Saturday Savings– Organizing Your Coupons

So now you have all of these coupons…what do you with them. Shellie, over at Saving with Shellie (http://www.savingwithshellie.com/), has developed a method I have learned to love. However, I did not always organize this way. I was once a coupon clipper. Here is a little history.

When I met my husband he was a self-proclaimed couponaholic, and honestly, I didn't understand what the fuss was all about. However, after many trips to the grocery store with him, and seeing all of the money we saved, I was willing to give it a try. I started by clipping every coupon I thought I would possibly use out of every Sunday paper. This was great when it came to going to the store because I could just take my binder or accordion file with me, and I was never faced with leaving a coupon that I might need at home. My husband and I would have a coupon shopping day, and spend about two hours in the grocery store looking for all of the best deals. This worked out well until our lives became busy, and we didn't have the time to shop for two hours and we certainly didn't have the time to clip every coupon out of the Sunday paper. The booklets of coupons kept adding up, and they were being clipped at an increasingly slower pace. Then the printable coupon reared its ugly head.

One day I looked at my accordion file full of expired coupons, my stack of unclipped coupon booklets, and the pile of unclipped printed coupons I had accumulated, and I soon lost all hope in my couponing future. I asked myself how it got so bad, and how could I ever dig myself out of this hole to find the savings I knew existed in my pile of papers? Enter Shellie. My feeling of hopelessness was cured when I read my first blog, and Shellie was the author. She spoke of her coupon organization method, and it was so easy. Read about it here.

So I began by doing just what Shellie advised. I took each coupon booklet, which is labeled on the spine with the date, (this was new to me) and placed it into a file box in a hanging file labeled with the publication title (Red Plum, General Mills, Proctor and Gamble, and Smart Source). I put them in date order, and printed the listing of what is in each booklet from Sunday Coupon Preview (http://www.sundaycouponpreview.com/). I highlight the coupon with the latest expiration date and place it before the booklet(s) in the file. This helps we know when I can recycle the entire booklet because all of the coupons are expired. I then leave them all resting in the box (no cutting necessary), and read my blogs. I follow many blogs (see them to the left of the screen) and they all refer to the coupons in the same way. They tell you the location of the coupon by booklet and date (i.e. – RP 1/10/10 meaning Red Plum booklet released in the January 10, 2010 Sunday paper), and where to buy the item at a cheap price.  I then locate the booklet, and clip the coupon(s) I need. I make a list per store of the items I will purchase, and head to the store.

Now I know you are wondering what happens if I get to the store and notice something I think I have a coupon for that will make it a great deal, but I don't have the coupon with me? I follow Shellie's advice on this as well by carrying a small tablet with me and making a note of that item and price. When I get home I check my coupons and return to the store the next day to get the item. The other problem is if the sale is set to end the same day or if it is a clearance item. For a sale ending the same day, you should return home and get your coupon then return to the store. (or send your husband back to the store) If it is a clearance item, you have to ask yourself how good the deal is. If it is a must have, you should return home to get your coupon and go back to the store. If it is a must have and the quantity is limited, you may have to get creative. My husband is known to hide an item or two in the store until he returns. Like taking the clearance lotion and placing it on a back shelf and behind something in the pet department. Or you can try to ask the cashier or customer service to hold it until you return. Try any creative method. You may be able to buy the item, then go home and get your coupon, go back to the store and return the item, and re-buy it with your coupon.  Great deals cause for drastic measures!

I also use the tablet to record the "buy price" for an item. The "buy price" is the best price for an item when you actually need the item. I start with the Sam's price, which is a price I am willing to pay if I had to buy it that day, and update as I see the prices lower at other stores. For example, my "buy price" for laundry detergent is 13 cents per load or $14.84 per 110 load/170 oz bottle. This is the Sam's Club price for Member's Mark laundry detergent. If I know this price, determining my "stock up" price is easy. The "stock up" price will be anything lower than the "buy price". So when I see laundry detergent priced at 12 cents per load with a coupon and I need laudry detergent, I buy laundry detergent. If I see it at 7 cents, or 50+ percent lower than my "buy price", I buy lots of it or stock up. I may even buy coupons on Ebay if it is an item really need or like.

Now back to the organizing. I also made a folder for printable coupons, and I keep them in order of expiration date. I also have a store coupons folder to keep those Target type coupons I spoke about last week. (here)

Whew!  That should get us to next week.  Try to organize your coupons this way or let me know about your method.

Read more about Shellie's couponing tips here. The key is to JUST DO IT!

Next week we will discuss where you can use your coupons to save the most money.