4 Savvy Supermarket Shopping Techniques for Frugal Moms

Buying food and other necessities for a family during these volatile economic times can be very stressful. Fortunately, from using discount cards to buying in bulk, there are plenty of shopping techniques you can use to ensure you get everything you need without spending a lot. Read on to learn more about these savvy buying techniques.

1. ALWAYS SHOP WITH A LIST

Take a moment to sit down and plan your weekly or monthly meals, including school and work lunches. Make a list of all the ingredients you will need. Then, start putting in the other items you are running out of at home such as toilet paper, hand soap, etc. By creating a list of things to buy, you can reduce the chances of forgetting something important. This will also help you identify which items you can purchase using discount coupons so you can save money.

2. HAVE A BUDGET

Set a realistic budget for each shopping trip and stick to your price limit. You can search on the internet or get the supermarket’s product brochure to find out the prices of the items you want to buy. The web is also a great source for getting special discounts for certain food items, which can help you stay within your budget.

3. TAKE ADVANTAGE OF DISCOUNTS

Consider applying for a grocery discount card at your local supermarket so you can purchase certain items at reduced prices. This may sound small in the beginning, but over time, the discounts you get will account for a whole lot of savings. Using coupons is another great way to get quality products without paying a huge sum of money.

4. CONSIDER BUYING IN BULK

Make sure to purchase non-perishable items in bulk so you can reduce supermarket shopping expenses. These include products like toilet paper, toothpaste, linens, plastic food wrappers, laundry detergents, and bath soap. Some shops provide a family discount for people who purchase in bulk, while others provide rewards on membership cards that can be converted to cash. 

Tips and Tricks in Making the Most of Your Discount Coupons

The world is indeed more difficult to live in as economic conditions continue to spiral downwards. It’s now very challenging to make ends meet and to be able to afford all the essentials of daily living. The prices are soaring high and comfort living seems to be a very far possibility when compared back to the old days. With this, consumers are becoming smarter shoppers by taking advantage of the benefits that discount coupons can offer.

With its convenience and speed, online shopping continues to soar high especially that many merchants provide special discounts to help out consumers who have limited budgets. If you are one of those who want to maximize the perks of a family discount card for instance, you need to stay updated on what’s the latest offering.

How do you go about this task?

• Sign up with deal sites which offer updated discounts from their partner stores and merchants. This way, you will be able to get hold of products which are offered at lesser prices the minute they are made available.

• Another great option in addition to the above is to become a member of an exclusive group that specializes in discounted offerings. If for example you are planning to go on a family getaway, then there are companies who want to entice travellers by providing packages for big groups at highly discounted rates.

• Take note of merchants or ecommerce sites that provide loyalty offers especially if they provide essential products such as food and clothing. There are also those that offer a grocery discount card when you have accumulated a certain number of points.

Aside from the above, a great deal of other ways can be utilized to get discount cards; it is up to you on how to make the most of their benefits.

How Keep Your Online Couponing In Check

For avid shoppers like you, you would most likely agree that your search for great deals would typically start by spotting discount coupons. To stay on top of this mission, you have to familiarize and master the dynamics of online couponing.

So, to give you a refresher, here are some useful pointers you may find worth practicing:

Grab every opportunity to crack codes. Some retailers’ checkout pages may feature promotional code boxes. If you come across one, make it a point to embrace the chance by spending time to crack the given code.

Stacking codes would not hurt. There are several retailers who allow their customers to use more than one grocery discount card on the same deal or offer. Likewise, many stores also acknowledge code stacking so take advantage of each opportunity.

Begin thinking of discount hunt as buying more to save more. While the typical line of thought would be curbing spending to save, doing more purchases would actually qualify you for bigger savings. You can either buy multiple items or ask a friend to jump in to not miss out.

Participate in social media. Nowadays, social networking sites have actually become rich grounds for special discounts. So, it may not be very wise to get left out. Thus, make it a part of your daily practice to check out some social media sites for discount cards or codes.

Keep in mind that you are not supposed to pay for coupons. If you encounter websites asking you to pay in exchange of getting a family discount, chances are that such website may not be trustworthy. You should remember that coupons are not supposed to be paid for.

So, are you now all refreshed and empowered to do better in online couponing?

Couponing and Social Media Combo Creates Blast in Retail

Recent studies reveal that one of the primary reasons consumers follow or keep track of specific brands through social networking sites is because of the discount cards they receive. Thus, companies are leveraging on this finding to attract more social media followers that could eventually translate to new purchases and investments on their products and services.

So, whether you are a small-time entrepreneur or an owner of an established company, it pays to find out how to exactly make the most out of this recent improvement:

• Primarily, organizations are tapping two major ways to produce discount coupons online through social media:

1. Via specialist portals (such as Groupon)

2. Through company-initiated online promotions

• The use of specialist portals benefits the concerned commercial establishment through an increased coverage of the offered deals. On the other hand, the creation of online promotions initiated by the involved firm itself offers complete flexibility.

• Businesses are also ensuring that they are able to distribute their special discounts and offers across social networks where they keep an active presence. If the offers do not readily get noticed, they see to it that they complement their deals with publicity campaigns.

 

• Organizations are also making sure that they take three valuable elements in distributing their family discount offers through social media:

1. Viral Touch – Establishments are incorporating viral elements to encourage the easy sharing or diffusion of their grocery discount card offers in major social networks.

2. Confidence – To achieve this, businesses are seeing to it that they specify their privacy policies and legal details in their couponing promotions.

3. Aesthetics – The promoters of the couponing deals also ensure that they make use of well-picked images and graphics to help get the attention of the market.

So now, you should be able to make the most out of your retail shopping experience. Enjoy!

Wise Couponing Basics: How to Identify Fake Coupons

For many coupon buffs, Internet couponing is a wonderful gift that has made their lives way more convenient. However, its spread also unfortunately attracted the attention of cyber criminals. Thus, fraudulent coupons began to surface.

So, if you are a couponing newbie, it pays to be well guided as to which discount cards are genuine and which of them are fakes. To help you find out, below are some valuable questions you may want to ask yourself when in doubt of a particular grocery discount card:

Is the coupon offering a reasonable markdown percentage?

Discount coupons from varying stores and grocers typically only offer a specific discount range. If you encounter a particular coupon that promises an unusually large amount of markdown, then it may be a reason to question its validity.

Does it have a specified expiration date?

In most cases, coupons always have an indicated expiration date particularly those from the Internet. In the event that you stumble upon an online discount card that does not specify this detail, it would be wise to approach the right authorities to validate or check the coupon.

In what file format is it made available?

Special discounts that are offered online in the form of a PDF or JPEG file can easily be altered or tampered upon. However, there are of course exceptions. If coupons are in these kinds of format but directly come from manufacturers, they are still legit. Just remember to be watchful all the time.

Lastly, it would also pay to review in what channel or way did you receive your family discount. A lot of those coupons that come from the email are found to be fraudulent in nature. Unless they come from the official manufacturers or from websites that are directing you to print them out, then their legitimacy should be verified. 

Extreme Couponing Tricks for Couponing Newbies

For a modern consumer like you, couponing is already a pretty familiar term. But when it gets attached to the word ‘extreme’, you will know that it will be all about exhausting all possible resources to save as much as 50% or more from your grocery bills.

While extreme couponing can be hard to master for novice couponers, learning the ropes would not require as much. So, if you are a newbie in the couponing world, here are some cool tricks you may find handy:

1. Patience would do you good

As much as possible, do not get too excited with using discount coupons as soon as they become available. It would be far more beneficial to wait for a good sale that will give you a better avenue to make the most out of them.

2. Know as many sources as you could

Half of your couponing success would depend on your capability to find discount cards. Apart from your Sunday paper, you may want to explore the websites of some huge grocers near you. A lot of these sites have digital coupons you can easily load to your loyalty card.

3. Learn to swap or trade

Several community centers and libraries put up coupon exchange boxes where you can trade the coupons that you have for what you need. You can also take advantage of the so-called ‘coupon trains’ (where you get regular coupon mailings) to swap or exchange coupons.

4. Stack as many special discounts as you can

Limiting yourself to only one grocery discount card would not really get you much. So, collect as many as you can and work on using them in groups. Simply check with the store’s policy on coupon stacking to ensure that you are properly guided.

As you go on with your little first steps in extreme couponing, you will soon develop new strategies to make more out of it. So, just be persistent and explore as many family discount opportunities as you can.  

Couponing 2013 Takes Less Clipping and More on the Digital Path

Many American shoppers have grown quite a liking to withhold their shopping sprees until they feel they have already gathered enough discount coupons. This only means that the couponing fever is still on full blast up these days.

But then, as more aspects of modern living are now being linked to the Internet, manufacturers and retailers are now slowly taking a huge leap. From traditional paper clipping discount cards, many stores are now encouraging buyers to shift to digital versions.

Why is that so? Primarily because of two major reasons:

1. Digital coupons have relatively higher redemption rates. In fact, Meijer Inc., one of America’s biggest hypermarket chains, has seen digital-coupon redemption rates that are four times higher than those of conventional paper clippings.

2. It is much less costly for grocers to process digital coupons. This is because grocery stores would no longer have to spend for purchasing paper, designing it, and printing the final grocery discount card.

So you may ask – would digital cards fully overshadow paper clippings very soon? The answer would still be a NO. Surprisingly, up to now, a lot of consumers are still very passionate about gathering as many paper coupons as possible and organizing them neatly on their binders.

This goes to show that no matter how innovative the society has become, there are still a lot of people who believe that conventional practices are still brilliant. One great example of that is traditional couponing.

On a general note, whether it’s paper or digital you prefer, what is important is you know how family discount couponing can be of huge help to your shopping adventures. So go ahead and collect as many special discounts as you possibly can!

How to Maximize the Benefits of Discounts

Admit it- you also get excited when you hear that there are discount cards available. That is often the typical reaction of buyers when presented with products on sale. It’s a win-win situation actually, as both buyers and sellers get to feel good after every transaction. Customers can enjoy some savings while stores can empty their supplies quickly. To help you maximise the perks of a grocery discount card, here are some practical pointers.

For consumable commodities
Check the manufacturing date and the expiration date. Discounted items are often those which are in stock for a long period of time or those that are near their expiration dates. Be sure to buy enough of what you can consume before it expires.

For inconsumable commodities
Check the authenticity of the manufacturer. Items offered in lower prices are mostly those that are manufactured by companies other than the original maker. It may sometimes be manufactured differently. On a sub-par quality most probably, and mainly the reason why those were given as special discounts. So make sure that you are getting the same quality even if the product is not created by the original manufacturer.

For all commodities
Check the quality. Discount coupons may attract you all the time, but never take for granted the quality of the products that you are about to purchase. Since the usual items in a family discount are on the rack for an extended period, ensure whether you can still use it to its maximum capacity. Check also if you can tolerate its usage and if it will still be effective.

How a Savings Club Can Help Sustain College Education

Successfully completing a college education is a challenge for some if not many young learners. Given the fact that these students are still dependent to their parents when it comes to finances, their funds are typically very limited.

If you are one of the hopeful learners who are experiencing challenges in financing your college journey, you may be surprised to find out what a savings club can do for you. Your initial reaction could be – ‘How on Earth can signing up for a membership to this program help?’

The answer is simple. Membership would reward you of great daily deals. This means that you can have a wonderful opportunity to enjoy attractive markdowns on supplies that you most often purchase as a student.

To help you maximize this program, here are some quick pointers:

1. Go to the right club. Of course, you would not want to sign up for something that would not really address your unique needs. So, only join the club that provides rebates or discounts specific to the goods you regularly buy.

2. Study how each offer can be maximized. The best rewards would turn out insignificant if you do not know the perfect timing to use them. Thus, it would pay to carefully assess how to make the most out of each deal.

3. Keep your expectations within a reasonable perspective. You could not expect for a family discount to solely work your way through college life. This simply means that you also have to do your share through responsible spending and wise use of your money.

So, are you now ready to pick your club?

What Makes Discount Pricing a Win-Win Retail Decision?

In shopping, there are two major things that consumers pay close attention to. One is the quality of the product they get to purchase. The other is the price. While some may give a bigger weight to the former, a huge bulk of the shopping community gives more importance to pricing.

So, there is then the concept of discount pricing. Stores offer special discounts for select items under particular purchase conditions. However, despite the magnetic pull of all these attractive markdowns, many still continue to doubt whether these deals are really worth it or not.

Whether you are a customer or a business owner who belong to the discount pricing skeptics, allow these points to enlighten you:

For Consumers…

1. By simply paying less, you are already enjoying great savings
2. You can get more out of the money you have
3. You get the opportunity to acquire normally expensive goods on remarkably lower prices
4. You derive greater joy and sense of fulfillment out of your shopping experience

For Retailers…

Businesses can attract a bigger customer base through discount pricing
They will have a better chance at earning more promising returns
They can create a consumer-friendly image thus reinforcing branding
They can hone consumer loyalty and even benefit from more recommendations

These pluses are strong proofs that discount coupons can do so much for both the buying and the selling parties. These further mean that discount cards do not offer empty or false promises. Instead, they deliver tangible results that can be both beneficial to consumers and businesses alike.

So, get that grocery discount card without thinking twice and savor the perks that it has in store.