Pinching pennies

Every penny saved is a penny in your pocket to spend wisely another day. Save enough pennies and they start turning into something bigger than just a scrap of copper in your pocket. You can see them all the time lying on the pavement - just waiting to be picked up. But instead of waiting and scouring the pavements for discarded pennies - you can save the pennies you already have by various methods - one being coupon cutting. Manufacturers print a ton of coupons in every medium in the hope that you will try their products and be so enamoured by them that you will become a loyal customer. But you have to be smart in coupon using as some of them get you to part with too much money for little in return. Coupons can be found online, in postal mail, by email, in magazines, in leaflets etc.....everywhere in fact! Once you start looking, you will be surprised by how many you can find.

Once you have a coupon collection, store them neatly where you can find them and have easy access to them. Nothing worse than being in a store that you know you have a 20% coupon and it is lying at home! So I would either store them in a small plastic filing folder or paperclip them to your weekly shopping list. Also, ask your friends if they coupon clip too....especially if you are both looking out for different products. Swap them between yourselves! It's not something to be ashamed of....you can never be too rich to want to save money! And if you are - good luck to you, I am just not in that category.....

Also, it makes sense that you should only use coupons that will in fact save you money and be something that you will actually use....if the store is far away, you must also calculate the saving of any item against the cost of petrol/gas. My advice is that you should read EVERYTHING that comes through the post, especially the junk mail...you might be surprised about how many coupons come through for new stores offering a "free latte" or "free 10 minute consultation".

Personally I have a few "core" items that I will not deviate from (brand loyalty at it's best!), as I am either in love with them or love the results they give, but these products are very few and far between. Everything else I am pretty lenient and will switch from brand to brand depending on what coupons I have and how cheap I can buy them for. (I should really clarify which brands I switch between.....I switch major brand to major brand with the rare exception of a "supermarket" own brand.)

Learn the value of each product so that you will know if the "special deal" that the supermarket is offering is in fact a "special deal" and not a cleverly disguised ruse to get you to part with your money, (they do this sometimes when they are overstocked!). When a non-perisable (or product you are likely to use before the sell by date) is on special, buy a few more than you would normally. E.g. this weeks half price toilet roll will in the long run, save you many dollars if you bought three or more packets instead of just the one. Yes it will make your weekly shop a little more expensive than normal, but you will feel the benefit in the weeks afterwards. Yes it is a pain to store all the bulky bulk items, so I would not suggest filling your house so full of products that you can't move!

If you learn the value of each product then if you find yourself by chance in a different store to the one you normally use, you will know if a certain product is cheaper.

In essence - don't drive yourself crazy by cutting coupons, but keep an eye out....it's a real buzz when you know you've saved some green.....and put the pennies together to treat yourself to something you wouldn't normally treat yourself with. You deserve it!