I met a Lady in my store that was shopping with one of the coolest methods I have seen, ” Hi Kristina”! Her husband was making fun of her, but I think she rocks!
- Kristina had a piece of cardboard in her baby seat of the cart.
- It had everything that she was going to buy listed into sections.
- They were marked if it was a price match or not, she also had her ads with her and they were marked to go with the list.
- The coupons she was going to use were taped to the board.
- Each item on the list that had a coupon to use with it was marked with a little green circle, if you can see that.
It was so easy to see and clear as to what she needed to buy, what she had coupons for and what was going to be a price match. I thought it was brilliant!
Do you have a method that works for you?
i try to plan ahead by making a list of items that are on sale and put the coupons in an envelope. i bring my coupon binder with me just in case i see a deal on the shelf i didn’t expect. before i get in line to check out, i go through my coupons to see which ones i used.
First I have to say…Your site can NEVER go away!!! I am on here DAILY!!! Love what you do! Second: I organize mine Kind of like the binder way but a little different. I have the binder organized by sections in my walmart. Being an AVID Walmart couponer…I have the whole store memorized in my head! LOL! So I have a binder with the baseball inserts plus the sheets with the tabs. On those tabs…I don’t have like Pets/Healthcare etc. I have em by the sections and aisles in my store. Then I put the coupons I am going to use in that section into the baseball card sheets. Works for me! 🙂
I write out my entire list on one sheet in a spiral notebook by category: meats, produce, cold items, pantry items, and misc (toiletries, cleaning supplies, meds, etc). I write down the item and list what the price is at such and such store next to it. If I have a coupon, the item is starred in the margin. At checkout, I organize my items by category and ask the cashier to wait until I get all my items on the belt before beginning. I then go item by item price matching what is on sale and allowing normal price for what is not. I’ve even had a cashier take my list and prop it up so he could see it. He did all the legwork! I love my method!
For quickest checkout and no items missed with price matching, I write the matched price on the item with a sharpie marker. Makes for a less stressful checkout and the checkers have said they love it!
Forgot to mention, (see, this is why I sharpie!) first on the belt is the non-price matched items, then we go in to PM items.
I wish I had a method that worked!! I still use envelopes but over time they tear and need replaced, I use a yellow legal pad to write down my deals I will be completing and I paper clip the coupons I’m using to the legal pad. This works ok for me but I am still searching for a better way! And I never leave home without my sale ads!!
Lori- try using a nylon pencil holder pouch with zipper. It has a clear plastic front so you can see your list and put your coupons behind it. Lasts longer than paper envelopes and they go on sale after school starts!
I have a big binder that is organised by the way my walmart is set up and where I go first, for example the beauty products and meds. are at one end of the store thats where I start IF I need anything from down there,then I move to the grocery side.I usually start a few days before I go and plan everything out when the ads come (wich is Wednesday) go through everything and plan my meals for the week based on whats on sale and what I have coupons for and write the all in a spiral notebook marked for pricematch and coupon if I have one what the final price will be. as I go through the store and get eveything I take the coupon and put it in a pocket in the front of my binder and I keep all the pricematch stuff seprate and do them all at once to make it easier for the cashier.
I use the color coded pencil holders found at Dollar Tree for each store then make my list ahead of time. I will hold all the coupons in there needed for those deals. I carry them in my purse along with ads if PM. This seems to be working great for me. She did good on her board.
My method really works for me. I have a page saved in Print Shop or you can use word and I have a text box for each store I will go to. I add daily the items I will buy and put in Bold if it will be a price match and to where. I also, put the amount of coupon it will have. On Friday, I will print it out and attach to a small clipboard ( 6x 9) and put in my purse. I also have a coupon pouch with dividers. The dividers are supposed to be catagories but I changed them to the names of the stores. Each section then has the coupons in it for each store. I have everything wrote down in front of me and since the pricematches are in Bold, it is easier to tell the cashier. I take my binder with me but it usually goes unopened unless I find a great deal. This way works for me and I don’t have to carry in my big 3″ binder to each of the smaller stores.
This is very similar to what I do. Typicaly when I go to Wal-Mart I am just getting items from your $1 list and aobut 5 or 6 others. I print out your list and write next to the item how many I need. then along the edge on the right side I staple the coupon to the list. If it is a price match I highlight the item. Then I basicly do the same thing for the items not on your list. I make another list or just add ti to the end of the sheet. About 4 months ago I switched back to filing my coupons rather then the binder method. I found myself spending too much money if I had my binder. Now I file the inserts by date and just clip what I need. I also have a smaller 12 pocket accordan file that I keep in my purse. In there goes the coupons I clipped but didin’t use and any non insert coupons. I keep that simple. My catagories are PX, Commissary, Wal-Mart, Walgreens, Piggly Wiggly, Other stores, HBA, Cleaner/papergoods, Cold Food, Dry Food and Other. When my list is ready I fold it like a letter and put it in the correct file. It works really well and I no longer am spending an hour or more on a sunday clipping and sorting before I can even get to list making. In the store catagories I will put in coupons that I want to check prices, have been alerted to an upcomming sale or that I think can make a free item.
That board looks like some kind of kindgergarten art project gone terribly bad. LOL Sorry but the idea of hauling that board into the store and carting it around just cracks me up. A little envelope of coupons and a shopping list is all I’ve ever needed. (Yes I might miss a clearance item or two by not schlepping around gigantic binder, but I manage to build and maintain a nice stock pile anyway.) Keep it simple, sisters.
That sounds like a lot of work to me! I just load it all into an excel sheet. All categorized according to how my store is laid out, and next to each item I put which store I may be pming and the value of the the coupon I am using. All coupons are put in a envelope and off I go. Super easy and such a time saver to have them list in order of the store, that way your not going back and forth because you forgot something.
I love your site! My husband is an assistant manager at Walmart so I only shop there. My process is like Stacie’s. I use 5 columns: Item, Quantity, Location, Price Match, Coupon. I filter to just show the rows with items I am buying then sort by location. Print and I am off.
For price matches, I put a post it note with the sale price and the store running the sale on each item as I put it in the cart. This is helpful to the cashier and assures me that I won’t miss a price match.
I have 1 bag (31 gifts bag) with 2 binders (one grocery-one HBA, etc..). I have those organized by category. Then I have about 8 clear pencil cases I found at Walmart in the back to school section-($.78 each). Those are connected with binder rings. Each one is for each store I shop. I can put that in my purse and if I don’t use the coupons, then they go in the “file” pouch.
I have also created a spreadsheet on my computer and print it out at my leisure and write down everything I need. That goes in each pouch. This way I am not lugging around a 10lb bag in the store. (I have thrown my back out twice).
If I print out coupons from the net, I write to the side what store and the item I am using the coupon for.
I make my lists out on notebook paper the day before or day of that I go shopping. I try to go only once a week and I plan my meals for 7 days. I have a binder and it’s catergorized. I usually look at my ads and see which coupons I am going to use and put them in the front part of my binder (it has a little zip up pocket). I do take my binder in case I find something really cheap I NEED. I write my list in black ink and star the items I am using coupons with. I mark the items off in pink ink pen(got from a sale those Bic ones I love them!) so I can see what I have already gotten. I just usually go to Kroger,Wal-Mart,and Walgreens so I am able to write it all on one piece of paper(front and back).
at walmart, i got these little folder pocket pages, smaller than 8 x 10 ones in different colors, i marked each one with the store i shop at and when i find a coupon i know i will use at that particular store i put it in the pocket folder. i make out my list for each store marking those items with coupons and put in front of my binder. i also store my register rewards, ecb from cvs, rainchecks, etc. in the pockets. works out good for me.
Oh my. I hate to sound “hoity toity” but I dont think Id be caught dead dragging that cardboard thing around LOL. I dont even care to carry a binder. Quite a few of my friends work retail, and they tell me that just the sight of a binder instantly ticks them off..that the “binder ladies” are usually rude, impatient, and stare at the monitor and coupons as if the cashier is going to deliberately screw em’ over. I love to coupon…but after hearing how the employees detest the “binder ladies”, I go the list and envelope route. I have all my q’s attached with paperclips and ready to go, and keep my envelopes out of sight and in my purse in case I spot a bargin.
**Disclaimer: Now, just as all of us couponers are not rude, not all cashiers are either. I just figure Im better off drawing no attention to myself until the minute the coupons are handed over. 🙂 **
I know that the cashiers are’nt out to screw people over, but I do try to watch what they are doing. I just started shopping at my local kroger (its still 30 miles away, so I only go once or twice a month) about 2 or 3 months ago. I have only been there about half a dozen times and they have made big mistakes on my coupons at least 4 times that I know of. The first time I had about 20 1.00 off coupons that double. when I got home I found that NONE of them had been scanned. I didnt even think to double check coz nothing like that has ever happened to me before. it took a month to straighten it up with the manager.
The second time I went in I did keep my eyes peeled, they try talking to you so its hard to concentrate. After paying I looked at my reciept and found about 18.00 worth of coupons did not scan so we took care of it right there at customer service. And the last time I was there they did not scan a 25.00 off coupon for a Sonic Toothbrush. So yes I find it is very important to keep track of what they are doing. But I also try to be as nice as possible as I dont want to give couponers a bad name.
I agree with you on checking to ensure my coupons scanned properly. I have had to request my coupon back or my money. I work hard to get my coupons and use them while shopping. I have to pay attention to how each cashier is handling my money. I have had problems at Target and Walmart mostly with coupons not scanning correctly or I could settle it at check out before going to customer service. I have found I can usually use a coupon after check out by going to customer service with receipt and coupon ie. if it didn’t scan at check out.
Whether the cashier is nice or not, you HAVE to watch each scan, item or coupon!
I had a cashier scan an item FOUR times because she was too busy being friendly. If I wasn’t paying attention, I could’ve overpaid by $13.00!
Even more fun to the mix when I bring my two little guys and they behave wonderfully until the SECOND the coupons are being scanned… LOL
They now know that checkout is the MOST important time to behave if they want a treat! 😉
I have a small travel journal that has lots of pockets and pouches in it (meant to be used to hold maps, ticket stubs etc) Its about 5×7 inches. I organize my coupons in the pockets and pouches by store (walmart, cvs, frys, target, etc) along with any store club card associated with each. I keep a checklist on my phone for each store for items to buy. I do have a large binder that I take with me on grocery trips (just in case) but the small book fits in my purse perfectly.
My shopping list has 7 columns: Location, item, quantity, price, coupon price, # q and final price, that way I have an approximate amount of what I should be paying at the register. I go through the ads to make my list. If something is on sale at Hodge’s Food Basket or Randall’s that a coupon will be doubled or tripled I shop there. I pm everything else to Walmart. I take my binder and ads with me. It’s a bad habit, but I check out other people’s carts If I have coupons they can use, I pull them out and offer them. If my coupons are close to expiring I leave extras on the shelves.
im right with you Melinda i look in other people carts too and hand over Q’s to save them money too. But my method is to go over the ads as early as possible and my schedule. pull out the definites and put them in a regular coupon organizer by stores. Of course, my binder isnt too far for unexpected markdown, clearance, or price cuts which in my reuseable bags that my kids carry or in a cart that is NEVER in a cart trolley but near my van and i place it at the bottom of the cart.