Couponing tips for 2015
This is the time to resolve to save more money in 2015 than last year, and you can do that by stocking up on grocery and drugstore deals with coupons every week. Remember, the time to buy your items is when they hit their lowest price, not necessarily when you run out of the item.
Murphy’s Law says that if you wait until you run out of the item, it will be selling at full price. But if you can hit a sale price combined with a store promotion and a coupon, you will save 75 percent or more. Buy a few of the items to last until its next sale, and you’ll get in the cycle of cutting your grocery bill in half. Shop from your own bargain inventory when you run out of the item, and you’ll also save yourself a trip to the store.
To make it easy to save, each week be sure to save the AJC coupon circulars — the entire circular — and just write that Sunday’s date on the cover of the circular. Save them in a file or box, and when you read this column or use the
website, the deals will reference the date and circular to find the coupon you need. That system will save you hours of frustration since you won’t need to cut out and organize all the coupons every week.
Start by pulling out the Procter & Gamble coupon circular from last Sunday’s AJC, with more than $96 in coupons. Find high-value coupons for personal care products such as $2 off Metamucil, $3 off Vicks, $2.25 off Crest toothpaste, $5 off Pantene, $3 off Olay, $5 off Vidal Sassoon and many more coupons.
The average face value of coupons for personal care items is higher than lower-priced food item coupons, so you can take advantage of big savings that you can apply to grocery items that do not typically have coupons, such as fresh produce, meat and poultry.
Earn Points at Rite Aid
Promotion
: Rite Aid has a “Buy and Earn” promotion that gives you reward codes when you buy participating items now through Jan. 24. When you accumulate a minimum of $50 of spending, you’ll get one reward code that you can redeem for prizes such as a free exercise class or a free round of mini golf. Save your reward codes up to a maximum of five codes with $250 in spending and you can get prizes that include a free concert ticket, free movie tickets, a free resort stay and more. Look for special “Buy and Earn” tags in the store and in the weekly circular.
The full Coupon Mom column appears Thursdays in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Deal Spotter section. It’s full of great local deals and exclusive offers. Visit the Coupon Mom website for more great finds.
Follow Atlanta Bargain Hunter Nedra Rhone on Facebook | Twitter | Email
