This blog post is in response to a question that I get frequently while wandering the aisles of the stores browsing for deals. People see me and see my binder filled with coupons and exclaim, "Where did you get ALL of those coupons!?!?" The next two questions that naturally follow are, "How do you organize them all?" and "How long does it take you?" The latter questions are for another day and another post. For today, I am going to tackle the first question.
There are lots of resources out there to help you acquire coupons for your stash. Once you start looking for them it seems like you will see them everywhere. My biggest resource is the Sunday paper. I only subscribe to the Sunday paper. It costs me $1.75 a week and it more than pays for itself in savings. In some cities, the Early Edition Saturday paper may have inserts as well at about half the cost. It is something worth looking into. I left a little note for my newspaper delivery man asking him to leave me any extra inserts he may get. He leaves me 6 extra coupon inserts each week for free. You might also have some luck talking to a convenience store manager about collecting left over Sunday inserts from unsold papers on Monday mornings. Stores get reimbursed for unsold papers, but often they only have to turn in the front page. Again, it is worth asking. Personally, I am unwilling to dumpster dive at the local Recycling Center, but I know a few ladies that have no problem doing that if it saves them a buck. Haha. Get creative and don't be afraid to ask. In the end, the more coupons that you have the easier it is to stockpile when things are offered at those rock bottom prices.
There are other ways to get coupon inserts without buying the paper. There are people out there that sell whole inserts and clipped coupons for a small fee. It is against the law to sell coupons, so these people sell the time and energy it takes them to collect the inserts and in some cases to clip the coupons on your behalf. Tricky right? I like Coupons & Things by Dede. She seems to do a good job at reasonable prices. The Coupon Clippers, The Coupon Master and CentsOff.com offer clipping services for small fees. You can also find clipping services on ebay and through coupon communities like A Full Cup and Hot Coupon World. Be careful though, because not all of the coupons sold on ebay are legitimate.
The internet is another resource for collecting coupons. Coupons.com, SmartSource.com, Redplum, CoolSavings.com all offer legitimate printable coupons. Stores and manufacturers may also offer printable coupons on their websites. Target, CVS, and Rite Aid all offer Store Coupons on their website for you to print. The downside to getting all of your coupons by printing off the internet is that you have to pay for all of that ink and you are limited to printing two copies per computer. I have 3 computers so I am able to print 6 copies of each coupon, but it does serious damage to my ink cartridges. When looking at your savings take that expense into account. Personally, I only print coupons from online if I am definitely going to use them.
Coupons can also be found on packages (peelies), in dispensers at the store (blinkies), and attached to displays within the store (tearpads and in educational pamphlets). I have two little kids (age 5 and 7) and one of their jobs when we go shopping is to collect coupons where they can find them. It is like a treasure hunt for them and they get so excited when they find coupons. It is also helpful for me because it keeps them out of my hair while I am adding numbers in my mind and planning each transaction. ;) Collecting these coupons is easy and completely free! No printing costs, clipping fees, or newspapers to buy. I never pass up an opportunity for free, so these little gems are my best friends.
CVS has coupons that print at the end of your receipt in addition to the ECBs. They also have price scanners in their store where you can scan your Extra Care Card and it prints out extra coupons for you. Sometimes it even gives you the golden $4 off $20, $5 off $30, and $10 off $50 coupons. Many grocery stores offer Catalinas that print out of the printer next to the register when checking out. These help me to save a ton of money. Walgreens offers Register Rewards and Catalinas as well that are printed when you check out.
So, look for and acquire as many coupons as you can. I clip and save coupons even for items that I don't usually buy because often there will be a sale where if I use a coupon I can make a bit of money. I then use that money on items that I need. You can always donate items that you won't use to food banks, homeless shelters, or church groups. In addition, you can trade coupons with people in online coupon communities for coupons that you will use. I don't have a need for diaper coupons, but there are a lot of people out there that need those, so I can trade for ones that I will use.
Hope this post helps to answer some of your questions. If you know of a creative resource for coupons or one that I have simply missed, please comment and share! Happy Shopping!
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