Smart Savings Tip # 6 - Using Coupons

Smart Savings Tip #6 – Using Coupons

We’ve spent the past couple of weeks learning about the different types of coupons and where they can be found. Now it’s time we put those coupons to use!
Most stores allow for a store coupon and a manufacturer coupon to be used on each item. That’s double the savings! The best discount happens when you use coupons on items that are on sale. I know it may be hard to wait for a sale on something, but if it’s something that you don’t need immediately, you should wait to buy it until it’s on sale. You may want to use this Savings Schedule from my previous blog post to help you plan.

This week, Huggies boxed diapers were on sale at Publix Supermarket. The sale was such that, if you bought two boxes at $19.99 each, they automatically deducted $7.00 off of the total. This is called a ‘promotion’ and you can still use coupons with a promotion. I searched the internet for printable Huggies manufacturer coupons and found one for $4.50 off of one! Then, I used a $2.00 Publix store coupon for Huggies diapers that I found in a booklet called ‘Oh Baby’. When I went to checkout, I used two $4.50 coupons and two $2.00 coupons (because I bought two items and I can use one of each type of coupon on each item). My total went from $39.98 for two boxes of diapers to $19.98 for two boxes of diapers (before tax)! I did this deal twice; hopefully it will last me until the next sale!

One thing of which you need to be aware: some items are included in a sale, even if the sale sign is not placed near the item. For example, I went to two different Publix stores to buy diapers. One Publix store did not have the $7/2 Promotion advertisement near the boxes of Huggies that were $19.99. The sign was only placed near the $34.99 boxes of diapers. I took one of the smaller boxes to customer service to verify whether or not it was a part of the sale, and it was! When I went to the other Publix store, there was a huge display advertising the sale with the smaller boxes of diapers. I think the sign placement depends on the store manager, but the best way to be sure is to read the small print on the sign and check with customer service.

Another tip about coupons, goes along with Buy One, Get One (BOGO) sales: most stores allow one coupon of each type (store/manufacturer) per item, even though one of the items is free. For example, All detergent could be on sale BOGO for $4.69. You could use two manufacturer coupons and two store coupons for maximum savings. The BEST savings on a BOGO sale is when you have a coupon for BOGO of the same product. BOGO sale + BOGO coupon (store or manufacturer) = FREE for both items! This week, I scored four bags of dog treats for FREE because they were BOGO and I had two BOGO manufacturer coupons.

Stay tuned next week when I’ll tell you my favorite couponing websites to use for planning and buying.

May the sales be ever in your favor!