How to Play the Drugstore Game and Get Free Stuff

Submitted by: Kira @ Tip Hero  12/20/2010 9:55 AM

It's easier than you may think to get something for essentially nothing, especially at drugstores like CVS and Walgreens. Skilled "couponers" are especially good at this. By taking advantage of customer rewards programs at these drugstores and combining offers with other coupons, they get household necessities for free, and sometimes even earn more on top of the free. Here are the basics for being successful at playing the drugstore game yourself: Sign Up, If Necessary: at CVS, you'll need to request a loyalty card. At Walgreens, you don't need one. Find a Rewards Offer: study store ads or check out blogs like Mashup Mom, in which deals at CVS and Walgreens are posted each week. Look for items that you are running low on. Buy the Item with Cash: be sure to purchase the exact size and variety of the item in the ad. Get Your Reward: after you pay, the cashier should hand you your reward. The Extra Care Bucks (ECB) will print out at the bottom of your receipt at CVS and your Register Rewards (RR) will print out from a dedicated printer at Walgreens. Use the Reward to Buy Items That Pay Rewards: if you earn $4 in rewards one week, all you have to do is spend them on an item that costs $4 and pays $4 in rewards. You'll pay nothing except the tax! Here's another way to take advantage of deals: Using coupons can sweeten the deal. For instance, drugstores frequently advertise toothpaste at $2.99, with a $2 ECB or RR rebate. This means that your price after rewards would be 99 cents. Sunday newspapers often have $1 off coupons for the same brand of toothpaste. If you use that coupon, you pay only $1.99 (plus tax) for your toothpaste and get $2 in rewards back. Free toothpaste! To read more about effectively playing the game, head over to the Baltimore Sun's Play 'the drugstore game,' win some steep discounts.

9 Coupon Categories That Get Overlooked

Submitted by: Tip Hero  02/02/2011 12:17 PM

When you think of couponing, what's the first category that comes to mind? Groceries? Restaurants? While it's wonderful to get coupons and save money on these things that come to mind, there are a whole host of categories that Coupon Sherpa believes get forgotten about. Let's take a look at some of the coupons that sometimes get glossed over. Pet Supplies: if you have a pet that you love but don't want to pay an arm and a leg for supplies, try out pet supplies coupon codes. Flowers: keep florist (local and online florists like ProFlowers) coupons handy for those times when you decide to pick up flowers spur of the moment. Lingerie: Victoria's Secret can be great during their annual sale, but you can try out Soma Intimates coupon codes if you're in need of undergarments. Web Hosting: check out web hosting coupons for cheaper web hosting. What are some coupon categories that you feel get overlooked? Check out the rest of Coupon Sherpa's list over at 9 Coupon Categories We Tend to Overlook.

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A Beginner's Guide to Coupons : How to Use Them and Where to Find Them

Submitted by: Kira @ Tip Hero  03/09/2011 2:20 PM

By now, you've probably seen the extreme cases. Those who consider couponing a full time job. There's even a show about it: But no matter your opinion on this method of saving money, you don't have to be an "extreme couponer" to reap the benefits and savings that can be had by couponing. Take a look at some interesting coupon clipping facts featured at The Digerati Life: It takes the average person about 20 minutes to an hour to organize coupons for a shopping trip. The biggest problem people have with clipping and locating coupons is the time-consuming nature of the activity. The average coupon user saves about 12% off of their grocery bill, but using the right strategies, you can save up to 75% to 80%. At least 80% of people use coupons in some form, but most of these people do not have a system for organizing or using them. So you too can benefit from using coupons without going nuts or devoting ridiculous amounts of time to your efforts. And the best part about couponing is that you can determine how much time to spend doing it and to what extent you'll be a "couponer." Let's take a look at some methods for achieving your money-saving goals (today, with a focus on grocery coupons). How to Be A Successful Couponer Have you seen videos and news stories like the one above from Consumer Reports but are still unsure of how to get begin reaping similar benefits? Here are a few tips to help you get started: Keep Your Coupons Organized Firstly, to be a true couponer, you'll need to find a way to keep organized. Here are things you'll need to do and locate while you put together your coupon organizer. Once you've gotten it together, be sure never to leave home without it. You never know when it will come in handy! Find a Container: find something you can use as a coupon holder, like a wallet or a recipe box. Develop a Sort of Filing System: whether you organize coupons by grocery category (i.e. dairy, frozen foods, baking goods, etc.) or by expiration date, make sure all of the coupons you clip have a distinct landing spot that makes it easy for you to find them later. Purge Regularly: expired coupons will do you no good and will just take up unnecessary space. Take the time to clean out your coupon holder often to keep it as up to date as possible. Use a Price Book: head here for some tips for creating your own price book to keep in your coupon organizer to help you keep track of varying prices. Find Stores With Generous Coupon Policies Finding stores that double coupons is key if you're looking for optimal savings. Unsure of which stores will double coupons? Take a look at this helpful list from Frugal Living to locate qualifying stores in your area. Wherever you shop, make sure you become aware of your local stores' savings programs and policies before you take your grocery trip. You don't want to miss out on potential savings just because you weren't aware of how a certain store operates. Match Up Sales With Coupons Make an effort to hold onto your coupons until the store has reduced the price of the item to save even more money. There are many sites that do the tedious work of matching up coupons every week. Read on to learn about some of those sites. Don't Buy Things You Don't Need One of the main downfalls that coupon users encounter is the lure to buy things they don't really need just because they have a coupon for it. This is where it is helpful to create grocery lists and even price books. Figure out what you need on a day to day basis and base your coupon hunting around those items. If you find a great coupon and/or sale for something non-perishable that you'll use eventually, buying the item could save you some money in the future. However, if you use a coupon to buy something you wouldn't normally buy, you're actually wasting money. Don't be let yourself be irrationally tempted by the power of discounts! Keep your head about you, stay organized and focused, and think of coupons as cash you can use for the items you need. Where to Find Coupons: So once you're ready to fill your organizer with coupons, where do you actually go to find them? There are tons of sites and resources out there that you have at your disposal, however, here are some of my favorites - sites that I can recommend from personal experience: Coupons Spotters: try out Tip Hero's sister site for finding some of the latest printable grocery coupons out there. Coupon Mom: search grocery, restaurant and drugstore coupons by state with Coupon Mom's celebrated databases. Coupon Mom also tells you when you should buy what and what coupons you can match up for optimal savings. You can also choose to get the latest coupon and deal notifications sent directly to your inbox. Coupon Cabin: search for local, grocery, printable and online coupons by category, type or store. Online Coupon Codes: here you'll find some of the best sites out there for finding online promotional and coupon codes. Coupons.com: easily "clip" and print the latest manufacturer and store coupons. Wicked Cool Deals: this great site offers coupon matchups to ensure ultimate savings, among other fabulous features. Smart Source: clip as many coupons as you want and print them out for use on your next grocery run. Direct from the Manufacturer: check manufacturers' websites for the latest coupons that they're offering before buying their brand of products. Offline Resources: Coupons don't just exist online, of course. Here are some other resources for finding them: Store Mailings: if you sign up for a frequent shopper card at a store, you may receive special coupons in the mail from time to time. Newpapers: the Sunday paper is a great place to look for coupons if you have some time to clip. In Store: you can find coupons on store shelves, on the backs of products you buy and on the bottom of your receipts. Just always keep your eye peeled for these savings opportunities. Junk Mail: just take a quick look before you toss. You may find something useful once in a while. Magazines: you can often find manufacturer coupons in women's publications like Woman's Day, Red Book, Family Circle and Good Housekeeping. Couponing takes patience and time. However, it can be an extremely worthwhile pursuit. By investing less than an hour a week into couponing, you too can join the great couponers from around the world in saving up to 80% off of your grocery bill. And when you do accomplish this, it's a great feeling. Trust me. Additional Sources: Frugal Living, Saving Cents With Sense, The Digerati Life, Consumer Reports Photo credit: dmdonahoo

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Walmart Coupon Policy *Walmart Will Give You Credit For Overages On Coupons!

by Deborah at Frugal Living and Having Fun on March 9, 2011

Walmart Coupon Policy

Check this out…I am very happy that this policy is so nicely spelled out now.  Print a copy and take it with you when you go shopping.  Also:  Note:  If a coupon dollar amount exceeds the item, the remainder of that coupon will be put towards other items you are buying.  *This is HUGE!

Walmart accepts the following types of coupons (see guidelines below):

• Manufacturers’ coupons
• Print-at-home internet coupons
  • Must be legible, have “Manufacturer Coupon” printed on them, have a valid remit address for the manufacturer, valid expiration date, and have a scannable bar code.
• Competitors’ coupons that feature a specific item for a specified price
  • for example, $2.99
• Soft drink container caps
• Checkout coupons
  • (also called “Catalinas”) that are printed at our competitors’ registers, have “Manufacturer Coupon” with specific requirements printed on them, a valid remit address for the manufacturer, valid expiration date, and a scannable bar code.

Walmart does not accept the following coupons:

• Print-at-home Internet coupons that require no purchase
• Competitors’ coupons for dollars/cents or percentage off, buy one get one free, and double- or triple-value coupons

The following are guidelines and limitations:

• Only one coupon per item is permitted.
• Coupons must have an expiration date and be redeemed prior to expiration.
• Coupons may exceed the price of the item. Change may be given or applied toward the cost of the basket purchase.
• Walmart only accepts coupons for merchandise that we sell.
• Coupons must be presented at the time of purchase.
• We accept the following with Customer Service Supervisor/Management approval:
  • 40 or more coupons
  • Any coupon over $20
  • $50 or more in coupons in one transaction

• NOTE: There are some changes..such as if the coupon exceeds the $ amount, the remaining balance of the coupon will be applied towards other items you are buying….that is AWESOME!  Go HERE to print your own copy of this policy.  I highly recommend you printing a copy and bringing it with you.

PRINT ORGANIC COUPONS

CELLFIRE

COUPONS.COM

EARTH FARE COUPONS

HEALTH-E SAVERS

MAMBO SPROUTS

RED PLUM

SMART SOURCE

WALGREENS COUPONS

WHOLE FOODS PRINTABLE COUPONS

MORE PRINTABLE COUPONS...

 

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Organic Tea Sales On Amazon!

Sunday, March 6, 2011 at 10:15AM

Amazon has some great deals on Organic Tea. If you are a tea drinker you might want to check them out. Organic Tea for under $2.00 a box is a great deal!

Bigelow Organic Imperial Earl Grey (6pk) $9.32
=$1.55 a box

Bigelow Organic Ceylon Fair Trade Certified Tea (6pk) $9.36
=$1.56 a box 

Stash Premium Merrymint Organic Green Tea (6pk) $10.30
=$1.72 a box

Numi Organic Tea Choc Puerh Black Tea 16 ct (2pk) $10.32, use code: NUMITEA9=$5.16 a box 

Numi Organic Tea Emperor's Puerh Black Tea 16ct (2pk) $10.62, use code: NUMITEA9
=$5.31 a box 

Thanks, The Bargain Sleuth!
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