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My Couponing Experience
by Kelli Morris
I used coupons a few years ago, $1 off here, .20 cents off there. If I saved $5 on a grocery trip, I
thought that was pretty good, but I didn't really make the effort to use coupons on a regular basis.
One day this spring, I was behind a young woman at Super Target. She had about 20 items in her cart. She
apologized for taking awhile to check out because she had so many coupons. I was in no hurry and didn't mind waiting. I was watching as her entire purchase cost her less than $5, after she used all of her
coupons. I congratulated her, impressed with her thriftiness. That transaction inspired me to figure out how to use these fabulous, free little gems to start saving money at my house.
At first couponing may seem overwhelming, but I encourage you to give it a try for one month. If the
savings aren't worth it, then quit. But at least give it an honest attempt. It's like anything new- a little foreign at first, with it's own jargon and rules, but as you save money, you'll be
excited to find new ways to save and it will become a fun challenge that you can your family may want to participate in, too.
Starting out, you'll need to start creating a stockpile of coupons. So, where do you get coupons?
The obvious first place to start is the Sunday paper. Get several copies. Ask neighbors, co-workers,
friends to save their coupon inserts for you if they don't use them. If you don't subscribe to the paper, the best place to buy it currently is CVS, where it's .99 cents. You'll have to go early
though, the CVS closest to us sells out by 9:30. I usually buy two copies. There are three main coupon inserts- Red Plum, Proctor&Gamble and Smart Source. They don't all come out every week, and during
holiday weekends, there are usually no inserts. If you have the choice of a smaller town paper and a major city paper, always choose the major city. Their paper will have more inserts.
There are so many coupons available online now. Some of the best printable coupon sites are: coupon.com,
smartsource.com, redplum.com and valpak.com, afullcup.com, www.organicgrocerydeals.com (Target coupon generator), and couponsurfer.com.
Most sites will allow you to print a coupon 2 times (hitting the “back” button). Their site can
identify your computer, so will only allow you to print the coupon twice, but if you have access to other computers, feel free to print more. Since you may be printing more than usual, consider getting your ink
cartridge refilled instead of purchasing a new one. Sometimes you'll find a coupon for Cartridge World in the monthly Valpak, or at Walgreens in their Sunday circular.
There are three companies currently that offer coupons you can load to your Kroger card: Procter and Gamble
(www.pgesaver.com), Shortcuts (www.shortcuts.com), and Cellfire (www.cellfire.com)
They all work the same way- you go to the individual sites and select the coupons you want and save them to
your Kroger Shopper Card (by entering the card number). When the card is scanned at the store, the discount will be taken from your bill. The great thing about “E Coupons” is that you
can additionally use a paper coupon and save even more.
You'll also find coupons in little blinking machines in the grocery stores and peelable ones on
different products. Sometimes you'll find them inside products. You may also find them in different magazines. There is a magazine that's dedicated to helping people save money called All You.
It's only available at Walmart or by subscription.(I purchased mine on Amazon.com) In the August issue, they offered $72 worth of coupons.
Lots of manufacturers will offer coupons when you sign up on their sites. So that your primary email
doesn't get overrun with coupons and offers, I suggest you set up an email account just for couponing use. Companies like Pillsbury, Nestles, Betty Crocker, P&G, etc. will send you email and snail mail
coupons when you sign up with them. I encourage you to check out the websites of your favorite products to see if they offer coupons. If they don't advertise that they offer coupons, write to them and tell
they you really like their product. Many times, they'll send you coupons and discounts.
Happy Couponing!
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