How does this translate into the pictures that people have begun putting on their blogs of piles and piles of non-perishables with captions that say "Cost: $257.99. Paid: $1.00. Savings: $256.99"?
What is going on here that I am not getting?
Monday, August 24, 2009
Something I've Been Thinking About
Can someone explain couponing to me? I often get coupons at checkout for 30 cents off some name-brand product. I get that this coupon will be doubled, making it 60 cents off. But, when I go to pull that name-brand product off the shelf, I see that the store brand is a dollar cheaper to begin with.
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7 comments:
I'm on your side of the coupon efforts. I think in order to get a lot of value from coupons you must use lots of coupons. Which takes lots of time and planning and searching.
I say just buy the store brand.
I would be interested in hearing the answer to this question, too. I don't get it. I almost never see coupons for things I buy, anyway. It's always the fancy new products and then the coupon doesn't save me any money because I wouldn't have bought the thing except for the coupon.
/rant. Sorry.
I am totally with all of the above comments and you...I don't get the whole coupon thing. I don't have time to clip coupons and when I actually did something about it (i.e. print them offline) I was told that the store doesn't accept printed coupons. That was the last time I tried using coupons.
Go with store brands, I always do.
I agree with the above, if you don't do couponing the die-hard way. You can't just pull out the coupons that you buy stuff of before you go to the store. It requires a lot more effort (which I why I do agree that there are different ways to save money, ie: store brands besides using coupons). But, I have a post coming up where the stuff retailed for 19.90 and I paid .37 cents. You have to use coupons in conjunction with sales and you have to think ahead to what you probably need, not what you need that very second. I am going to email you the link to my friends blog who is the couponing guru of all times and she explains how to do it in a very detailed/easy-to-understand way.
P.S. Every store I've been to has always accepted online printable coupons.
I think it is by and large an advertising tactic. At least when you're talking about the ones they hand you at the check out. When the store produces its little sale/coupon magazine they are trying to sell the same product at two different prices. One for coupon type people and one for non-coupon type people.
Is the missing piece here just that it is hard to believe that some people buy into the name-brand thing?
You should talk to Sharla...she's a coupon goddess.
I wish Trader Joe's had coupons...I don't really shop at the stores that take the coupons these days.
Ok... I will admit it... I am a closet coupon-aholic. This is what I do and it makes it SUPER easy.
1. I have gmail.
2. I use reader (at the top left of the gmail screen). It let's you input all of the blogs you follow and eliminates the process of clicking on each individual one.)
3. I have a list of blogs that I follow that do the "coupon" thing that show up in my reader list.
4. I take 3 minutes every day to look at that list. If I am intereseted in the deal.. I do it.. if not.. I skip it.
Ok it really really is easy!!! If you go to westcoastcents.blogspot.com I use the links on the right side of the page. Let me know if you need help setting up.. really the 10 min initial set-up is SO worth it!!
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