September is National Coupon Month. Are you celebrating? It’s also the time of year when kids go back to school and families settle into their routines once again. Many of us are calculating the cost of school activities — not to mention the upcoming holidays — and searching for ways to save money.
Even as the economy has improved, 93% of consumers say they will continue to look for money-saving options. Nearly half (42%) of all shoppers are choosing price over brand and an inspiring 88% of shoppers use coupons to plan their grocery list.
Grocery shopping is one area of your monthly expenses where you have the power to spend less. When you save money on groceries, you are giving yourself extra money you can use toward other household expenses or funding vacations, education, and retirement.
I was raised on coupons and now I am a couponing mentor. It’s fascinating to me to see how coupon use, via new technology, has “hipped” coupon use. In the 21st century, you can use your computer to print coupons, send coupons to your phone, or load them directly to your store loyalty card. You can simply flash a phone or store loyalty card to save some very cool cash — no clipping necessary! Money-saving apps for mobile phones and tablets are available to help you find the best deal. Coupons are available instantly wherever you are.
Whether you “clip” or you “click,” if you spend a little time before you buy, you’ll see more return from your efforts. I always say that if you didn’t come into couponing organized, you’ll become organized, as it’s the key to money-saving success.
1. Monthly Budget. Begin by evaluating your grocery spending over the past several weeks. Make notes of where you spent (and overspent). Decide to use a few money-saving techniques. If you’re overwhelmed already, choose one area of your spending to focus on (baby supplies, breakfast, convenience foods, or coffee shops, for example). Put your goal in writing: “I will spend $25 less a week on groceries (or your chosen focus area) over the next two weeks.”
Note: If you want to take a look at your entire household spending, find free printable budget templates at office.microsoft.com, betterbudgeting.com, or budgetworksheets.org.
2. Create a Meal Plan. Without a plan, I find myself making extra trips to the grocery store or ordering takeout (expensive and generally higher in fat and sodium than meals I make at home).
An easy way to start meal planning is to “theme” each day of the week. Try Meatless Mondays, Breakfast Tuesdays, Soup's On Wednesdays, Pizza Thursdays, or Finger Food Fridays. Other ideas: “Planned” leftovers (cook once, eat twice), preparing meals with weekly grocery specials, and using less expensive/healthier ingredients (instead of convenience foods). Periodically inventory your pantry to be sure you are getting the most from your grocery spending.
Do an internet search for "meal planning" and you'll get tens of thousands of results. One of my favorites is 5dinners1hour.com, which provides shopping lists, assembly instructions, and cooking instructions for five make-ahead meals. The site has Classic, Clean Eating, and Gluten-Free Menus. Although it is a paid subscription, it is only $15 for three months of menus, and you will save way more than that in time and money!
You can also meal plan from your grocery store circular. When chicken is on sale this week, search your cookbooks (or online) for recipes using chicken ... and don’t forget to buy chicken for next week’s meals — you don’t want to pay full price!
3. A List Saves You Money. Plan to succeed at your money-saving goals. Shop less frequently and more consciously. Strive to affordably and reasonably maintain a household inventory, which includes basic staples for quick, favorite meals and common necessities. Buy within budget when it’s on sale and you’ll hardly ever pay full price again!
My favorite tip, besides having basic staples at home, is to have a “Fall-Down Friday” meal ready in the freezer. Whatever you’d crave from take-out, have some frozen favorites at the ready!
4. Follow a couponing blog. I’m getting a bit ahead of myself with this next tip but if you quickly want to see what’s on sale, matched with available coupons, find a money-saving blog for your local area (do an internet search for “your city and couponing blog”) or follow a national one such as CouponMom.com. These sites show you local store promotions and may even have a direct link to printable coupons.
