Learn How to Use Coupons

One of the most important fundamentals in learning how to use coupons is learning when to use coupons. The mere fact that you possess a coupon for an item does not mean that you should buy that item. Having a coupon does not necessarily make that product a good deal. Coupons are put out by grocery stores and product manufacturers to encourage sales, not to save you money. It is knowing when to use coupons and how to use coupons that transforms you from a shopper with a coupon to a seasoned couponer. rnWhen you are first starting out, you may need to buy products that are not on sale when you have a coupon. If that is the case, you still need to verify that a competitor’s product or a store brand isn’t still cheaper. (To save the most money, you cannot be brand loyal—at least on the majority of products that you buy). If your product, with your coupon, is cheaper than the generic or competitor, buy the item but do not buy extras. You want to use your coupons when that item is also on sale. When you are able to buy with a coupon when the item is on sale, you need to buy extras at that time. If the item with the coupon is a great deal, stock up, if it is only an ok deal, then just buy a little extra. Once you have started to build your stockpile, you can wait for the times when the combination of the coupon(s) and sales price make the product a great deal.rnThe holy grail of couponing is when a product is on sale, you possess a manufacture’s coupon and you also have a store coupon. Using a store coupon (possibly a competitor store’s coupon) along with a manufacturer’s coupon is called stacking. If your store allows stacking, you can get great deals and, sometimes, FREE products. (You MUST learn the coupon policies of the stores you shop at.)rnWhen stacking coupons, you use ONE manufacturer coupon and ONE store (or competitor’s) coupon for EACH item you purchase. For example, if you have a 75 cents off coupon for Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes and a 25 cents off store coupon, you would get $1.00 off ONE box of Frosted Flakes. If you had two Kellogg’s coupons and two store coupons, you could buy two boxes of cereal for $1.00 off each box. rnSo, you have acquired 10 Frosted Flakes coupons for 75 cents off and 10 store coupons for Frosted Flakes for 25 cents should you buy Frosted Flake the next time you go shopping? Should you stock up? That depends. Several scenarios are listed below.rnFrosted Flakes are not on sale. They are $4.00 a box. Stacking your coupons, you are paying $3.00 a box. This is not a good deal. Unless you were desperate for a box of Frosted Flakes, you should pass on this, even if it means the coupons expire unused. (Most consumers with a coupon would go ahead and buy a box at this price thinking they were saving money. They might even consider themselves to be couponing--after all, they had a coupon).rnFrosted Flakes are on sale for $3.00. Using your two coupons, you can buy the cereal for 2.00 a box. This is an ok deal and you could probably use your coupons to buy a box if you needed one. However, it is not a good enough deal to stockpile. (Newbie couponers might buy at this price as their stockpiles have not been built yet. Consumers with a coupon might even stock up at this price, thinking they were really saving money).rnFrosted Flakes are on sale at their lowest price cycle sales price for $4.00 BOGO. That means each box costs $2.00. Using your coupons, you can buy a box for $1.00. Knowing that this is the lowest sales price your store will have (you know this because you keep a price book), you buy 5 boxes of the cereal because that is how many you need to last you until the Frosted Flakes hit their lowest price again. (Only under this scenario would a couponer buy Frosted Flakes).