How to Prioritize your Coupon shopping trips

Couponing can be overwhleming sometimes, especially when you are first starting  out.  What are the best deals?  What are some things you can pass on and what are things you don't want to miss?


Priority 1: Buy things that make you money
Sometimes there are deals on things that are SOOO Unbelievably good that you can't pass them up, even if you don't need them.  This usually happens where there is a sale on an item and it also matches up with a coupon.  You may also have an e-coupon for that item.  Then you might be able to find rebates through different apps as well.  Sometimes there may also be Catalina promotions, where if you buy a certain dollar amount of participating products you will receive a catalina (coupon that prints at the register) for money off your next order.  Here's an example:

1) Unilever is running a promotion that if you spend $15 on participating Unilever products you receive a $5 off your next order.
2) There were $1.50 off 1 Suave Products.  Suave is priced at $1.50  There were other products on sale and coupons that matched.
3) There were also ecoupons for Suave Products.
4) There was a savingstar app rebate.

Most Catalina promotions are on the Shelf price, or the normal everyday price when it is not on sale.  So If the suave is normally $2 even though they are currently priced at $1.50 you get "credit" towards your $15 promotion for $2.  I structured a "deal" of a bunch of items that before sale price was $15.69, after the sales or the price I would pay without using coupons came to $11.  Then I used all my coupons and e-coupon and I paid $3.  I received a catalina for $5 off my next order.  Therefore we call this a money-maker.  Yes you paid $3 OOP (out of pocket)  but you received a $5 coupon for anything in the store.  So buy buying 5 items and using coupons and ecoupons I made $2 toward my other groceries.

I would usually do this transaction first and separately from the rest of my order.  Then I would take that Catalina and use it on my second order.  I also sometimes might do two or three of the above transactions if I have enough coupons to do so.  Making $2 or $3 is a great way to help with the cost of items like meat, dairy and produce which are very unlikely to have coupons.  This can be an even sweeter deal if you use some of the apps I mentioned here.  Then you are making even more money.

What a waste right?  Buying a whole bunch of items I don't need and can't use, right?  WRONG!  A huge reason I coupon is because it allows me to help out my community.  If I have to buy something to make some money to help with my families groceries then I will donate what I don't need to a few places.  I donate weekly to one of a few places: a local food pantry, an animal shelter, family or women's shelters and local churches that collect things throughout the year for various causes.


Priority 2: Buy things that are free
It's free, so why not?  Same premise as above.  If it's free, completely free and costs you nothing, Why don't you pick it up?  Maybe you need the item or would like to try it.  Great!  Keep it.  If you know you won't use it, maybe hang on to it for a gift, or a friend who might want it.  You always can donate it as I mentioned above.  But if you really really don't want to do any of the above, why still buy it?  Ok, seriously just donate it.  So many people are in need and you can help them with no extra effort than you are already putting forth.  But what's in it for you, other than the overwhelming awesome feeling you get from helping people in need?

Buying things that are free can help your bottom line also.  Most Catalina's you receive are based off of items you buy.  Sometimes you will buy a product and they want to promote something similar so a catalina will print.  Sometimes you buy a lot of a particular brand and a catalina for the same item will print since you buy it frequently.  There are a million different scenarios of why a catalina will print but they all have to do with what you buy and how much.  The more you buy the more you get.

Another reason to "buy" free stuff is that many stores run loyalty rewards programs.  Sometimes there are holiday promotions for Free Turkey or Ham when you spend a certain amount.  Some stores have Health & Beauty rewards, where if you spend a certain amount they give you money back in the form of a catalina toward future purchases.


Priority 3: Buy things that you need/want and have coupons for
This is where most people focus. What do you need?  What do you want?  My grocery shopping is done weekly.  Most couponers shop weekly for many reasons, but usually just to make sure they are hitting all the sales.  The best way to do this part of your shopping is to focus on the sales flyer.  Figure out what is on sale.  You need deodorant. What do you have a coupon for?  What's on sale?  Try and find the cheapest way to get what you need with the coupons and sales for the week.  If you are not getting it for free or supercheap but you can't spend another day scraping the plastic deodorant case against your skin then just buy 1 to hold you over until you can find a really good sale again.

Another way to save is to meal plan.  You shouldn't have to go to the grocery store twice in one week.  You waste time money and gas. Look at your week, doesn't matter if you plan Sunday - Saturday or you plan around your days off and do Wednesday to Tuesday.  Plan out your meals, snacks and anything you need for them.  Don't just pick anything out of the clean blue sky to put on your meal plan.  Pick things you need to use up in your freezer or pantry first.  Then coordinate the sides you need and any spices or ingredients you don't have. Adjust your plan so that you are buying things that are on sale and you have a coupon for.  Maybe you need a starch for that steak dinner for Tuesday's meal.  You're thinking mashed potatoes but you notice that rice is on sale and you have a coupon.  Guess what?  It's steak and rice on Tuesday.  Let the sales and coupons plan your meals.  I promise you won't get stuck in a spaghetti rut again!

Priority 4: Shop the sales/in season produce
Not sure what's in season, it's pretty easy to tell, it's usually the stuff that is on sale.  I dare you to try and buy watermelon in January.  I guarantee you will pay at least 3 times what you did in July and August.  There are tons of places on the internet to figure out what is in season.  I love this guide from LivingRichWithCoupons.com. It covers not only what produce is in season but what other items should be on sale or clearance for the month.  I printed it and stuck it right in my family calendar.


Priority 5: Shop for the things you need and don't have coupons for
The last items on my list are the ones I can't find coupons for and I don't see any sales for, but I absolutely have to buy because I desperately need them.  I still do as I said above.  I try to find a brand that is on sale and get that.  Or maybe substitute something else.  A big part of couponing for me is being creative.  I try to find alternate uses for most of the things I buy so in a pinch I use something else.  But once you grow your stock pile, over time you should be in many situations where you have to buy things when they aren't at least on sale.  But this is where the Money-makers and catalinas come in handy.  The $5 unilever catalina would be used here say for my meat or something else that I don't have coupons for.  The catalinas help with the last minute dinner plans and you don't have enough chicken but now it's not on sale.  Or whoops, my toddler spilled the entire box of cereal on the floor and I need to replace it.

I hope that gives you an idea of how I prioritize my grocery trip each week.  And I hope it helps you get the ball rolling on things you can do to help save money on your grocery trips. Got questions or comments?  Feel free to ask or comment!