Show Me The Coupons!

Published June 23rd, 2008

I thought I’d lighten things up today with a post about where to find these little things that give me so much joy each month…that’s right, coupons!  Now I realize that people visit this blog from all over the world, so I will give a few specific suggestions, but mostly I want to talk about the different places where these little guys can hide.

First, a few of my thoughts on coupons:  You’re either a coupon person, or you’re not.  Many people who are anti-coupon think they’re a waste of time because a) they don’t add up to much for the work you put in, and/or b) they make you eat unhealthy food you wouldn’t buy otherwise–to you naysayers, I say please read on and give the coupons another chance!

 I remember watching actress Hilary Swank on Oprah a couple of years ago: Oprah asked her if it’s true that she still uses coupons, and her reply was something to the effect of:  “Well, yes, you wouldn’t throw a dollar in the garbage would you?!”  I don’t remember exactly what she said, but I’ll never forget that interview.  This two-time Oscar winner even does her own shopping at Costco, and talks to her fans while she’s there! 

The truth is that there are a lot of coupons out there, and many of them are for products that you already use, or for a brand that you’d consider using.  There are a lot of coupons for actual dollars off, or free products.  I hardly buy any junk or even pre-prepared food (unless it’s on sale or free for less than I can make it) , and I use coupons on a regular basis.  The key is to know where to look for the coupons, and what to do with them afterwards. 

Let’s start with the what to do with them.  1)  Find a way to keep them handy, some kind of organization system, no matter how rudimentary, is key to making sure that you even know what you have.  If you can’t locate the coupon, then you kind of have wasted your time!  Some people use envelopes in a shoebox, others use clear album-type things so you can have a quick visual of your inventory, others still go as high tech as spreadsheets!  2) Try your level best to combine the coupon with a sale or loss leader promotion–that’s when I really cash in!  In the U.S. you can double and triple the value of your coupons in certain stores on certain days…not so in Canada

Now on to the juicy stuff, where to hunt these coupons down…

1.  Your local weekend paper can have coupons in the flyers, as an insert, or in the body of the paper.  Keep in mind that sometimes the best coupons are for personal care items and household products, so remember to clip them and wait for a sale. 

2.  If you have friends, family, or co-workers in the same province or state, but another town, you can swap each other’s unwanted or extra coupons via mail once a month.

3.  Look for coupon dispensers in any store you’re in.  I’ve grabbed coupons from many businesses; from grocery stores, to drug stores, to greeting card shops, just as I’m walking through the aisles.

4.  In the boxes/packaging of products you use anyway.  Just as a small example, I often buy Catelli whole wheat or flax-fortified pasta.  I bought two boxes for a dollar each on sale, and each one had a coupon for 50 cents off your next purchase.  The next time they went on sale, I got another box for just 5o cents instead of the regular price of $1.75!  Other packages I’ve gotten coupons included with were Honey Bunches of Oats Cereal and Ristorante Thin Crust Pizza (when I combined the coupon with a sale it cost me less than it would have to make a pizza from scratch at home).

5.  The phone book and local businesses.  Check the yellow pages for coupons for your local businesses like pizzerias and oil change places, there will usually be a separate section for coupons.  Our local Pizza Pizza gave us a 2-for-1 movie pass earlier this year when we got the $9.99 walk-in special for a large pizza–what a deal!

6.  Hotels.  If you live in a city or town where people may come to visit, hotel lobbies can be great places to search out coupons and coupon books for local restaurants and attractions.

7.  Universities/Colleges.  The local student centre will often have coupons put out specially to attract students, sometimes they may be in local on campus magazines.  You usually don’t have to show a student card for these types of offers, just the coupon. 

8.   Online.  You can find coupon codes for many popular businesses by doing a quick web search for “____coupon code”.  This will often eliminate or help offset the cost of shipping.  There are other great sites like www.ratherbeshopping.com and www.mygoodcents.net that do a terrific job of keeping track of the latest deals.

In Canada, www.save.ca is a good one, and http://www.canadianfreestuff.com/forum/ is a terrific site of different forums that I check all the time for links to free samples and coupons–often right from the manufacturer’s site.  I’ve gotten many free full-sized products this way:  Some recent ones I found through the forum were for a of Coffeemate flavoured creamer for my husband (he thought it was a nice change from the 1% milk I buy), free Chapman’s ice cream, and a sample plus a coupon for a whole box of the Nestle Carnation Instant Breakfast fortified drinks–now these aren’t products that we buy regularly, but I was very happy to try them for free.  For the days we are crazy busy, I’m actually seriously considering having a box of the instant breakfast drinks at home in case of emergency, to just mix with a glass of milk and take in the car with me. 

Going along with the forum, if there are companies whose products you use all the time, check out their sites–you’d be surprised how many of them will mail you a coupon to thank you for your loyalty or have a printable coupons for you!

9.  Welcome Wagon.  Many communities have this service for newcomers, they often will give you a package with some valuable coupons for businesses in your community that you can use for several months.  If your employer, family, or friends haven’t yet called the Welcome Wagon, feel free to give them a call yourself.  Just do a web search for Welcome Wagon in your area, I know they have this in Canada for sure, and some parts of the U.S. 

10.  Last but not least, magazines are also another great source of coupons; these may be mainstream magazines like Chatelaine or the Vegetarian Times, but they can also be the little magazines you get in the mail, at the grocery store check-out, or even the liquor store with great recipes in them, and often coupons from whoever sponsored the recipe and magazine.  A couple of weeks ago I got a $2.50 bottle of Diana Sauce (I often use it in marinades) for 75 cents because it was on sale for $1.50 and I found a 75 cent off coupon in one of these recipe magazines.

Well, this has been fun!  Just remember, everything in moderation–I make almost all of our food from scratch, but I’m happy to indulge every now and then to try a free or discounted product.  Happy coupon hunting!

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