INSERT: The coupon pages that come in a newspaper. They are referred to specifically by the company that produces them. RP = Red Plum; P&G = Proctor & Gamble; SS = Smart Source The vast majority of the coupons are from the manufacture, however sometimes they are also for specific stores. Target has been doing this a lot lately.

CLIPPING: The process of cutting out coupons.

CLIPPING SERVICES: Companies that will cut coupons for you, you are paying for the service and not the coupon.

MANUFACTURE COUPONS: Coupons printed by a company for specific products. Always read them carefully for expiration dates as well as size or selection specifics. For the example below, a coupon for Campbell’s is only for the Select Harvest variety and you must buy 2.

STORE COUPONS: Coupons for a specific store. It will be clearly marked that it is a store coupon. Sometimes you find coupons in the store circular that is a manufacture coupon so be sure to read it before using it.

STACKING: Using a store coupon and a manufacture coupon at the same time for 1 product. Not all stores allow this so be sure to check the store policy.

STORE CIRCULAR: The weekly ad that stores release with their sales listed. Always read the dates as not all stores follow the same week. For example, Rite Aid is Sunday through Saturday while Safeway is Wednesday through Tuesday. Even then, more stores are having 1 or 3 day sales. For example, Safeway has a $5 Friday every week but that price is only good on that day.

DOUBLE COUPONS: Some stores will double the price of your coupon. For example, if you buy 3 cans of Campbell’s soup instead of only .50 off, you will receive $1. Not all stores will double and those that do will have very specific policies. Know those policies before you shop. Albertsons often has double coupons in their circular. You must use that coupon along with the manufacture coupon in order to double your manufacturer coupon.

REWARDS PROGRAM: Every store calls it by their own name, but the idea is the same. If you register with the company you can receive discounts and more. For example, Rite Aid will give you rewards to use on your next shopping trip while Safeway gives a fuel discount. Don’t blow off the discounts, they do add up. I was selected (I don’t know why) to receive a .30 cent fuel discount for every $100 I spend in the store instead of the usual .10 cents. That adds up very quickly when your van has a 40 gallon tank!

eCOUPONS: Electronic coupons that can be loaded onto your reward card or smart phone. Saving Star is a popular one, but always check your app store for new ones.

CATALINA / CAT: The coupons printed out at the register that a cashier hands you at the end of your transaction. Some are store coupons and others are manufacture coupons. You should always read them carefully to determine which it is. Sometimes they are for specific products, other times they are a discount on the entire purchase. Read them the minute you receive them as of then the really god ones expire in just a few days.

BLINKIE: Those little machines in the store that allows you to grab a coupon. They are located near the product the coupon is for.

INTERNET COUPONS: Coupons that stores and companies publish online that can be printed at home. There is a limit of 2 prints per computer. To make copies is illegal and stores will not accept them.

PEELIE: Coupons that come on the product when you buy them. Sometimes they are worth more than the coupon you may have intended on using. If not, be sure to tell the cashier to leave them on.

BINDER: This is how I organize my coupons. Everyone should do it in the way that works best for them. Some people use a shoebox, others the accordion style which is designed to hold coupons. As long as you can find what you need and don’t forget what you have, then it is the system that works for you.

BOGO: Buy one, get one free is when you purchase 1 of the item and receive the second one for free.

CLOSEOUT / CLEARANCE: These are items the store wants to unload as quick as possible so they can use the shelf space. Items can be marked down as much as 75%.

MAIL IN REBATE: Allows the customer to send in a form to receive a check rebate from the company. Most require the original receipt. Rite Aid now allows them to be processed online.

UPC: This is the bar code on the product. Sometimes you need it for rebates, sometimes you need to know how to read it because you are unsure which variety the coupon will be good on.

EXPIRATION DATE: You have until midnight of that date to use the coupon. If they expire, either toss or send to a military family overseas. They are allowed to use them for months after the expiration dates.

STORE POLICY: This is how you find out what a store does and does not allow regarding coupons and their rewards program. Always know what your store is doing before you shop. I keep mine in my binder.

I hope this has been helpful, let me know if you have any questions.

#1

Manufactures send coupons for their products, and, in return, pay the store when you use one of their coupons.  Manufacture coupons are labeled as such.  See photo #1.  The “MFR” label in the top left box next to the expiration date means manufacture’s coupon.

# 2

Store coupons are coupons for products within a given store; the manufacturer may not reimburse the store for those coupons.  Manufacture coupons are labeled as such.  See photo #2.  In the red along with the expiration date it is labeled “store coupon”.   Notice the store’s name is also on the coupon.  In this case it is for the grocery store Albertsons.

THE RULE: 1 SC + 1 MFR for 1 item.  That other words, one store coupon and one manufacturer’s coupon per individual item.  Some of the best deals are when you use two manufacture coupons and two in store coupons for a buy-one-get-one-free sale.

If you have your own pointer and want to share, I’d love to hear it!

Photo from internet

I subscribed to a Sunday paper.  FYI: not every Sunday paper carries the same coupons.  I print online coupons for those items I want but didn’t get a coupon for.

The subscription department wanted to charge me more than I was willing to pay. She took my offer to pay half of what their asking price was. Try it; it may work for you too.

Donations:

I asked for people to donate their coupons because multiple coupons are able to be used; not all on the same single item, but on multiple items. When it is a free item, I like to get more than one.

I have heard of, but haven’t tried, writing to or speaking to your neighbors and friends and leaving a basket or a box on your porch where they can drop them off.

Printable coupons:

I have read that some stores don’t take printed coupons, but I haven’t had any issues.

Most printable coupons are manufacture coupons; however, some store sites, like Target.com, allow you to print store coupons and can be combined with manufacture’s coupons for an even greater deal.  Store coupons are only good in the store whose name is on the coupon.

There are several sites which offer printable coupons. Again, the more coupons you have, the more opportunity to save. You can usually print two printable coupons per computer, so if it is a free item, use all the computers you can from your house to print multiple copies.

Here are three sites where I have found printable coupons: couponmom.com, dealseekingmom.com, couponsuzydiscounts.com. Most of these sites you need to set up an account and create a password.  (I haven’t had any issues with them asking for personal information. I feel comfortable in providing in providing the little bit of info they need.  Use your own discretion.)  These sites send you email updates throughout the week.

Store Coupons:

Some grocery stores have a weekly or biweekly flyer that comes out with coupons.

Target.com has store coupons under the tool bar at the top of the homepage. These can be combined with any manufacture’s coupon on one single item.

Note, both store and manufacture’s printable coupons have a limited amount available to the public, so if you see something you think you’ll use, print it as soon as possible.

In fact, that is what I did today with the Flintstone’s vitamins. I used $2 manufacture’s coupon and a $2 Target store coupon on a bottle of vitamins which cost $5.99 this week. That brought the cost down to $1.99 apiece. Then from using the information from CouponMom.com, I learned that if I bought 3 bottles this week, Target give a $5 gift card. So, in the end, I paid only $0.99 for 3 bottles of vitamins which brought each to only $0.33.

If you have your own story and want to share or just want to share a suggestion, I’d love to hear it!

Cheerios is giving away a FREE sample and a $1 coupon.

Simply fill out the form to get yours. Please allow 6-8 weeks, sometimes its earlier:-)

Click here while samples last!