Shop smart, spend less
I hate to pay more than I have to for anything, and that starts with what I purchase every week: groceries. It doesn’t take clipping coupons in massive quantities or setting up shelving for a year’s supply of food like the fanatics on the TLC Network show Extreme Couponing. By doing a little planning and research, I’ve managed to reduce my grocery spending by about 20%. Here’s how:
1. First and most important: know how much the items that you purchase regularly cost. This helps you recognize when a special is actually a good deal. How much is a box of your favorite brand of cereal? Toothpaste? Pasta? When the price is low, buy two or more.
2. Make a list, and stick to it. Impulse purchases will negate any savings. Only grocery shop once a week, because the more time you spend at the store, the more money you’ll spend.
3. My mother’s rule: never shop with an empty stomach. As she says, “When canned spaghetti starts to look good, you need to leave the store before you buy things you shouldn’t!”
4. Use coupons for items that you buy regularly. If you don’t subscribe to the newspaper, pick one up on Sunday for the coupons. Printable coupons are available online at <a href=”http://www.coupons.com”>coupons.com</a>, <a href=”http://www.save.com”>save.com</a>, <a href=”http://www.smartsource.com”>smartsource.com</a>, <a href=”http://www.redplum.com”>redplum.com</a>, and <a href=”http://www.target.com”>Target.com</a>. Resist the urge to buy things that you don’t need ($1 off Sarah Lee pastry!) or that you haven’t tried just because you have a coupon. 75 cents off a new brand of shampoo that you find you hate isn’t a bargain if you end up throwing it out.
5. Make Target your first stop for groceries and household items. Though the prices on produce, meat, and dairy are higher at Target, many of their grocery items, frozen foods, and cleaning products are priced lower than the grocery stores. Target often offers gift cards for multiple purchases; last week I got a $5 gift card for buying five boxes of my son’s favorite NutriGrain cereal bars. Extra bonus for you and the environment: buy Target reusable shopping bags, and get 5 cents off for each one you use.
6. Get a Target Red Card Debit card. This takes 5% off everything you buy in the store. Your receipt shows your annual Red Card savings, and it adds up!
7. Get friendly with store brand products. Though some are inferior quality (the grocery store brand saltines – yuck!) many are the same, if not virtually identical to name brand products and cost 50 cents to $1 less than name brands.
8. Like Jill Cataldo’s Super-Couponing on Facebook and check out her website, <a href=”http://www.supercouponing.com”>supercouponing.com</a>. She shares sensible savings strategies and great coupons. I learned a lot of what is on this list from her.