Question about couponmom's method of organizing coupons

[a16ross]

I just started couponing. I watched the video. Writing the date on the coupon insert and filing it (w/o cutting any coupons) makes sense for the most part. But what if I want to use a coupon on something that is not on sale?

For example, lets say I need sugar. I check my store by state to see their specials, but sugar is not on sale that week. I have to go through ALL the inserts I've saved to look for a sugar coupon?

I guess it comes down to, yes, the best deal is to use a coupon for something that is on sale, but what if you need something that is not on sale?

So part two...
if you DON"T follow coupon mom's method of organizing? How do you organize your coupons? I'm thinking the traditional way of aisles in the grocery store.

Any advice would be appreciated.

[LITSA]

I tried clipping and it is just too time comsuming for me.....many of our members swear by clipping and putting everything in a binder either by aisle, alphabetically, product type, etc.


I write the insert date, and the last coupon to expire date on the outside of the insert. I also put what region I got them from......lately with travelling I've gotten inserts from Illinois and Tennessee, but I live in Florida so they will show up differently in the database.

I also guess I should say, I print out the deal list on what I feel is that we will use or have seen others post here on the forums and I clip my coupons at home or at an appointment or in the car before I go into the store. Then many times I will paperclip those similar coupons, frozen, dairy, baking, etc together and or by the location of my favorite store and put them in a smaller coupon organizer. If the deal is still good enough in the store, then I buy what I need and put the coupons in the front pocket to be ready for check out.......if not then I use another slot to put those coupons back out of my set I'm using at the time. At the check out I will also have any free product coupons, then manufacturer's coupons, then store coupons separated to make it easier for my cashier's to scan.

Next when you need to find a coupon use the data base and either type a specific or a general description in ......for example toothpaste or crest to bring up what's available.


I believe our deal alert is still being worked on, but when it's active you can pick things you always use or even brand specific and get an email including what you use weekly I believe and who has the best deals. I hope this helps.


Blessings and Hugs, "Angel"

[a16ross]

Ahhhhh...the coupon database. That is my answer. I think that is what I need. Off to check on that right now.

Thanks so much!

[tiggy]

do whatever works best for you. I clip mine and put them in a binder. i tried saving the inserts and dating them and it didn't work for me at all but some people like it. i do see a lot of newbies in the grocery store struggling to cut them in the aisles or flipping through pages. lol. it's easier for me to just flip through a binder. if you clip organize your binder to fit how you shop. don't be surprised if you have to do it several times until something works out right.

there is no right or wrong way. you can make it as easy or complicated at you want. my binder isn't very thick because i only clip what i use. i see people in drugstores with binders 5 inches thick. the manager at walgreens makes jokes about how i shop more than the ones with the really thick ones. lol.

i do keep the inserts with coupons i didn't clip for about a month just in case i might change my mind. but i rarely do. i think it all comes down to how much and what you buy. i don't have small children anymore and don't have the needs of a family, it's just me and one grown child at home. if there were children or other people in the household i would probably change my ways of doing things.

just try a few things out til you find something you like.

[shallen3]

What they said. You can still find the coupon by gong to the database and typing "sugar" in the search field. If there are sugar coupons available it will tell you. How you organize is up to you. I had to try a couple of different ways before I found what worked for me.

[jenne64]

All of the above. For me I tried the Coupon Mom way and struggled with it and over time came up with a method that works well for me. Every Sunday night I sort out this weeks inserts, staple the coupons together and then cut them out. I then sort the coupons by ones I will use most likely and put those in my binder. The spares, I put in an envelope marked with the date of the insert. It took me a while to figure out which coupons I usually use and I cross reference with the local sales flyers I get in the mail and paper before putting them away. Now if I'm looking in the database and I know I've not pulled out the coupon already, I just go to the envelope and check and see if I have it. There are some coupons I know I will never use and these go in a separate envelope for trading, trains and the like.

Find the system that works for you and be aware that it will likely change many times over the next year but you will figure it out eventually if you stick with it.

[scorpion8505]

I clip all my and put them all in a binder but only because i have a big family no they dont live at
my house but they r allway asking if i have coupon for what they need. now i just tag along for the ride lol

[HoosierMomof3]

I do file mine by date w/o clipping them all. But before I do that, I go thru the inserts each week and go ahead and clip all the things that I use on a regular bases and all household staples ( whatever that may be for your house). Then I keep all of these in my binder. So when the times come up that you need something thats not on sale, I still have my Qs and will get just what I have to have at the time, then try to stock up when that item goes on sale again later.

[mnm'z]

I clip everything and place in a binder that is organized by aisle and then category within aisles. I'm a little OCD about it, but when I'm standing in the store looking at a pizza that is on sale I don't want to pull out my entire stash of frozen food q's to find that elusive Red Baron Pizza q, so I flip to my frozen pizza page and wa-laaaa there it is. A little more work and organization at home, but it's much better for me than in the store trying to clip q's... or going back home to clip and drive back because I won't... Not many deals worth going back to Meijer for IMO!