Couponing 101 Unlocking CVS

The secrets behind CVS.

When I first started couponing 4 years ago, I began with one store. CVS. I was looking for a way to save money on essentials and on a family finances forum people were talking about getting toothpaste and deodorant for free - I was like, "WHAT?!" How is this even possible? And I decided to find out.

Here is what I learned:

Get a card. It's free, and it's the only way you can get the deals at this store. All of your Extra Care Bucks are tied to your card only. (more on this later) You can pick one up in the store (I recommend this one, it's faster), or sign up online HERE. The cashier will need to scan your card at the beginning of every transaction.

Start earning Extra Care Bucks. (ECB's) Look in the ad or check out a blog (like mine!) Until you find a Buy X and get X ECB's! ECB's are like cash, so don't throw them away!!

In this case, you would buy the shaving cream for $3.29, and you will earn $2.30 in ECB's. It's in-store money that prints at the end of your receipt like this:

THEN, you will take your $2.30 in ECB's and go "buy" something ELSE that earns ECB's. That is called "rolling" your ECB's.  Example:

You would buy this lightbulb for $2.99. Use the $2.30 in ECB's to pay, and your total is now down to .69. Pay the .69 out of change in your purse and earn another $2 ECB. You just bought that lightbulb for .69, and you still have $2 of "store money" left.

Notes:

~you cannot get change back when you spend your ECB's. They CAN be entered for less than the face value, however. You are buying $5 of something and you have a $10 ECB. The cashier can enter it in for $5 and you will lose the rest of it. That's why we always try to spend as close to the face value as we can!

~ECB's can be used to buy ANYTHING in the store except prescriptions, alcohol, tobacco, gift cards, and stamps.

~ These expire 4 weeks from the date of receiving it. The expiration date is displayed on the ECB.

~The amount you have to spend to get your ECB's is calculated before coupons.

~If there is a promotion that is "Spend $20 on X and get $10 in ECB" you do not have to purchase all the items in one transaction or even in one store. A tally will be keeping track at the bottom of your receipt.

Use coupons to build your ECB's. CVS accepts all manufacturer coupons and they even accept their own store "coupons" (different from ECB's). These coupons will print at the coupon machine where you can scan your card,

or at the bottom of your receipt where the ECB's will be. They are called "cash register tape" (CRT) ECB's and CRT's are both connected to your card and can not be used by anyone else. 

CVS allows one manufacturer coupon and 1 CRT coupon per item. ECB's are not counted as a coupon in that sense so you can use as many as you like at one time. You are buying one $40 item and use 15 different ECB's? It works perfectly!

Now, since your goal is to build your ECB's so you can "roll" then from deal to deal, when you first start doing it you will be looking for "moneymakers".  Example:

The above eye drops are FREE after ECB's. Now there happens to be a $1 coupon from the 4/3 newspaper. You will use a $1 coupon, pay $6.99, and get $7.99 ECB back. You just MADE $1! 

This type of transaction is called a moneymaker and you will use these to earn yourself up to 20-30 ECB. If you have around $20 in ECB, you can always "roll" the free deals. Use your ECB's to pay the cashier and earn more ECB's to use next time. 

And THAT's how you get stuff for free at CVS.

Couponing 101 Tips and Tricks

Tips and TricksWait for Sales!!!
Using coupons is like playing cards. You don't want to show everyone your hand right away. You bide your time and at the exact right moment - BAM! 98%  savings on your grocery bill. (Or a royal flush - whatever) Example: Ragu pasta sauce is normally $2.89/ea. You have a coupon for $1. You could use it now and pay $1.89 for a jar OR you could wait until it's on sale for $1.50/jar. THEN use the $1 coupon and BAM - $0.50 for a jar of pasta sauce.

That is the magic. Combining a sale WITH the coupon. Pure bliss.

Doubling and Tripling
Some areas (like mine) will double and triple the face value of a coupon up to a certain limit. In my area, they double coupons up to and including .50 and triple coupons up to and including .35. Here is how it looks on the computer screen:
Kelloggs cereal - 2.00
coupon -              (.50)
double coupon -  (.50)
total =                  1.00

The double and triple is a STORE promotion. The store only gets reimbursed the face value of the coupon.  Tripling would look like this:

Kelloggs cereal - 2.00
coupon -              (.35)
triple coupon -     (.70)
total =                   .95

Check with your local stores to see if they double or triple anything.

Sales Cycles
Everything goes on sale in 10-12 week cycles. So when an item is on sale, get enough to last you through until the next sale. If you eat 2 boxes of cereal a week, then get 24 boxes. Sound like a lot? It's better to pay $0.75/box at one time then to run out 2 weeks later and have to pay $3.50/box (ouch!) because you didn't want to look like a crazy person with 24 boxes of cereal.

The actual coupon
You may only use ONE coupon per item. You may not buy 10 boxes of cereal and have one coupon scanned 10 times. If the coupon says $1 off 2 boxes granola bars, you HAVE to buy 2 boxes to use that coupon. Pay attention to the WORDS on the coupon, not the picture. You may not use 4 coupons on 1 item. Coupons may NOT be photocopied - it is illegal. Don't do it. Make sure the cashier scanned your coupons! Pay attention to what is going on, you don't want to be shortchanged on your shopping trip.  Look at your receipt to double check. If there is a mistake, take it to customer service right away and let them know.

Last things

• 10/10 sales - you do NOT have to buy 10 items to get that price, it's $1/item whether you buy 1 or 100.
• One per purchase. It is true that most coupons have these words printed on them. Each ITEM is a "purchase" and all the "purchases" together make up a "transaction". It means one coupon per item purchased. Don't let a cashier tell you otherwise! 
• Make a list!
• Some stores let you use 1 store coupon and 1 manufacturer coupon on each item.
• Sometimes there are limits on an item's sale price. Eggs .99 - limit 2! Each additional will cost full price. Keep your eyes open!
• Start slow. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO DO EVERY DEAL. There is ALWAYS another deal, another sale. Do not panic if you skip one or five. Start slow so you are not overwhelmed.

Couponing 101 Getting organized.

Next, how to GET ORGANIZED!!   This part has TWO parts. Part 2a and part 2b, if you will.

Behold, part 2a - organizing.

There are 2 main ways to be organized with your coupons, and I'll show you mine second. The first one is to use file folders and a file box.

Like this:

This is where you keep the inserts whole and just file them by type and date. (the main inserts are smartsource, redplum, and proctor & gamble)

Pros:

• No cutting!! YAY!
• Easy to find a coupon that is listed by date on some coupon blogs.

Cons:

• No last minute clearance deals.
• Have to have a date listed to find a coupon you are looking for.
• Hauling around a FILEBOX while shopping = Lame.
• How do you file internet printed coupons, blinkies, etc?

Okay, now here is the method that I use - the coupon binder. For me it's an excellent method even though it does come with a little more upfront time.

Here's how you do the coupon binder. First, get a binder. (Oh, I crack myself up!) Then pick up some baseball card holders at your local Hades Walmart. Then you can either pick up some organizer labels or you can be ghetto like me and make your own with paper, tape, and a ballpoint pen.

See? Classy.

My categories are:

-cereal/breakfast

-snacks

-frozen food

-dairy

-canned food

-Beverages

-baking

-condiments

-meat

-sides/pasta

-candy

-baby

-paper products

-shaving

-dental

-girly (that would be tampons, pads)

-make-up

-soaps

-smelly (candles, air fresheners)

-misc.

And then I have separate envelopes with cleaning products and medications.

But you can do whatever categories you want. THEN, you take the coupons that you've collected and cut them out. If you have multiples of one insert, cut them like so:

Stack the same page, here are 4 of the same.

Then cut ONE time all 4 coupons.

Then file them in the appropriate file. The above Hefty would go in paper products.

Part 2b - Planning the trip

Now is when you plan your shopping trip. All your coupons are organized and filed away and now to search the deals. You can go to a blog (like mine) or a more local one for your area, or a HUGE one like hotcouponworld.com (I like that one since you can look at deals by store and that store's region). Or, you can pull up your store's weekly ad and look at it yourself. Write down some things that you would like to have or that look like a good price to you, then check out the appropriate "section" of your binder and see if you have a coupon that matches.

I like to use notecards for each store.

I then place the notecard and coupons I've pulled into one of these babies. (you can get it at any office section of any store.)

It is organized by store.

Since I live 15 minutes away from any of my stores, I have to be able to go to 3-5 stores at any given trip to save on gas. I file my Albertsons shopping trip. I file my Walgreens trip. And whatever other stores I've planned on going to. So when I shop, I "technically" only need my little shopping organizer. But I do like to have my binder with me in case I see some manager's clearance items or a non-advertised sale while I'm out.

Some Blogs I like:

Money Saving Mom

Melissa's Blog

I Heart Walgreens

I Heart CVS

Couponing 101 (A series for beginning couponers)

I am trying to get the hang of couponing.  I have to admit it is very intimidating to me.  I hear stories of people who save globs of money and I want to be one of them but then I get my coupons and my scissors and I just have no idea how to make coupons work in my favor.  Maybe there is at least one other person out there that has thought, "I need some help with all these coupons."  Well I have found just the lady to help us out.  Her name is Christine and she is a family friend of mine.  She is also one of those women who has figured out how to save globs of money.  I have asked her if she would do a couponing 101 series for me and hopefully some of you.  I hope you enjoy!!! If you have questions make sure and leave comments and I am sure she will be able to help you out. 
Take it away Christine.

I know the question most people ask first is, "How do I start?!"

I am here to help you out!!

Step 1 - Get coupons.

There are many different sources out there for coupons, and I use most of them.

• Newspapers: I do not purchase the Sunday paper. The paper is $3 and I would want at least 2 of them. That is crazy in price, and I am not willing to pay it. In my local area, there are 2 FREE papers that are delivered to my house on Saturdays that carry most of the coupon inserts. They are called The Briefing(section of the Dallas Morning News), and Al Dia (spanish paper). You can call your local paper and see if there are any free Saturday papers that can be delivered.
• Online: I print a good amount of coupons. I use Coupons.com, Smartsource.com, and redplum.com the most. Target.com also had coupons for in-store deals as well as manufacturer coupons.
• Inside actual stores: Manufacturers place coupons all over your local grocery store for your pleasure. Peelies, tearpads, blinkies, pamphlets, etc. They are EVERYWHERE. For pictures, go HERE and check it out.
• In the mail: If you take a couple minutes and email a manufacturer (my latest one is Kashi) they will more often than not mail you coupons for being a good customer. Ditto complaints that you email. I sent Huggies a blistering email because a pack of diapers I was using had tabs that kept falling off. Resulting in diaperless kid. Not good. They mailed me 3 free diaper pack coupons (valid up to $18!) and 5 or so $2 off any Huggies product coupons. Not bad for 3 minutes of my time.
• Buy them!! I have only done this once or twice on a rocking coupon that I wanted 65 of. You can purchase whole inserts at Dede's coupons here. Or, you can search them out on ebay or a specific one, use the couponclippers.com, or trade at hotcouponworld.com(you need to be registered for this one). EXAMPLE: There was a .35/1 Birds-Eye Steamfresh veggies coupon. I know from experience that these frequently go on sale for $1/bag. I traded on hotcouponworld.com for 66 of the same coupon. I gave her like, $2.30 or something and a stamp. Sure enough, 2 weeks later they went on sale at Albertsons for $1/bag. With the coupon tripling to $1.05, all 66 bags were free. So even after what I "paid" for my coupons, I still got 66 bags of frozen veggies for $2.30 and a stamp. In situations like this, it's totally worth it!