In a cooperative effort to bring you the best savings, deals, and finance information on the web, SavingAdvice.com offered us the opportunity to set up a blog to share information with the members here.
A little bit about us and our site. As a co-owner of hotcouponworld, I've had a great experience helping our members find a better financial future by learning how to shop and save wisely.
The site has a ton of great information on everything from how to use coupons to which store has free toilet paper this week!
I've personally been a hardcore couponer for about 5-6 years, but have couponed for about 13 in all. By hardcore, a hardcore couponer is one who stockpiles multiples of an item when they are free, trades online for coupons to maximize the sales, and otherwise lives for the thrill of the hunt of a great deal or freebie.
Ultimately, by shopping smarter, you have more money to invest in other things. I've read stories about members who are debt free as a result of couponing, or are well on their way to it.
For me, couponing is about utilizing the savings to achieve my family's financial dreams. And it's working! This is the year that we'll max out pre-tax accounts and put a down payment on a piece of property to build our dream home.
So we are glad to be here. It's one thing to get a great deal on a one-time purchase. It's quite another to get great deals on the everyday items we all need to live and live well!
This entry is courtesy of Hotcouponmama
Glad to be here
February 26th, 2007 at 02:29 pm
February 26th, 2007 at 02:42 pm
February 26th, 2007 at 05:35 pm
February 26th, 2007 at 05:45 pm
Denisentexas, I have to say that there are many people who think about coupons that way.
There are coupons everywhere, and more out there than you can imagine on just about every product you could every want. Most companies are willing to give you coupons just for giving feedback to them about their products.
And if you are into natural and organics, even those coupons abound, and more so than ever before.
Part of couponing is understanding the brands you will and won't tolerate buying. I personally won't use anything but Best Foods mayo. So I watch for the coupons and then stock up.
The other thing is that store savings and manufacturer's coupons are cyclical, so it's really important that when you are in a cycle of something you want to purchase, that you get while the getting's good.
BBQ sauce is a great example. When you want it in the dead of winter, it's not on sale and there are rarely coupons for it. And even when there are coupons, the item isn't on sale.
However, in the summer, they can barely give it away. And it has an incredibly long shelf life, so that's the time to buy it for the entire year.
For the average shopper, if you are just going to cut a coupon out here and there, put it in a drawer, and let it expire, then it's not worth the effort for .25c.
If you are looking for specific coupons, there is a coupon database at Hotcouponworld (HCW). It has well over 30K coupons both current and expired (some stores accept expired coupons up to 6 months after the fact as do military installations overseas). Stopby, login, and see if what you're looking for is in there - you might be surprised!
February 26th, 2007 at 06:13 pm
February 26th, 2007 at 06:41 pm
February 26th, 2007 at 07:54 pm
February 27th, 2007 at 07:30 am
March 4th, 2007 at 09:42 pm
March 12th, 2007 at 10:55 am
August 28th, 2007 at 12:26 pm
I'm loving couponing, and got so many things for free. I cannot appreciate enough for you, hardcore couponers, who taught me all the tips of using coupons. I used to think paying $1 for a bathroom cleaner was a good deal. What was I thinking!!!???