The question of whether or not cutting coupons can save you money at the grocery store is not debatable. The fact is if you cut and use coupons wisely you will save money at the checkout line. What is debatable is whether or not cutting coupons is right for everyone; some individuals simply do not find the savings worthy of this slightly time consuming task. For those of you who find the savings are worth your time the following tips to organize the process can make a big difference in how much money you can shave off your grocery bill each trip.

• Start Clipping- It would seem obvious but many people who “try” to use coupons don’t get the most benefit simply because they forget to clip the coupons they save. If you find yourself saving grocery fliers or pages of unclipped coupons you have probably already discovered that if you wait too long to actually clip the coupons many go to waste as the stack of unclipped coupons grows into a stack of expired coupons. Designate a few hours each week where you can sit and clip all your coupons before their value is lost.

• Get Organized- It is important to be organized while clipping coupons so that the stacks of unclipped coupons does not turn into piles of clipped coupons. You should organize and store all of your needed tools in one easy-to-access location. The only tools required are a scissors and some form of storage container for clipped coupons. Some consumers purchase a coupon organizer while others use labeled envelopes to help stay organized.

• Organization Method- You don’t want to get to the grocery store with your coupons only to discover you can’t find the one coupon you were sure you had. Take a few moments when you are at home to organize your coupons to streamline the process of finding them once you are at the store. You may choose to organize the coupons in groups such as paper products, personal care items, frozen foods and pet supplies. Perhaps you prefer organizing your coupons in alphabetical order by product or manufacturer name. Choose whichever method works best for you.

• Buy only what you need- Coupons will not save you money if you end up making purchases that you would otherwise not consider. Some coupons require you buy a certain number of products in order to save money. If you wouldn’t normally purchase that number of items or find you really do not need an item, do not make the purchase because you have a coupon for the item.

In an economy where everyone is trying to save a few bucks, cutting coupons is an easy way to reduce your grocery bill. By following the steps above you should be able to streamline the process so that it only takes a few more moments of your time to see some real savings.

Tags: cutting coupons, lower your grocery bill, organized, save money

This entry was posted on Sunday, February 15th, 2009 at 8:21 am and is filed under tips. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

• Grocery Store Confessions... Ok..I have a confession to make. I think it's important to be open and honest about your shortcomings, and I am ready to share with you one of mine. It's not something I am proud of, but honestly, at this point...
• Shopping Online - Worth the Savings? Yesterday, my roommate came home from Cole Haan, happy about his purchase. He told me all about his great shoes (and new flip flops) and the great deal that he got thanks to a promotion. "Sweet, let's see them." "Oh,...
• Take a Week Off From Spending I recently read an article by Jeff Yeager of The Green Cheapskate blog suggesting to stop spending money for one week. I was surprised that Americans are only five percent of the world's population, but yet consume thirty percent of...
• Quick and Easy Steps to Green Remodeling For a lot of home remodelers, the idea of going green can be absolutely overwhelming. Luckily, there is a wealth of information out there, and just because you are not already implementing these ideas, that does not mean you're too...
• Watch Out For These 5 Retail Rip-offs In today's consumer driven society, many retail stores have become experts at separating consumers from as much of their money as possible.  Some of the tricks that they are using to entice consumers into their stores and get them to...