Coupons!

What's up with coupons? I never use them because it takes too much time to sort through and find ones that are useful. Then you have to remembe to bring them along and most of the time you can't even find the exact right thing it applies to.

Yet, I am still offended by them. Its like the manufacturers are saying, "Lets screw people who have too little free time and make them pay more for our stuff."

Any marketing people out there? How does the cost-benefit analysis break down for coupons?

I like to think of them as paper dolls for adults

I thought SL was paper dolls for adults... at least thats how I play it. (and its fun)

I'm actually more pissed off by mail-in-rebates. I'm to the point where I will not ever buy anything with a mail-in-rebate. At least a coupon gives you the discount right then and there at the cash register. I got my product, I got my coupon, and I got my discount. What is with these forms I have to fill out, mail-in, and wait 3 months to get a check from. If you are going to give me a discount, give it to me when I buy. Don't say, "I'm going to be a nice guy, and give you a $40 discount *cough*in three months *cough* only if you send me a properly filled out from 1476 within a week *cough* *cough* Isn't that a great deal!" Mail-in-rebates is the first thing to make me leave and find somewhere else to buy.

I love coupons. They are like free money. I get free money because there are people who are too lazy to use coupons.

I am incredibly lazy and hate dealing with coupons. Also, many manufacturer coupons (the kind you get in the mail or in newspapers/magazines) are good on items I just don't buy. I'm not much of a name-brand shopper; if Heinz ketchup is on sale, I'll buy that, if not, I'll buy whatever is cheapest.

Since I do 90-95% of my food and sundries (soap, shampoo, cat litter, tooth paste, etc.) shopping at Safeway, I have a little red Safeway Club Card. When I purchase stuff, I swipe my card at the checkout and I get all the store and manufacturer price discounts that Safeway has listed in their weekly flier. I buy Safeway house brands on most items since I find their quality excellent and the price better than name brands, so I get the better sales on the products that Safeway sells.

If I didn't have a Safeway Club Card, I could still clip the coupons out of their weekly store flier and use them, but I figure, why bother? I'm not that worried about having my shopping demographic tracked, and it's far easier to just swipe the card. Plus, about once a month, Safeway will put $5, $10 or $20 money-back coupons in the newspaper te be redeemed when I purchase a minimum amount of groceries, if I use my Club Card.

I've heard that back east and in the south, stores have "double coupon" days where you can double the money off the items you buy with coupons. I've never seen that out west, though. On a typical $110 shopping trip (without an extra money-back coupon), I will save anywhere from $10-20 just using my Club Card at Safeway. Perhaps I could do better by clipping coupons, but I'd probably never be diligent enough about it to reap the same rewards.

(Disclaimer: I do not work for Safeway or any of its affiliates, so I consider myself pretty objective in this matter. I know there are other store club cards, so I suppose some of the same benefits could be applied to using them as well, I just happen to use Safeway's.)

I miss Safeway so much.

hahaa...I have two, O.o

Only coupons I ever use is for the video store, saves me a extra 7 bucks to rent another game i'll never ever buy, >->

If I try to use coupons while food shopping the cashieer either goes on about her life while telling me that this coupon expired 5 years ago or the fact that i'm asleep when I reach the checkout,


Gas station points!

they fuel my need for slushie runs,