Getting Started: Coupon 101

Hello everyone!

It's been about a month & a half since I've 1st started couponing with EVERYTHING & ANYTHING I do. It has already saved me more money than I could EVER imagine. As I've become better & better at this art, I've had a handful of people ask me to teach them how to save. So this is the sole purpose behind this blog, to teach others in need how to save money and help others to find those deals! So, let's get started :)

I'm going to break it down to the most BASIC steps possible so as to make it easiest for EVERYONE to understand.

So the first thing you need to begin to understand obviously, are the coupons, which may seem rather simple but can quickly become overwhelming when you throw in limits, overage, and all the varying coupon policies.

The 1st type of coupons are Manufacturer Coupons. Usually the coupon actually has printed the words "Manufacturer Coupon" on it, but there are exceptions where the consumer is left in confusion. If uncertain, MOST all manufacturer coupons' barcode begin with the number 5. Manufacturer coupons are monetary values from the actual manufacturer of the product. These coupons can be found in the Sunday newspapers, online websites, social networking sites and many other areas.

The 2nd type of coupons are Store Coupons. Store coupons carry a monetary value given directly from the store. These coupons can be found in different locations varying from store to store. Some stores offer coupon booklets, others provide online clipping forums.

Which leads me to my next topic of discussion. Store acceptance. Each store has a different coupon policy. Some provide limits to the amount of coupons accepted, others prohibit certain type of coupons with a specific sale, each store has a different limit to the amount of coupons accepted per item, etc. There are hundreds of stores with varying coupon policies. So my suggestion to you is to study the stores policies you shop at, or perhaps even take a peek at other store's coupon policies near you. The more you understand the policy the better your savings will be :) I have provided below a link of some of the coupon policies I shop at. Click on each store and check them out! While checking out each of your store's policies, look for what makes that store's policies different. How may it be better? How may it be worse? We'll go over later some of the benefits & downfalls of the coupon policies of national stores in the US.

Rite Aid

Walgreens

CVS

Meijer

Walmart

Well that's it for today! Don't want to throw too much information at you @ once. I'll be posting more and more as we go, including answering questions, finding deals and lots more! Bear with me as the blog gets updated and moved around to a more efficient manner.

And remember,
DON'T THROW AWAY COUPONS!

Ta ta for now :)