Can't find the coupon you need for your favorite grocery store? Try using another supermarket's coupons where you normally shop. How to find bargains.
Food prices are going up faster than you can fill your shopping cart on sale day. One way to beat the grocery stores at their own game is to play the game they know best….leveraging the competition. It’s a win-win situation for everyone, especially you, the consumer. Here’s how it works:
- Clip every store’s coupons within a 25 mile radius. Even if it’s a store you would never drive to. If that supermarket has a coupon your neighborhood store doesn’t, take it to where you normally shop. They will usually honor it. If the cashier won’t budge, talk to a manager. Stores don’t want to lose your business. And they know how price conscious consumers are these days.
- Look for coupons on the internet. After you clip the coupons from your local paper, scour the internet for manufacturers’ coupons to go along with the stores’ discounts. Even if you find an expired coupon, print it out anyway. The store may honor it if it isn’t too old.
- Check grocery store web sites. Before you head to the supermarket, check out all the grocery store web sites in your state. If you find a coupon or flyer for something you plan to buy, even if it’s for a store two counties away, bring it in. You never know what the store is willing to take.
- Only use coupons for items you normally buy. Unless you really think you can use it, don’t try new things with coupons. You may end up purchasing something in quantity that you simply don’t like. Buying food you’ll never eat will end up costing you more than you save. But do pay attention to generic brands of the foods you normally eat.
- Make a list of everything you plan to purchase and try to find coupons for as many of those items as possible. Don’t budge from the list, and only shop on double coupon days!
- Buy in bulk. Got a great coupon for a non-perishable item? Buy as many as possible. Check the fine print though. There might be a limit.
- Comparison shop. Even using the competition’s coupons with sales on double coupon day, you may not save as much as shopping at a warehouse club. Before you head out, make a call or check on the internet before you lay out your hard-earned money.
If you find yourself with too many coupons you can’t use, consider exchanging them on the web, or joining a local coupon-trading club.
The copyright of the article Grocery Store Price Matching in Consumer Education is owned by L. Marie Dubuque. Permission to republish Grocery Store Price Matching in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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