During the first week back to classes everyone is trying to get you to buy things. So naturally there is an overabundance of coupons on the concourse, in your dorm room or apartment move-in packet, and so many more places. Because we don’t really know how to coupon effectively, many of us college ladies tend to throw away these annoying pieces of paper. When we do that, we are throwing away free money- a penny saved is a penny earned! So, HC Auburn is here to teach you exactly how to save yourself some money using coupons, and not fall victim to the marketing traps companies use coupons for.
The first thing to do when you’re setting up a couponing program is to buy an organization system. If you plan on using a lot of coupons, you can get a coupon binder, with fancy page protectors and dividers and things. However, in my experience, we college-aged women do not have enough time to do extreme couponing like on TLC. So, get a smaller organization system- like an expanding file folder! I bought this one in Target for just four dollars. I like it because it has different tabs that can be relabeled as I get more coupons and is small enough that I can throw it in my purse or backpack and use my coupons whenever I buy things. You should create labels according to how you want to organize your coupons. You can organize by expiration date, store, how much money it is worth, and so many more ways. Personally, I think the most effective way is to make sections for things like restaurant coupons, clothing coupons, and grocery coupons.
The next thing to do is to actually collect coupons. Over the first week of classes, it’s pretty easy to get coupon books on the concourse. After that point, you might have to work a little harder to get them. Always look on the backs of receipts for great deals. Another way to get good coupons is to look online at websites dedicated to printable coupons- my favorite is couponmom.com, but there are so many out there! Also, if you have a Kroger card, you can go to Kroger.com and load e-coupons onto your card, so they’ll load into the system when you scan your card! Remember to look through your “junk” mail, too- often companies will send out coupons that way. There are so many ways to get coupons- and remember that the time you spend finding good coupons and using them wisely is basically you paying yourself! You can even go dumpster diving for coupons like on Extreme Couponing, but you may want to save that for the more coupon crazy people…
Once you have a pretty good collection of coupons, you are going to have to sort them. The one thing I cannot stress enough is that you should only save the coupons that you actually think you are going to use! Coupons are a marketing ploy, so saving a coupon for a restaurant or a product that you’ll never use will just get you to spend more money at that restaurant or on that product. Definitely save lots of coupons, but if you save too many, it will just make you overwhelmed and not want to ever look in your coupon folder or use them. Then sort them out in a way that makes sense to you. I divide mine up by category and then arrange them by expiration date within the categories, but you can do whatever floats your boat!
Finally, you should use your coupons intelligently. Definitely carry them with you whenever you go grocery shopping, and make sure you know which ones you have and are going to use. It may take a little bit more planning, but you will save money! Also, I would remind you to shop smart. Don’t buy an item just because you have a coupon for it! Sometimes, even with the coupon, the store brand is still less expensive than the brand you have a coupon for. Don’t fall into the trap of spending more money than you have to, and this could be you!
Now you are prepared to take on the world of college a little less expensively. Good luck, and happy couponing!
In the comments, tell us any tips or suggestions you have about couponing. We’d love to hear from you!
Image 1 & 2- photos courtesy of Meghan Durboraw