get more register rewards using the register rewards from the same item.
• How balance rewards works - balance rewards are points you earn on certain items and after so many points you can cash them in for money off.
• How RR works (these are my preferred deals) - You will buy an item and after the transaction is finished it will print you off a coupon good for almost anything in the store (Basically free money, you don't want to let these expire!).  If you don't want to worry about keeping them you can do separate transactions and use them immediately on the next transaction.
• Basically, Walgreens = Complicated…I am avoiding it for the most part

CVS

I love CVS.  I love CVS.  Did I say that already?  I just really wanted to emphasize that I love CVS.

• CVS has the best coupon policy I have ever seen.  
• CVS uses a thing called Extra Care Bucks (ECB) that is a coupon that prints AFTER your purchase to use on future purchases (basically free money!).  
• They do expire so don't let them expire!  They can be used on almost anything.
•  If you don't want to worry about keeping them you can do separate transactions and use them immediately on the next transaction.
• CVS will take a manufacturer coupon and a store coupon for a single item but you could also use a store money off coupon and ECB’s on a single item – but they won’t pay you so don’t waste any of the free money!
• Scan your CVS card at the “magic coupon machine” several times every time you visit.  The coupons can even change throughout the week so if you are there you might as well scan it!
• Coupon Order – the way you order your coupons can affect your deals.
• Once you’re ready to checkout, put your coupons in this order: $4 off $20 store coupon (or any other money-off store coupon), CVS store product coupons, manufacturer coupons and finally Extra Care Bucks.
• Reading you receipts - At the bottom of your receipt it will list deals you are close to getting, any ECB's you earned and your spending and savings.
• The best thing about CVS deals is that you don’t have to buy everything in a single trip or even the same store!  It carries with you.  Plus, it prints what you have towards the deal and what you still need at the bottom of your receipt so you know.  You will need to complete the purchase before the week is over though to get the ECB's.
• o   When you have ECB’s they will print at the bottom of your receipt and they DO have expiration dates.  You can turn around and use them immediately on another purchase if you prefer.
• What I like to do is Roll ECB's.  To roll them you will spend some money out of pocket at the beginning but you will get ECB's to use.  Then on your next visit you will use the ECB's you have on items that will print ECB's leaving you paying very little out of pocket.
• Check your add for limits on ECB’s, many items limit the ECB's you can earn per household
• Rain Checks – CVS offers Rain Checks but not JUST for the price of an item, they will actually give you the ECB’s for it too!  So if the hoarders took it all make sure to get a rain check

Freebies!!!

www.hip2save.com

Many companies offer free samples (sometimes full sized!) Following this blog is the easiest way to get the most freebies and the best deals!  I am able to follow the blog through my gmail account and then I use the “reeder” app on my iphone.  This makes it so easy to keep up to date on the best deals & freebies.

• Deal Scenario’s made easy for CVS, Walgreens, Walmart, Target and more! She will list the ad, what coupons to use (including one’s you can print w/ links) and what the final price would be.  This is great for those that hate doing the math.
• She also updates you about the new coupons as they come out with links.  Most of these are coupons.com but some are from companies on facebook. 
• Trustworthy!  I have been following this blog for over a year and have never got email spam or fake coupons, deals etc.  They check out the deals and only post legit deals and samples and if there’s a catch, they tell you up front.  Always uncheck to receive newsletters from companies to avoid spam.
• Rebates – I have found out about lots of rebates through this site too!  There is one right now for $15 rebate on P&G beauty products – this is the BEFORE coupon prices and you don’t have buy it all at once.
• Again this is Easy, Easy, Easy!  The only thing is that there are tons of posts (probably at least 30 a day) and sometimes the deals go fast!  You won’t get every deal but you will start getting some awesome freebies!