Over the last SIX years, we have seen such a turn of events – many of you may have started couponing due to the popular series “Extreme Couponing” – while many of you have been couponing for years (even before that time period).
We have witnessed empty shelves, and lack of stock in stores – which eventually led to a change in coupon values, and shift in store policies – although some of you still coupon, some people jumped off the bandwagon to live on their stockpile simply because getting “that deal” was just TOO INCREDIBLY hard.
Agree?
At least for me, it was a nightmare. I might blog deals, but it doesn’t mean I get to take advantage of them, because they are always gone by the time I get there – thankfully we eat a lot of fresh foods and we don’t purchase many personal care items so it hasn’t hit me too hard.
But… for those of you who DO find yourself in a pickle each week.. it can be infuriating. It’s so amazing to have a great sale, but oh so maddening to get to the store to get the deal and leaving empty handed.
Here are 5 reasons why MANY people simply just don’t coupon.
LOW or NO Stock of Sale Items
When a store features a sale in their weekly ad, wouldn’t you expect them to keep it IN stock so you can purchase that item on your trip? Me too. Unfortunately .. it doesn’t work out that way.
Unless you shop at Costco, be prepared for stores to inadequately stock even the most important items. It seems like this is becoming more and more common lately (perhaps it’s just me? But this is almost 2-3 times a week)… if you are clipping a coupon to get a deal, and you can’t find the item IN stock, that’s money and time spent chasing a deal.
And who has time to chase? Not me.
So what do you do when that happens? It’s not worth the expense of a newspaper if I am not going to be able to get the deals that go with the coupons – so you shop smarter… find a good deal on those items at another store, shop Amazon, or check your local Costco – you won’t have to battle for the last few items. You won’t have to get up early on Sunday to buy papers, and even more? No clipping or thinking required.
Shelf Clearers
When you clear shelves at the store, unhappy customers who find empty shelves will complain to the store.
The store then, in turn, will enforce limits on the number of products sold per customer. That means that if you REALLY need a LOT of one item for a Barbecue in the neighborhood, you won’t be able to get those items all at once.
When you clear shelves, those who haven’t cleared who can’t get the same deal will blame the couponers. The store will then shift their coupon policy – which in turn will cramp your couponing ability. The store may even STOP offering double coupon promotions, and enforce the numbe r of coupons you use in each transaction.
Manufacturers will ALSO know that shelves are being cleared – in turn, they will put limits on coupons to allow you to use a limited number per transaction or, even worse, per customer.
Those who need to buy a large quantity should be working with the store to order in advance – it’s so terribly easy.
Changing Store Policies
Ahhh – we have encountered SO MANY changes over the last 6 years – and it can definitely be frustrating.
Who doesn’t find it difficult? I think we ALL do, and that is to be expected. One of the positive outcomes of a shift in policy is that it allows you to find OTHER ways to save.
Sure, it might put some bumps in the road at first, it’s easy to bounce back – double coupons allowed us to score some GREAT deals at our local stores. But when they went away, we quickly discovered that we had to work a little harder to find those deals.
And that is O.K. because we spent less time in those stores, and more time in those that carried better prices for what we needed. You may have found easier ways to save in other areas to compensate. Or maybe you just find that the unit price tends to be LESS at Costco on those items you buy, and so you instead make a trip there (plus, who doesn’t LOVE Costco, right?)
If this is you, we are GLAD you made changes – we did too! We discovered our love for the 99 Only store, we learned how to be more strategic in our shopping when there IS a sale, and perhaps learned how to incorporate more fresh foods into our diet instead of relying on canned & packaged goods.
Complicated Deals
Who wants to drive to 15 stores a week? We don’t have time for that. When you factor in that most of us have kids, extracurricular activities, jobs, and life in general, sometimes easier is better.
Believe it or not, you can STILL save money by visiting 1-2 stores a week – you don’t have to spend time & gas driving all over town to get every stinkin’ deal – because really… do you REALLY need to haul the kids to Walmart to use some of the TEENY tiny Ibotta offers?
Although they may HELP you get your bonus, you’ll more than likely end up buying WAY more in that store than the $.20 you went in to save. Unless, of course, you are already making a trip.
What you can Do: Make certain days of the week your shop days – try to shop on those days only – you’ll avoid walking into the store the rest of the week (which always results in MORE money being spent – right?) Shop at ONE drugstore, and use Rain Checks to your advantage.
Alternative Shopping
Think you NEED to coupon to save huge? You don’t – you simply just don’t. I’m not saying it doesn’t help – because it DOES.
But you can STILL save without even clipping, but changing your habits & lifestyle. See our last post to see how you can Save Money without Clipping Coupons.
By shopping Costco, 99 Only, and stocking up on items that are in your price point (which could even be generic at times).. you can STILL save. You just might not get the same “deep” savings that others do – but you are still saving more than the average person who just goes to the store and throws items in a cart.
WHEW! We could come up with many more too – but we’d LOVE to know if this rings a bell for any of you.
Amen sister!!