I ran across this cute story on The Argus Observer that came across my Google Alerts. Since it is still January and people are still in the “Resolution mode” I thought it was a good idea to come up with my set of Couponing Resolutions! Here is my list of 7 Couponing Resolutions:
Wait a few weeks before telling people you coupon. If it is the first thing out of your mouth people usually think you are strange (especially on a FIRST DATE)!
DO NOT CLEAR THE SHELVES!! In my opinion the only time this is okay is if there are only 1 or 2 items left! (someone has to take the last two or if you don’t want to do that ask for a rain check)
Leave unused coupons near the items you don’t plan on buying. You can also try giving coupons to people with the items in their cart but sometimes that is stalkerish/creepy. [But being a Coupon Fairy can be fun]
Organize my coupons by TUESDAY of each week! Do not let my coupons pile up for weeks at a time! And go through and look for expired coupons once a month! (before you know it you’ll have a months worth of coupons to file – trust me I know!)
Make sure Uncle Ben has rice in a flavor you like! Don’t buy 10 boxes because it was free and find out it tastes GROSS!
Donate any FREE items you don’t need/like (see number 5)
Find a better system for printable/blinkies/peelies/loose coupons. Right now I file them by category in a file box but most of the time they got lost in the system and I forget about them/forget to look in the box and they end up not getting used and thrown away for expiring. I know what I’m about to say sounds like a TON of work but I think the only way to know what I have in their easily is to put all those coupons in a spreadsheet and look at it each time I prepare for a shopping trip. [WIP]
Do you have any “couponing or savings” resolutions/goals for this year? Is there anything you need help with that you’d like for me to cover on the blog? Let me know in the comments so I can work on a new post!
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one more resolution – check out http://www.thecatholiccouponer.com and http://www.couponblessingsnow.com EVERY day….. 😀
I think you should be proud to be ‘strange’! Especially on a first date! You better believe I talked about my cat on my first date with Steven and I knew he was a keeper when a) it didn’t freak him out and b) when he first came to my apartment a few weeks later, he came with a brand new cat toy for Buttercup lol! So the guy who finds your couponing love cute or endearing is probably a winner! 🙂
When you organize by Tuesday, when do you grocery shop? My issue is that we hardly go to a ‘regular’ grocery store (just when we need something from there that TJ’s doesn’t have) and by that time, half my coupons are expired! I know I need to get organized by knowing what coupons expire when, and if I should go ahead and stock up on an item rather than letting it expire but… I’ve been lazy!
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Thank you for bringing up #2. I am not a couponer and I get so frustrated when I go for one box of Frosted Flakes on Sunday and it’s totally out of stalk because it was on sale that week. I saw on Extreme Couponing a woman said that anytime she plans to buy more than 10 she calls the stores manager and has them order it for her. How considerate. 🙂
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I love coupon fairies! They make me so happy when I find a coupon by an item I was going to get 🙂 Thanks for promoting the cause!
BAHAHAHAHAHA! The Uncle Ben thing is HILARIOUS!!! I really love most of Uncle Ben’s quick-microwave rice mixes, but some of them are just. nasty.
I’m not an in-store couponer. I have just conceded to the fact that I will never organize my coupons. I do keep coupons on my smartphone, though, and I hope that companies like SmartSource and P&G embrace paperless coupons.
Something else that’s a good idea: If you get in good with your cashier and end up with some catalina coupons you know you’re never going to use, leave them with the cashier and they’ll keep it for when somebody does buy the product. I’ve also seen people leave coupons where the item on them is displayed. Maybe people don’t leave them; maybe they’re coupon fairies. 🙂
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Thanks! The Uncle Ben thing was more of don’t buy 100 of something to find out it’s gross. We made one Uncle Bens that was gross but thats because my mom forgot to put the seasoning packet in haha