Coupon Stacking is when you use more than one coupon for the same item. Only select stores will allow you to do this, so it is best to call your store and ask first, before you attempt it.
Requirements:
- Coupons that you are stacking MUST be for the same item. Size, brand, type etc.
- Coupons must have different coupon codes/bar codes in order to make them "different" from one another
- To get coupons that are different, but for the same item they must be from different sources. I.e. Magazines, newspapers, inserts, peelies, internet printed
- If the coupons states: "Strictly Prohibited"...you cannot stack them. These coupons (for now) are only on P&G that I have seen.
- Some stores will NOT allow you to stack coupons that state "Not valid with any other coupon offer"...check your store policy
- all coupons must be valid in Canada & not expired
Organizing your stacked coupons for a shopping trip:
- I will pull out a seperate binder, and put all the coupons I can stack in it.
- Then I will make my list. Make columns for what you are buying, quantity, shelf price, total coupon value you have to use, then a Total of what you actually expect to spend (before taxes)
- I divide my coupons into categories such as "Laundry", "Cleaning supplies", "Hygene", "Food" etc.
- When at the check-out, some stores would like you to place each set of stacked coupons with each item as it goes through.
- have your store coupon policy with you, and have a chat with customer service about their policy BEFORE you shop! Policys can change at any given moment, the policy that you may have is NO GUARANTEE.
Coupons to Stack:
- You can stack B1G1 with dollars off of one of them
- (1) "Save $2 wub2" with (2 or more) $1 wub1 coupons
- (2 or more)dollars off one product with different bar codes
- "save $5 when you buy 3 "brand" products, with dollars off
- There are really so many more combinations, just really look carefully at what your coupon says. For example, Buy ANY 3 GILLETTE PRODUCT: "ANY" can be sample/travel sizes, GILLETTE PRODUCT: can be for Venus (since Venus is a Gillette product)
To get the best "Bang for your Buck"
- Price Matching (if your store allows it) is one of the best ways to get the cheapest price. Collect all the store flyers in your area, & search for the items you are wanting to purchase at lower prices. Clearly mark with markers, tabs, or sticky notes on the flyer so it is easy to find when you are at the check-out. I also mark on my spreadsheet which flyer had the best price for each item.
- Stack your coupons on top of great sale prices.
- You can find out current store prices on line as well. www.flyerland.ca is a great resource. www.londondrugs.com has all the shelf prices on their website. I use this site often, since flyers only show you prices on a few of their store items.
I know that this sounds like a lot of work, but this is how to get items for free frequently. Be as organized as you can possibly be!!! so you have no surprises.
Showing posts with label policies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label policies. Show all posts
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Monday, June 6, 2011
The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly of Couponing
The Good!
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
Keep clipping! & Happy Couponing!
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!
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Organizing Coupons...
This is how I organize my coupons....
I first started by using the mini soft cover photo albums, gradually taping more books to one another. One set was for Food, the other book was for non-food. I liked this cause they were still small enough to fit into my purse/easy to carry, ...and I could just flip through and see what I had.
Now I am using a binder with photo album sheets. I like it better than the baseball card sheets because I can fit all sizes of coupons including tear pad and “gocoupons”. I organize by types of products….paper (napkins & TP), hygiene, toiletries, meds, dairy, snacks, cereal, canned, frozen, meats, fresh, make-up, fast food, baby, pet. To keep an eye on which coupons are to expire first, Layer “same” coupons on top of one another (takes up less space) with them organized by expiry date (soonest on top).
In the front of my book, I have one back to back photo sheet with copies of store coupon policies (LD, Wallmart & Superstore, etc.), calculator, & scissors, and a empty spot to hold any new coupons that I find on my shopping trip.
On the front hard cover of my binder I have a few sheets of paper clipped on with a large sturdy black clip. this will help me take notes, write grocery lists, and clip on coupons that I will take out of the binder and use at the till. This will ensure that I won't loose any coupons that would otherwise slip out of a pocket. Always have a pen clipped to the front of the binder as well :)
photo album & baseball card sheets are commonly found in thrift shops too!
and, Yes, lol....I take this book everywhere I go...all the time :o)
Cheers! Jackie
I first started by using the mini soft cover photo albums, gradually taping more books to one another. One set was for Food, the other book was for non-food. I liked this cause they were still small enough to fit into my purse/easy to carry, ...and I could just flip through and see what I had.
Now I am using a binder with photo album sheets. I like it better than the baseball card sheets because I can fit all sizes of coupons including tear pad and “gocoupons”. I organize by types of products….paper (napkins & TP), hygiene, toiletries, meds, dairy, snacks, cereal, canned, frozen, meats, fresh, make-up, fast food, baby, pet. To keep an eye on which coupons are to expire first, Layer “same” coupons on top of one another (takes up less space) with them organized by expiry date (soonest on top).
In the front of my book, I have one back to back photo sheet with copies of store coupon policies (LD, Wallmart & Superstore, etc.), calculator, & scissors, and a empty spot to hold any new coupons that I find on my shopping trip.
On the front hard cover of my binder I have a few sheets of paper clipped on with a large sturdy black clip. this will help me take notes, write grocery lists, and clip on coupons that I will take out of the binder and use at the till. This will ensure that I won't loose any coupons that would otherwise slip out of a pocket. Always have a pen clipped to the front of the binder as well :)
photo album & baseball card sheets are commonly found in thrift shops too!
and, Yes, lol....I take this book everywhere I go...all the time :o)
Cheers! Jackie
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