Wow! Welcome to Day #2 and now we are going to discuss the wonderful basics of Couponing!
What is a coupon?
{A coupon is a ticket or document that
can be exchanged for a financial discount or rebate when purchasing a product.
They are distributed through the mail, coupon envelopes (Value Pak), magazines
(All You, Food, Ebony, Facebook company pages, Company Newsletters, Better
Homes and Gardens, etc.), newspapers (Sunday’s newspaper) and the internet
(online coupon codes).
can be exchanged for a financial discount or rebate when purchasing a product.
They are distributed through the mail, coupon envelopes (Value Pak), magazines
(All You, Food, Ebony, Facebook company pages, Company Newsletters, Better
Homes and Gardens, etc.), newspapers (Sunday’s newspaper) and the internet
(online coupon codes).
Store
Coupons
Coupons
*Issued by individual store and are deducted at the register as a store
discount. Only used at the store issuing the coupon. For example
Target, Walmart, Toys ‘R’ Us, Old Navy, Bed, Bath & Beyond, Publix, Kroger,
etc.
Manufacture Coupons
*Released by the
company/brand that makes a particular product. Mostly found in your
Sunday newspaper inserts (Smart Source, RedPlum, General Mills, Proctor &
Gamble and sometimes Pepsi-co.). It will say Manufacture coupon at the
top and have a redemption address and instructions to retailers on where to
send the coupon for reimbursement.
company/brand that makes a particular product. Mostly found in your
Sunday newspaper inserts (Smart Source, RedPlum, General Mills, Proctor &
Gamble and sometimes Pepsi-co.). It will say Manufacture coupon at the
top and have a redemption address and instructions to retailers on where to
send the coupon for reimbursement.
Reading a coupon
What is all that fine
print {coupon wording} on the coupon? Is it important?
print {coupon wording} on the coupon? Is it important?
Well heck yeah it is important. It definitely tells
you if there are limitations to using the coupon or if you can just use as many
as you want. It tells the store on where to mail all the coupons they
receive for their reimbursement. It is important to pay attention and
read the wording on the coupon so that you are using the coupon
correctly. Look at some of the below wording you may see on a coupon.
* Limit one
coupon per purchase – means you can use one coupon per product for each
transaction. If you have 25 coupons for $1.00 off 1 box of any Frosted
Flakes cereal and you get 25 boxes of any Frosted Flakes cereal off the shelf,
you can all 25 coupons. Wonderful right? Plus you can build a great
stockpile, donate, etc. No limits but you just need to have the same
equal amount of coupons for the amount of products that you have. *Be sure to
read your store’s coupon policy on any other restrictions.
coupon per purchase – means you can use one coupon per product for each
transaction. If you have 25 coupons for $1.00 off 1 box of any Frosted
Flakes cereal and you get 25 boxes of any Frosted Flakes cereal off the shelf,
you can all 25 coupons. Wonderful right? Plus you can build a great
stockpile, donate, etc. No limits but you just need to have the same
equal amount of coupons for the amount of products that you have. *Be sure to
read your store’s coupon policy on any other restrictions.
*SSFAM Savings tip with this coupon – make
sure the product is on sale for a deeper discount in saving your money.
sure the product is on sale for a deeper discount in saving your money.
* Limit one
coupon per customer – means only one coupon can be used per
customer in that shopping transaction.
coupon per customer – means only one coupon can be used per
customer in that shopping transaction.
SSFAM Savings tip with this coupon– make
sure you have another partner with the same coupon to purchase in another
shopping transaction and then you will have 2 products.
sure you have another partner with the same coupon to purchase in another
shopping transaction and then you will have 2 products.
* Limit one
coupon per Transaction- means you can only use one coupon per individual
product per one transaction {a transaction is when you complete the shopping
and receive the receipt}.
coupon per Transaction- means you can only use one coupon per individual
product per one transaction {a transaction is when you complete the shopping
and receive the receipt}.
* SSFAM Savings tip with this coupon-You
may be able to split your transactions to 2 or more instead of one if you have
more than one coupon. Read the store coupon policy to see if multiple
transactions are allowed at the register. Be mindful of a line developing
behind you and be coupon courteous and friendly. {Let the person behind
you and the cashier know that you are using coupons and have multiple
transactions}
may be able to split your transactions to 2 or more instead of one if you have
more than one coupon. Read the store coupon policy to see if multiple
transactions are allowed at the register. Be mindful of a line developing
behind you and be coupon courteous and friendly. {Let the person behind
you and the cashier know that you are using coupons and have multiple
transactions}
* Do not
double- means the store will not double the coupon. You will
only get the cents off on the coupon that is shown. For example Save
$0.50 off 1 item (Do not double). The store will only take off $0.50
instead of doubling to the usual $1.00 {0.50 ~coupon cents off + 0.50 ~store match
= $1.00}. The reason manufacture coupons may not allow doubling it is
related to the manufacture not reimbursing the cost of doubling and only giving
the store the face value of the coupon.
double- means the store will not double the coupon. You will
only get the cents off on the coupon that is shown. For example Save
$0.50 off 1 item (Do not double). The store will only take off $0.50
instead of doubling to the usual $1.00 {0.50 ~coupon cents off + 0.50 ~store match
= $1.00}. The reason manufacture coupons may not allow doubling it is
related to the manufacture not reimbursing the cost of doubling and only giving
the store the face value of the coupon.
* SSFAM Savings tip with this coupon-Sometimes
you will see a “5” as the first number in the bar code area of the
manufacture coupon. See the example coupon barcode above. Even if the
coupon says do not double (DND) and the store policy allows, it will still
double. On the other hand, if the coupon barcode has a “9” as
the first number, it will not double.
you will see a “5” as the first number in the bar code area of the
manufacture coupon. See the example coupon barcode above. Even if the
coupon says do not double (DND) and the store policy allows, it will still
double. On the other hand, if the coupon barcode has a “9” as
the first number, it will not double.
Limit per
“like” item, per shopping trip- means you can only use a limited number
of coupons for the same product. For example, if the coupon reads limit 4
coupons for Gain Fabric Sheet. You can only use 4 coupons for a total of
4 packages of Gain Fabric Sheets in one transaction.
*SSFAM Savings tip with this coupon- You may
be able to split the transactions {complete one purchase and start a new
purchase} and purchase 4 more Gain Fabric Sheets in another transaction.
Then you will have a total of 8 {Bam! that was super easy right?} Just be sure
to read your coupon and make sure that it does not say limit 4 per transaction
per shopping trip. This would mean that you are only able to use 4
coupons for the product and not split any transactions on the same day.
You would either go to another store or come back to the same store on another
day.
The most
important tip to remember is to read the coupon for any limitations on using
the coupon. If you get confused, come back here and ask the question on
how to use it before taking it to the store or take your coupon to the store
but up to the customer service desk and ask the manager or supervisor. Also,
try not to damage your coupons in any way. You want the bar code to be
easily read and able to scan.
important tip to remember is to read the coupon for any limitations on using
the coupon. If you get confused, come back here and ask the question on
how to use it before taking it to the store or take your coupon to the store
but up to the customer service desk and ask the manager or supervisor. Also,
try not to damage your coupons in any way. You want the bar code to be
easily read and able to scan.
Quida
Class Question: What one tip from today’s topic did you learn? Share in the comments below.
