Every time you hit the grocery store, you’re probably like me, and you want to save a bunch of money on your purchase, and that’s good!  Every time I hit the store, I can easily save 30-40%, just by finding coupons online, or in my newspaper.  If you’re looking for ways to find coupons for grocery shopping, here are some tips you can use.

• Subscribe to the Sunday paper: Your local Sunday paper is always going to be packed filled with coupons.  Companies such as Smart Source, and Red Plum will distribute weekly coupon booklets that have everything from food to medicine.  If you’re going to go this route, make sure you sign for free services such as CouponMom that tell you exactly what coupon to use, and how you can save.
• Do a search online: There are literally thousands of coupon sites on the web.  If you know what you want to buy, do a search for that product, and see what comes up.  Keep in mind that some grocery stores won’t accept online coupons, so make sure that you ask ahead of time, before you bring them in to use.
• Sign up for coupons: Just like coupon sites, there are literally thousands of forums online as well that can help you find companies that want to send you coupons.  Forums such as FatWallet, and SlickDeals both have great free sections, where you can request free coupons from major companies.
• Check the grocery newspaper: Every week your grocery store will most likely come out with an insert.  Depending on what store you shop at, you will find that some include some special coupons in there.  If you get it in the mail, make sure that you don’t throw it out, because there can be some pretty good savings there.

These are all great tips you can use if you’re looking to find coupons for groceries.  Try your luck, and see how much you can save!

Credit Cards & Shopping Clubs

When you’re shopping online or at a regular brick and mortar store, you can have fun and add a bit more cash to your wallet or coin purse by always using a cash back credit card such as Visa Platinum.  Cash back incentives on a variety of credit cards provided from 2% – 5% annual revenue in the form of a check to your address on record.

You can also receive cash back by shopping primarily at such warehouses as Costco and Sam’s club.  Of course, you need to get approved for their Sam’s club or Costco credit card, but if you do, that’s another 2% – 5% of up to $500.  That’s a nice little check come Christmas time!

Coupons

Of course coupons are the easy answer, but do you realize how much you can save by using coupons?  My personal experience has shown a savings of up to $15 – $20 in one trip!  That’s nearly 30% of the overall shopping bill!  Not using coupons is one sure-fire way to spend more money than you really need to.

Plan Ahead — Shop at More than Just One Store

Not all stores have the same prices.  So if you’re shopping for ketchup and beans at one store, don’t get the lettuce and the onions just because it’s handy.  Do your research ahead of time and shop at the right store for the right product.  Plan your savings and your shopping list then hit all the local grocery stores.  Remember, saving a quarter might not seem like a lot, but those quarters add up quickly.  When it’s all said and done, splitting up your visits to the grocery store might take a little longer, but use the trips as extra time to spend with your family.  If you have kids, it’s also a good idea to give your children the responsibility for different stores.  This makes them more interested in the entire shopping experience, and you can make a contest of who saves the most money!

Remember & Never Forget

Remember that shopping should be fun!  Saving money can be fun!  And don’t forget that at the end of the month that extra money just might allow you and your family to take an extra trip to the local theater or go bowling.  Good luck!

Bargaining Power of Customers

This is a marketing term for the customers of the market.  The customer can almost allows bargain with a business.  The business will do anything to keep you as their customer and they are willing to offer you deals on the side that usually don’t go with their daily business modules.  Let’s say you want to buy a television, well head on down to the retail store and tell them that you do not have enough money to purchase the television, they will try their very best to get you a deal where you can walk away with the television that day.

Money Back Guaranteed

Many stores offer a money back guarantee policy where you can have the item as long as they specify and if you are unhappy with the item then you can return it.  LL Bean has a money back guarantee on everything, if you are unsatisfied with a backpack you can return for full refund and purchase either a shirt or a canoe, it’s up to you.  LL Bean has a lifetime guarantee.  Most businesses do this, and if they don’t then they should think about having this policy because it attracts more customers.  Customers like having the option of returning an item if they buy it because customers are very picky and can change their minds rather quickly.

The Infamous Way of Saving

Don’t buy something that you don’t need, like clothing, or makeup, or that candy bar sitting at the counter starring at you.  You don’t need those items, you already have plenty of them like clothing which you wear every day, do you really need that new trend in jeans, or are your old ones just as good?  Items can get very expensive and expensive fast once that cart fills up.  Save your money and spend it on items that you need like food and shelter and gas.

Many people choose to shop online to save time and energy, but what they don’t realize is that they can also save money by shopping online.  By following these 4 easy steps, you will find that online shopping will save you time, energy and money:

1.  Visit the Sites the Smart Shoppers Frequent

On the web there are many sites that focus on the best deals available.  Some of these sites focus specifically on electronics, clothes, or watches, but some sites, like dealigg.com or dealnews.com, focus on great new deals that are discovered by experienced shoppers.  These sites also provide a rating system so the online community can rate how great the deal really is, or if the deal is invalid.  This way you can shop where other smart online shoppers shop.

2.  Get Your Money Back with Cashback

By signing up for sites like Ebates or Mr. Rebates, you can accumulate cash back rebates.  Simply sign-in to one of the rebate sites, and if the rebate site is affiliated with the online stores you wish to purchase from, you can get cash back on up to 20% of your purchase from that store!  You simply have to be signed in, and navigate to the online store from the rebate store.  Make sure you enable cookies on your web browser!

3. Use Promotional Codes

Look for promotional codes or online coupons to use for your chosen online store.  By searching the name of your online store on sites like retailmenot.com or MyCoupons.com, you can check to see if there are any coupon codes you can use.  If you find a coupon code that is applicable, simply type in the code in the “Promotional Code” or “Coupon Code” box when you are checking out your shopping cart at your online store.

4. Use a Rewarding Method of Payment

Some credit card companies or Paypal will provide you with cash back, rewards, or extended warranty when you purchase with their method of payment.  Choose wisely, as sometimes it may be more beneficial to opt for an extended warranty on electronics, or to use a flight-rewarding credit card to double your miles when booking a flight.

Look for rebates

More and more, manufacturers are luring consumers with tantalizing rebates.  When researching the price of a product, consider the fact that an instant or mail in rebate may apply to the product.  Often times, cell phone companies will offer mail in rebates on top of a sale price.  Although these are often mail in rebates, it is still a chance to recover some of the money you have already spent.  Manufacturers who are offering new products will often also offer rebates.  It’s a great way for you to try one of their new products without worrying about risking your money.

Wait for stores to have double, or even triple coupon promotions

Have a coupon for 50 cents off of your favorite cereal?  Why not wait for a supermarket to offer double coupons?  Or why not take the coupon to a supermarket that is currently offering such a promotion?  Double coupons can help slash a lot of money off of your shopping bills as well as again perhaps test a new product without wasting a lot of your money.

See if retailers match competitor prices

Want to support a mom-and-pop appliance store but a big box store carries the same item for cheaper?  See if they price match their competitors.  These days, many companies are willing to price match their competitors to earn your business.  Some even offer a price match and an additional discount if you decide to shop with them.  With these deals, you have the upper hand as many companies are vying for your money.

Use a credit card that gives you cash back or shopping incentives

These days’ credit card companies know that you have many options when spending your money.  And that means they each are trying to offer something special.  Many now offer a reward system in which you build points to use towards products or gift cards.  Others even offer cash back, or will apply a percentage of the money you have spent with them towards merchandise.  A savvy trick is to save these points or dollars and store them until a birthday or holiday comes up.  Not only can you get a nice gift or gift card for someone, but you can do it without really spending any money out of your pocket.