Well, the "Good" about couponing is that it gives everyone the opportunity to save money. You can choose if you want to save a little or a lot just by how diligent you are about collecting & using coupons.
It has allowed me to see another avenue of consumerism. One that I never thought ever existed. I can buy more groceries, and be more financially stable than ever before WITH a growing family. Strange...but true! I always thought the bigger your kids got, the more money you would be spending on food. With coupons, kids can be affordable and not break my bank!! Its great!
The manufacturers are also benefiting huge from all the couponing Buzz. Their volume of sales are increasing, thus making them great competitors. Consumers are getting the opportunity to try their product, hereby generating more feedback, word of mouth advertising, and a greater percentage of customers who will buy their products again, and again. Its a win, win.
The Bad
In the past few months, Couponing has increasingly become more popular due to the TLC series "Extreme Couponing". And so it should! What great awareness it has brought to everyone in Canada & the USA that we can all have the opportunity to save so much money!
The problem with all of this is the undefined "Coupon Etiquette". Its all just kinda left up to each individual to decide what is or isn't OK. People are now clearing shelves, printing mass amounts of coupons, and being "demanding" towards store employees thinking "The customer is always right". Well, sorry to burst everyone's bubble, but the customer can be wrong. The "couponers" who are purchasing items in this manner are making a bad name for the rest of us. There needs to be respect for both sides of this equation for things to work smoothly. The retailer & its employees need to be 100% up to speed on their couponing policy's & practices. Same goes for the consumer.
Consumers & Retailers are both getting increasingly irritated with each other. Yet, there are no clear defined RULES to this game that everyone has now jumped on the bandwagon for.
There are the demanding & sometimes quite ignorant customers trying to use hundreds of coupons in a single transaction during peak hours. This irritates other customers waiting in line, & creates anxiety for the employees. This is the primary reason retailers are quickly changing couponing policy's to restrict this type of behaviour.
This is seriously harming the abilities for the rest of us to save as much money, who now are depending on coupons to maintain their household budgets. The policy's are being changed to "limit" the use of coupons, not promote it. If we all had enough common sense to have a little bit of coupon etiquette, retailers would be working in our favor, not against it.
I have heard of all sorts of arguments occurring between customers & retailers, everything short of an actual fist fight....its ridiculous, and unnecessary. This is usually over how policy's are read & understood. Since most policy's are vague & poorly written, it is just inviting conflict. Retailers need to have a serious look at this and make policy's that communicate clearly ,with out question, what is, and is not acceptable for their stores.
Couponers in general, shop on a regular basis. We are a group of individuals who seek out the best deals between an assortment of stores......and we talk about it. Our little chit chat on facebook, forums & blogs can quickly snowball to involve many (sometimes hundreds) of people. If someone has a justifiably negative experience with a particular store, franchise, or chain....people are gonna hear about it. This can & will affect that retailer in some sort of way. Retailers need to be just as invested in developing & learning their own coupon policy's. Coupon training is the key. They can have the best policy in the world, but if the staff don't know it, understand it, & cannot process it....it will cause havoc at the tills.
& The Ugly
In general, serious "Couponers" will look out for the best deals and combine them with their coupons to potentially & frequently get items for free. A lot of people will begin to create stockpiles full of household items that will last them for 6 months up to a year. This will include everything nonperishable from canned peaches to laundry soap. Purchasing large amounts of product is great..as long as you use it.
The Ugly, is the potential devastating addiction of couponing and shopping, that turns into hoarding. Hoarding happens when items are purchased, get stored but never used or donated. They just collect dust.
There is a certain "high" that a person gets when they score the best possible deal and get a lot of product for nothing. The problem is, people are purchasing products just because it very cheap or free...not because they need or use it. They also have a very hard time giving it away to those who may benefit from it. Homes turn into storage units. Even though these people never before had been hoarders, the simple ability to go shopping when they never could afford to before, is surreal. To some it feels like winning the lottery. Another potential danger is simply spending a dollar on something that you don't use or need just because it is cheap. Each time is another dollar. Those dollars can add up very quickly into hundreds.... Hundreds that they don't have. If you have a friend struggling with this, help them. Don't ignore it. Lists are great. Make a list of items that you will use, that you can store for long periods of time. Stick to your list, & donate the rest.
So, here are a few etiquette guidelines to couponing
- Never clear the shelves! If you intend of purchasing a large amount, call the store ahead of time. They will be more than happy to have a few boxes in the back just for you. This will save them valuable time re-stocking the shelves, and other customers will be able to purchase product as well.
- Go to cashiers who know how to deal with coupons
- If you are unsure about what exactly the policy is...ASK! Don't argue. Call ahead and get the answers to your questions before you shop. Policy's change frequently. Ask if there have been any recent changes.
- When you have intentions of doing a large "couponing" shop, inform the store before you go. They will be more likely to make your trip enjoyable and positive for everyone
- Be respectful of peak hours in stores. Do not unload your binder full of coupons on a cashier who has a line-up. It is stressful, annoying, and flustrating for everyone waiting on you. People generally DON'T have all the time in the world to wait for you to cash out. Shop & check out when they have time for you if it is a large order.
- The cashiers are your best friends, not the enemy. Find a great cashier
- Know your coupons! & don't Cheat! Use the proper valid coupons on each product. Don't photocopy internet coupons that only allow a certain amount of prints per computer. Eventually the store will get dinged for it, and the retailer will usually stop or restrict the use of internet printed coupons. Don't ruin it for the rest of us.
Keep clipping! & Happy Couponing!
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