 Couponing -
Using
(7:33 minutes)
Audio/Video Script:
Susan Holman
County Extension Agent - Family and Consumer Sciences
[Title Slide - Using Coupons, Susan Holman, County Extension Agent - Family
and Consumer Sciences - Franklin County, Picture of a stack of coupons of
someone cutting out coupons, U of A University of Arkansas Division of
Agriculture.]
[Susan Holman] Hello this is Susan Holman. I'm the county extension agent for
Family and Consumer Sciences in Franklin County. Welcome to the 3rd in a series
of podcasts concerning couponing. Today we're going to actually put coupons to
use. You're going to be able to see me purchase items in the store and get the
best deal we can.
The first thing you're going to need to do when you start couponing is be
organized. In the first podcast we covered where to find coupons whether they be
in circulars, magazines or if you've used them off the internet print.
The second thing we covered was how to clip and organize your coupons. So
that's going to be the first thing you need to do before you actually go to the
store is have your coupons organized.
The next thing to get the best deal is to match those coupons to in-store
specials or your ad-circulars. Grocery stores, drug stores, different stores in
your area usually have a weekly circular but you also have to be aware of
in-store specials. A lot of times different grocery stores have too much of one
item, they'll mark it down in the store so you have to have your coupons ready
and convenient so that you can use them during that trip.
The second thing you need to do is find your store's coupon policy. Those of
you who have local grocery stores, that can sometimes be tricky. Larger chains
and mass merchandisers will have their coupon policies on their website. You may
also be able to stop at their customer service area in the store and ask for a
copy of their coupon policy or ask them what it is. Many of them are very
simple, but some of them can get kind of wordy and so you need to be aware of
those coupon policies so you'll know what coupons they'll take. Sometimes you'll
find that stores won't allow coupons that you know are allowable on their coupon
policy so if it's a store you're going to shop at a lot or it's your regular
stop for your groceries or household items, you'll need to know that coupon
policy or carry it with you in your binder. That's what I do at a few of the
stores I use frequently.
Last but not least. If a deal is free or very in-expensive I usually use the
rule of thumb of 75 percent off or more between it being on sale and the coupon
that's the time I use to stock up. I have one cabinet in our laundry room that
has nothing but items I have been able to get for free or close to free and I
stock up and I use those things throughout the year. Some of the items that I
might stock up on are toothpaste, household cleaners, laundry detergent, just
things that are shelf stable for more than a few months that I can use.
Now let's take a look at some of the deals that we got on a recent shopping
trip. It will show you examples of how you can best use your coupons to get the
best deals.
At this store are coupon policy is that we can use one of their in store
coupons that's only good at their location and one manufacturers coupon. So this
product right here is a roll on deodorant and it is their coupon that will ring
up one dollar and ninety nine cents and I have a coupon for seventy five cents.
So this product is normally four dollars and ninety nine cents and we're going
to purchase it today for a dollar twenty five. Let's take a look real quick at a
really good tooth paste steal. This is one of the bargains that you can stock up
on and have for the whole year. This Aquafresh is a $1.99 and in the in store ad
they have a coupon for $2.00 off which should make this toothpaste free. You
can't always get something for free but we're going to get close this time. This
is toothpaste again. It's regular $2.69 and their running an in store special
for $2.00 and I have a $1.00 coupon that makes it $1.00 for name brand
toothpaste.
Buying household products like cleaning supplies, laundry detergent, and
those things can add up really quick so here's a quick one to watch for. This
detergent is one of their affordable essentials. They have it on sale for $4.00.
I have a coupon for $3.00 off two so if we purchase two of those it will be
eight dollars (we're going to get $3.00 off) so you'd get two boxes of detergent
for $5.00. Now the regular price on this is $6.99 so that's still cheaper than
half price.
Let's take a look at a food product really fast. This is the same store in
which we can use one of their in store coupons and one of our manufactures
coupons. So, this product right here is on sale for 59 cents a box I have a buy
3 get one free coupon so when I buy four of these products they'll end up
working out to about 44¢ a box.
Cereal coupons come and go. They usually tend to cycle every few months.
You'll get some really high-dollar ones and sometimes you'll get some lower
ones. Right now I have a coupon for a dollar fifty off two boxes. This week
Kellogg's brand, some of them are on sale for $1.99 a box. I'm going to purchase
two boxes of those and get $1.50 off so I'm going to get two boxes for $2.50 or
$1.25 a box and regular price on that is $4.00 a box so that's a pretty-good
bargain.
Ok, we're at our local mass distributor store and this is the travel section.
This is a great time for you to look at your coupons and see what they exclude
and what they don't. A lot of times they won't exclude the travel or the trial
size products. That's a good way for you to try new products and sometimes you
save a lot of money. I have a coupon this week for a dollar off any Johnson &
Johnson First Aid brand product and here in the travel section they have a first
aid kit that's 97 cents so it's going to be free with a little bit of overage.
Sometimes at your store the register will beep, if you have a coupon for more
than the products worth. If you do explain to the cashier that it's less and
they sometimes will take the coupon down to the price of the product. In our
case here it will usually run down and take off your total bill so we're going
to purchase some of these.
Remember last time I told you there are always lots of coupons for health and
beauty items and this is one of them. This is a dental floss that's priced for
$1.12 and I have a coupon off any one of that product so we're going to get it
for 12 cents.
We're in the food section and we found an online internet printable coupon
for this tuna sold in pouches and it is a dollar off any of these products you
just have to read the coupon and see what it's eligible for and if it's good for
the chunk light tuna in the 2.6 oz package and that's what we have here and it's
93 cents. We have a dollar coupon so we're going to get these free with a 7
cents overage.
I hope that you found this video helpful to see what bargains you can get
using your coupons. Just remember to stay organized, keep your coupons clipped
and organized in a way that you can find them so that you're more likely to use
them. Match those coupons to store ads to get the best bargains and remember to
look out for in store deals while you're in the stores and have your coupons
handy so that you can get a good deal on those. Know your store's coupon policy
so that you know how many coupons you can use, if they except internet prints if
they except manufacturers coupons plus store coupons.
Know all those things ahead of time so that you can plan and if you have any
questions make sure you contact your county extension office or visit our
website at www.uaex.edu. [Title
Slide - For more information contact your county Extension office or visit our
web site website www.uaex.edu. U of
A University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture]
Disclaimer
The mention of any commercial product in this podcast does not imply its
endorsement by the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture over other
products not named, nor does the omission imply that they are not
satisfactory.
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