Have you seen TLC recently? Perhaps it was the show 'extreme couponing' that sparked your interest, or maybe you just want to save a little bit of money? Either way couponing is a great hobby and for some, its a full-time job!
In America you can save considerably more by combining coupons, its not possible to combine coupons in the UK but that doesn't mean that you can't make considerable savings.
In order to maximise savings you should combine coupons (found either online, given direct from manufacturers, the supermarkets magazine or newspapers) with in store offers. If the coupon value exceeds the price of the item the coupon is for this results in overage. Overage is the 'extra' money and can be used against the price of other items in your trolley. So if Leerdammer cheese slices are £1.70 in Tesco and the coupon value is £2, there will be 0.30p overage for every coupon you use which can be redeemed against the other items you have bought. Supermarkets don't usually give you the overage so you will have to buy another item to cover this cost.
The example above was an actual coupon but was a try me free product. Usually you find that as soon as the coupons are valid, the supermarket has the best deals on that item so act fast!
Another example is shloer which was on offer at tesco for £1.12, while usually this is a bargain on its own, combining it with a 50p off coupon made it only 62p! The regular retail price (RRP) is £2.25 so we have saved £1.63 or 72% on the RRP! Imagine those types of savings on brands you buy every day.
Another example is shloer which was on offer at tesco for £1.12, while usually this is a bargain on its own, combining it with a 50p off coupon made it only 62p! The regular retail price (RRP) is £2.25 so we have saved £1.63 or 72% on the RRP! Imagine those types of savings on brands you buy every day.
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| Via MrsJanuary |
Once you start couponing, its addictive. You'll find the extreme couponers with a garage full of stockpiled items. But if you're getting items so cheap why do you need to save them through stockpiling? Its simple- they buy enough of the item when its only pennies on the pound to last them until the item is on sale again to avoid having to pay full price. Then, when they run out of an item, they can 'shop' for it from their stockpile thus saving money.
A stockpile shouldn't just be created and then left to expire, the items should be used constantly and be continually replaced. This is why you may see couponers in the store with only deodorant or cleaning products in their trolley and no food- this is because it is already in their stockpile!
So instead of saving 72% on just one bottle of shloer they will buy 3 or 4 so they are saving 4 times that amount, which is roughly £6.52. They will have paid £2.48 for 4 bottles of shloer instead of £9 which they'd have had to pay if they bought it at full price. They will then put the extra bottles into their stockpile.
A good rule of thumb is to buy as many bottles as you have coupons for, up to the value of the RRP or what you would usually pay for that item. So as the RRP is £2.25 we can get 4 bottles for just over the usual cost for 1. Some people may prefer to have 3-6 months worth of stockpiled products and so when an item is on offer and they have a coupon for it, they will buy enough to last them 3-6 months or until it is on sale again.
During your weekly shop begin to take note of the items that you buy most regularly and how much these products cost. After a few months you will begin to notice how much on average each item costs and when it is on sale. This will become your price book, which you can refer to when you are matching up coupons and store offers. You can find out more about keeping a price book on our price book page.
A good rule of thumb is to buy as many bottles as you have coupons for, up to the value of the RRP or what you would usually pay for that item. So as the RRP is £2.25 we can get 4 bottles for just over the usual cost for 1. Some people may prefer to have 3-6 months worth of stockpiled products and so when an item is on offer and they have a coupon for it, they will buy enough to last them 3-6 months or until it is on sale again.
During your weekly shop begin to take note of the items that you buy most regularly and how much these products cost. After a few months you will begin to notice how much on average each item costs and when it is on sale. This will become your price book, which you can refer to when you are matching up coupons and store offers. You can find out more about keeping a price book on our price book page.
I use these sites to research and plan where to use my coupons:
I use Caring everyday, supersavvyme, freebie hunters, uk couponing and the facebook site to research the most recent coupons and then use supermarketspecialoffers and mysupermarket to see which supermarkets have the best deal on that product (make sure to check the supermarkets own website to double check the price). Then I check the terms and conditions listed on the coupon to make sure that I won't be committing coupon fraud.
It's illegal to photocopy coupons and use a coupon for something you haven't purchased, among others. Sometimes you won't be able to use more than one coupon per purchase so you may not be able to take advantage of the 2 for £-- offers you sometimes see. Also you cannot stack coupons as they usually cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer. If you are unsure about the difference in the terms, check out our couponing lingo page!
So go on, give couponing a go and see how much you can save!
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