Couponing Basics: Day One – Introduction

Day 1: Introduction
Day 2: Sunday Paper We Love You
Day 3: Snag Some Coupons
Day 4: Organize Those Coupons!

A lot of people look at coupons that come in the Sunday paper and shrug, “So what, it’s a 50¢ coupon, the generic is going to be cheaper anyway, why bother with all the fuss?” Yes, ok, there is some truth in that. However it all comes down to how and when you decide to use that coupon that makes all the difference. If you go out and use that coupon on an item when it’s not on sale, you can bet the generic will most definitely be cheaper.

Couponing is a game, and coupons are like our trading cards.

When I first learned about using a coupon when an item was on sale I was completely dumbfounded that I never figured that out on my own. It seems so straightforward, doesn’t it? Years of being cheap (*ahem* I mean frugal) had trained my eyes to only look for the generic version of the product I wanted to buy. Since generic products never (usually) have coupons, the thought of even looking at coupons in the Sunday paper hadn’t even crossed my mind. I had no idea how valuable those coupons would be. Not only can they dramatically lower your grocery bill, they often score you FREE products!

Now, I’m not an “expert” in the field of couponing, that’s for sure, but after over 3 years of couponing on and off I have picked up a few things. If you are new to couponing I invite you to follow along over the next few weeks as I share tips and tricks for saving money at the register with coupons. We’ll start with the basics of couponing this week and move through stockpiling, menu-planning, and more complicated strategies in the next few weeks.

If you’re already familiar with couponing some of the topics covered might be old news to you, but I invite you to still follow along. I’m constantly learning new things and sometimes it’s nice to have a little refresher on the basics again.

So what do you say…. are you ready to be a Couponista?! Class begins tomorrow!