Cutting coupons can be cost-saving and profiting
Farrah Gray/NNPA Columnist
Issue date: 2/1/09 Section: Business
Cut coupons, cut costs all around. They're not just for groceries anymore.
Hard times call for action! Your income may be the same, or even shrinking, but food, gas, and goods and services prices continue to rise. What can you do? You gotta eat, you gotta go to work (hopefully) and you gotta look good doing it, right?
Don't stress. Get the scissors, and… get on the computer. Coupons aren't just in the Sunday paper or your favorite magazines anymore. You can find them online and print them out right there at home. We'll get back to that in a minute…
For years, many folks have gone to the Sunday paper for coupons. In fact, there are inserts now that contain nothing but pages and pages of coupons.
And these coupon inserts, often valued at hundreds of dollars in savings, reach far beyond groceries. There are now coupons for everything from food (of course) to hair products, health care items (such as aspirin, cough syrup, vitamins, etc.,) and toiletries. And, more and more these days, you can find money-savings for car care, such as oil changes, tune-ups, tire rotation, brake service - all thingswe need to have to keep our cars in good shape and runn ing smoothly.
Think about it. You are going to have to get your oil changed anyway, why not save five to 10 bucks!
And that's the key to using coupons… use them for things you are going to buy anyway. Otherwise you are not really saving money.
As mentioned, the Sunday newspaper is a big source for coupons. Everyday magazines you read or browse are also ripe with money-saving opportunities. And most neighborhoods have monthly or even weekly "penny saver" types of publications that are free in racks outside grocery stores, retailers or restaurants, or many of them are delivered in your mailbox.
For example, metro-Atlanta area residents receive what's called "Savvy Shopper." It is made up of coupons and special offers, and most of the offers are non-grocery. They include savings at your local fitness center, discounts on home and car repairs, restaurant coupons, reduced tickets to professional hockey and basketball games, and other entertainment events such as theme parks,museums and shows. Again, many of these items are things you would be purchasing anyway, so why not save a few bucks. You will be surprised how these savings can add up. And you can make it fun by challenging yourself and your family to see who can find the most coupons with the most value each week.
Hard times call for action! Your income may be the same, or even shrinking, but food, gas, and goods and services prices continue to rise. What can you do? You gotta eat, you gotta go to work (hopefully) and you gotta look good doing it, right?
Don't stress. Get the scissors, and… get on the computer. Coupons aren't just in the Sunday paper or your favorite magazines anymore. You can find them online and print them out right there at home. We'll get back to that in a minute…
For years, many folks have gone to the Sunday paper for coupons. In fact, there are inserts now that contain nothing but pages and pages of coupons.
And these coupon inserts, often valued at hundreds of dollars in savings, reach far beyond groceries. There are now coupons for everything from food (of course) to hair products, health care items (such as aspirin, cough syrup, vitamins, etc.,) and toiletries. And, more and more these days, you can find money-savings for car care, such as oil changes, tune-ups, tire rotation, brake service - all thingswe need to have to keep our cars in good shape and runn ing smoothly.
Think about it. You are going to have to get your oil changed anyway, why not save five to 10 bucks!
And that's the key to using coupons… use them for things you are going to buy anyway. Otherwise you are not really saving money.
As mentioned, the Sunday newspaper is a big source for coupons. Everyday magazines you read or browse are also ripe with money-saving opportunities. And most neighborhoods have monthly or even weekly "penny saver" types of publications that are free in racks outside grocery stores, retailers or restaurants, or many of them are delivered in your mailbox.
For example, metro-Atlanta area residents receive what's called "Savvy Shopper." It is made up of coupons and special offers, and most of the offers are non-grocery. They include savings at your local fitness center, discounts on home and car repairs, restaurant coupons, reduced tickets to professional hockey and basketball games, and other entertainment events such as theme parks,museums and shows. Again, many of these items are things you would be purchasing anyway, so why not save a few bucks. You will be surprised how these savings can add up. And you can make it fun by challenging yourself and your family to see who can find the most coupons with the most value each week.
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