Coupons, Store Cards and
Point Programs.
There are all different ways to get coupons. Everyone knows about the Sunday paper but most people don’t know you can print them out. Coupons.com has up to 500 a month and Lozo.com has external links for coupons that are at the manufacturers site.
Mind you, you will have to invest in a laser printer. Printing coupons on an inkjet printer is not cost effective because of the price of ink. (Scroll down for more details)
Make that dingy appliance look brand new
To put is simply, get yourself a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser!
While there are plenty of knock off brands out there, this is the best. I took the dingiest, dirtiest kitchen appliances in the 2nd Hand store and made them look like I just took them out of the box.
Coupons.com
Many have used Coupons.com for printable coupons for years. They continually updated and offer brand names. If you use it, there will be at least a few coupons for when go to the store. The best times to visit are on Sundays and the first of the month when new coupons have been released. It’s useful to sign up for their email notifications using your zip code. In some areas are local food coupons for grocery stores, restaurants, retail shops, and drugstores in your neighborhood.
Lozo.com is like a coupon clearing house. Well worth the effort because these coupons aren't found on most of the other coupon sites. First you set up an account and then start putting coupons in your cart. Now this is where some work is involved, once you are done you go to the cart to print. Most of the time an external link to the manufacturers site will pop up in another tab/window. Then you print the coupon from that site. These coupons are usually a higher savings than regular coupons because they come straight from the manufacturer.
Mypoints.com is one of the oldest online point programs. Answer emails, take surveys, watch videos, special offers and points per dollar at 1000’s of retailers. All those things get you points in your account that can be cashed in for gift cards from over 100 stores (Amazon, Ebay and others). The MyPoints tool bar for your browser will give you show you if there is a special offer, coupon codes and points per dollar automatically when you go to a site. Out of all of them, this is the one I trust most. I average a $25 gift card every month
Send an email to the manufacturer
It is NOT an urban legend that if you write to a company, they will reward you with something.
Companies do reward customer loyalty and feedback. Often a nicely word email about a product will get you a link to a coupon for the item for a huge savings or even free.
Also, if you have a problem with something you bought, if you send them an email with your address and phone number, most companies will get back to you and send you some coupons to get the item for free. Just remember to always be polite.
Example:
I got something once that had that had a piece of the outer plastic packaging inside the item. I sent a nice email with pictures and the lot number on the package. I simply said that I understand that things like this happen and that they needed to be aware of this in case there were others. Someone called me within minutes and got the information from me. And two weeks later i got an apology letter in the mail with 40 coupons (with no expiration date) for a free item. Needless to say I didn't have to pay for that item for over two years.
Club Cards
Most stores now have savings cards. They are free and you just have to give a minimum of information to get one. The thing I don't like about them is to get the sales price on items you do have to use them. What I do like is that most have what are called "Digital Coupons". You go to the site or in some cases an app on your phone and just clip the ones you want and the savings are automatically taken off at the checkout. Also, if you have a physical coupon for any of those items, that is taken off as well.
Printing Coupons: Laser vs Inkjet
The old adage "You need to spend money to make money" is so true, but it also pertains to saving money as well.
Now if you have an inkjet printer DO NOT use it to print coupons. On average it will only print about 100 pages before the ink runs out. Where as a laser printer will give you 5000 (or much more) pages depending on the printer. There are many models of laser printers out there that are only $20-$50 more than your average inkjet. While most manufacturer laser toner cartridges are a bit on the expensive side, you can find 3rd party ones for your printer for a fraction of that price on Amazon.
For more information on this and a list of affordable laser printers, go to my "Tips" page.
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