Helpful Info

When to Use That Free Item Coupon
Everybody loves Free Product Coupons. Finding a coupon that will get you a product completely free, no strings attached, is like finding gold for a couponer. Here’s a little secret: When you find a free product coupon, don’t use it right away!!


That’s right, I said don’t use it…..yet! Here are three ways that you can get even more couponing excitement out of your free product coupon.


1. Use it on a Buy 1 Get 1 Free sale! This is my favorite way to use free product coupons. If I have a coupon for a free bottle of xyz shampoo, I will wait until they go on sale B1G1 Free and get 2 FREE with my coupon! How it works: you buy 2 bottles of the shampoo, the register deducts the full price of one of the bottles (for the B1G1 sale), then the coupon deducts the full price of the other bottle. Your price – $0!


2. Use it to get Free ECBs or Register Rewards. If the item can be bought at a drug store then hang on to that coupon! I like to wait until the product is part of a special promotion. If you have a coupon for a free bottle of xyz shampoo, wait until you can earn ECBs or Register Rewards when you buy it. Even if you use a coupon on a product, and even if the coupon makes it free, you will still earn the ECBs or Register Rewards that are advertised! Example: Buy xyz shampoo, Earn $2 ECBs. How it works: You buy the shampoo, use the coupon, pay $0, and earn $2 ECBs. Your price – Free + $2 Profit!


3. Use it to Save on other items. Many grocery stores now do special sales where you have to buy a certain number of items in order to get a lower price. For example, cereal is on sale 3 for $10, Buy 3 and save $5 instantly, final price – 3/$5. If you have a free product coupon for the cereal, this is how it would work: Buy 3 cereals for $10, use free product coupon (deducts full price before instant savings – $3.33), save $5 instantly. Your price – 3 boxes of cereal for $1.67! It would be even better if you had coupons for the other 2 boxes of cereal!


So, next time you get a Free Product coupon – make it work overtime!






Guide to Stockpiling
 A stockpile is simply buying more than what you need for immediate use when prices are extremely low, so that you do not have to pay full price in the future. A stockpile can be a key part of saving money!.



Here are my tips for stockpiling:


Buy Multiples
To start a stockpile you will need multiple coupons for that one item. In order to get multiple coupons, you will need to buy multiple Sunday newspapers, order coupon inserts online, or collect coupons from your friends and family. Four of each coupon is a good place to start, but you can do more in the beginning when building your stockpile.


Wait for Sales
When items go on sale at a deep discount, that is when you want to use all your coupons. Say, for instance, that pasta has gone on sale for $1 and you have a $0.25 coupon and your store will triple coupons. That makes the pasta just $0.25, which is a great price. So, if you have four $0.25 coupons then you could buy four boxes and pay just $0.25 per box! Of course, you may not need all four boxes this week or even next week, but if you eat pasta regularly then you will use them eventually. This way, you get to pay a rock bottom price for pasta and you won’t have to pay full price for it the next time you need it. You have enough to last you until the next time it goes on sale.


Sales Cycles
Stores run sales in cycles. Everything typically goes on sale about every 8 – 12 weeks. If you buy 8 – 12 weeks worth of everything when it goes on sale, then you will have enough to last you until the next time it goes on sale. If your family eats one box of cereal per week, then go ahead and buy several boxes. If your family only eats one box a month, then maybe just buy a couple boxes.


Buy Only What You Like
It is very important that you only stockpile foods and products that you know your family will actually use. Don’t buy 10 boxes of cereal that your family has never tried before or it may never get eaten. If your husband does not like a certain brand of deodorant, don’t stockpile that brand, even if it’s FREE. Yes, I just told you not to get something if it’s free. If you won’t use it, what’s the point? (UNLESS you plan to donate this item to a homeless shelter or something like that or send to a deployed military member!) By buying it you are just preventing someone who could actually use it from buying it and taking up valuable storage space in your home.


Watch Expiration Dates
You have to keep an eye on expiration dates when you stockpile. It is very important to rotate your stockpile. That means you need to put the new items you purchase at the back and keep the oldest products at the front where you can get to them. Keep in mind that even toothpaste expires! It takes a long time, but if you look at the tube, there actually is an expiration date on there!


Don’t Go Overboard
It’s very tempting to buy tons and tons of products – especially when they’re free. Please remember the 8 – 12 week sales cycle. It WILL go on sale again! You don’t have to buy 50 tubes of toothpaste right now. Buy a few now, then buy a few again the next time it goes on sale. If you realize you’ve accumulated too many tubes, skip a few sales. Save your gas, energy, space, and time instead.


If you build a stockpile and carefully maintain it you can save a lot of money and always have your favorite products on hand! No more running to the store at 10 pm because you’ve run out of diapers.











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