Posts tagged with "Spring Into Couponing"

Last week I started a series here on My Sweet Savings called Spring Into Couponing. I think it is very important that we as couponers understand how to properly use coupons as well as the basics of Couponing in general. If you missed last week’s post on Where to Find Coupons, you can read that HERE.

Today’s topic is all about Couponing Lingo for the Bargain Enthusiast. Did you know that we couponers have our very own language?

I will never forget when I first started couponing and bargain-hunting several years back. I would search online forums and discussion threads, but not understand some of the abbreviations and terms that people were talking about regarding coupons. What in the world is BOLO or OOP? I thought it would be fun to make a list of these terms and abbreviations to see just how much you know!

BOGO– Buy One Get One Free

B2G1– Buy Two Get One Free

BOLO– Be on the Lookout *be on the lookout for a certain coupon or product.

OOP– Out of Pocket *after all coupons are accounted for this is how much you use of your actual cash.

WYB– When you buy (for example: I recently found a TP (tear pad) coupon for FREE eggs WYB 2 Kellogg’s cereals)

WT– Wine Tag

NWP– No wine purchase necessary *some of the wine tag coupons that you will find, do not require you to purchase wine!

GC– Gift Card

MIR– Mail in Rebate

OOS– Out of Stock

YMMV– Your Mileage May Vary *this is saying that the deal may vary by location.

POP– Proof of Purchase *many rebates require this!

TMF– Try Me Free *this is like a rebate incentive. You usually have to mail in a proof of purchase with your receipt to receive your refund.

CO– Cents-off coupon

FAR– Free After Rebate

HT– Hang tag *many bottled items will have these types of coupon around the neck of the bottle.

PSA– Prices Starting At *many times in advertisements you will see this in the fine print. It is just letting you know that the prices for that deal start at a certain amount.

AR– After Rebate

AC– After Coupons

UPC– Universal Product Code

RC– Rain Check *if your store is out of a certain item for the week that you really would like to purchase, I find that it is always best to get a rain check! There may be some awesome coupons that come out at a later date for those items! I have often gotten an even better deal on an item that I had a rain check for than when the sale was going for that item!

WSL– While Supplies Last-*no rain checks can usually be issued for these items. They are first come first serve items!

IP– Internet Printables * refers to Internet Printable coupons

DND– Do not double *unfortunately, I don’t have to worry about this as my state does not double coupons; however, many states do double! If you see this term it just means that particular coupon cannot be doubled.

EXP– Expiration

NED– No expiration date *it is rare to find a coupon with no expiration date, but I find that many times when you contact a company they will send you coupons with no expiration date. I love these coupons!

GDA– I love to this term! It means Good Deal Alert or heads up on an awesome deal!

B&M– Brick and Mortar * when you see this term, it usually means that you have to go to the actual (brick & mortar) store to get the deal.

CRT– Cash Register Tape *these are the coupon that print off of your receipt at places like CVS.

SS– Smart Source *this refers to the Smart Source insert coupons found in your Sunday newspaper as well as www.smartsource.com IP coupons.

RP– Red Plum *Sunday insert coupons. You can also print coupons from www.redplum.com

P&G– Proctor and Gamble *insert with coupons for Proctor and Gamble products. This particular insert can usually be found in your Sunday newspaper once at the beginning of each month.

CAT– Catalina *this is a paper coupon that prints from a machine usually at places like Walgreens, or many different grocery stores.

OYNO– On Your Next Order- *many of the CAT coupons that you receive will say that particular coupon is good for your next shopping order.

RR– Register Rewards *these are the paper-like coupons that you receive at Walgreens when you purchase certain advertised items. RR’S print from the Catalina machine and you can use them on most everything at Walgreens! You may also hear these referred to as CAT’s or Catalina coupons.

ECB– Extra Care Bucks *these are the paper coupons that print on your receipt at CVS. You can earn these when you buy certain advertised products. ECB’s are like money that you can spend on pretty much anything at CVS!

Stacking– When you hear this term in coupon world, it means that you are taking a store coupon and pairing it with a manufacturer’s coupon to double your savings! This is one of the best ways to get items for FREE or for pennies on the dollar! Some of my favorite places to stack are: Publix and Target!

Since Extreme Couponing aired last night, I thought that it would be helpful to revisit the couponing basics. If you are new to couponing, please don’t get overwhelmed and discouraged. Just sit back and take a deep breath. Starting out does take a little bit of time and work, but you will be a pro and mastering all of the basics before you know it! In the next week few weeks I will be reposting some of the most important tips and ideas that you need to know for saving money. Today we are going to visit the idea of where to find coupons. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions and I will be more than happy to help you! You can email me any time at: mysweetsavings@gmail.com

Couponing and searching for those die-hard bargains is a lot of fun, but BEWARE it can become very addicting!  My husband is very grateful to me for all of the money that I save, but sometimes even he just laughs at me!  To be a successful couponer and bargain-hunter, you must first familiarize yourself with the basics.

There are lots of coupons and bargains out there, you just have to know what to look for and where to find them at.  You might actually be surprised where you can find coupons if you just open up your eyes and put on those bargain-hunting glasses! I feel that now I am continually on the lookout for coupons and bargains wherever I go!

It is fun to get your kids involved in the bargain-hunting too.  My five year old loves to help mommy as we go through the aisles at the store.  If he sees a coupon, he grabs it!  The other day it was so funny because my husband went into the grocery store with me to grab a few things.  In our almost 11 years of marriage, we have been in the grocery store together, but not too often, as I do all of the grocery shopping.  My husband was just laughing at me because I was on a mission for coupons even though we had very few things on our list!

Now that you know just how addicting couponing and bargain-hunting can be, it is important to know what types of coupons to look for and where to find them at. 

Here is a list that I have compiled of the different types of coupons and where to find them:

• Inserts – coupons in your Sunday newspaper. Inserts include: RP (Redplum insert), SS (Smartsource insert), P&G (Proctor & Gamble insert) as well as the occassional GM (General Mills insert)
• Newspapers – Don’t forget to glance through your Sunday newspaper even if you don’t read the entire thing!  I have found great deals and coupons for local stores and businesses just by searching in my local newspaper.
• Magazines – Don’t throw out those magazines that you get every month. I have found some great gems hidden in them! In fact, I will subscribe to magazines for FREE is possible because I know that there may be coupons in them. Of course, my favorite magazine to get coupons from would definitely have to be All You Magazine. This is an exclusive magazine sold at Wal-Mart that contains hundreds of dollars of manufacturer’s coupons!
• Recycling-Go dumpster diving! I have been known to go dumpster diving in my local recycle bins if I know that there is a HOT coupon out there.
• Friends & Family-If you have friends and family members who don’t coupon, by all means ask them to save you the coupon inserts! Those inserts are like money and can save you hundreds of dollars!
• Home Mailers – Companies will add you to their mailing list if you prefer and send out great coupons!  Many companies offer monthly mailers.  I find that many of these mailers include coupons and discounts for local entertainment and dining.  In fact, a lot of time , there are BOGO (buy one get one) coupons in these mailers for restaurants.  My husband and I particularly enjoy these bargains as it allows us to have date night! 🙂
• Contacting Companies-If you have been a My Sweet Savings Reader for any amount of time now, you know that we love to contact companies! Did you know that companies rely on us as the consumers to give them feedback? My one tip: BE HONEST! If you love a product, tell them. If you dislike a product tell them. I find that by doing so, many companies will send out high-value or FREE product coupons!
• Baby Clubs-If you have little ones, I don’t have to tell you how expensive that diapers and formula are.  Many stores now offer Baby Clubs and they will periodically send out coupons for FREE products like diapers and formula as well as other baby items. If you have a Publix and Winn Dixie nearby, they have awesome Baby Clubs!
• Internet Printables – There are some great Internet couponing sites such as:  www.coupons.com, www.smartsource.com, www.redplum.com, www.couponnetwork.com and www.bettycrocker.com. These sites offer great coupons which you can print right from your own computer!  There are also a couple of couponing sites that give you a preview of the next week’s Sunday newspaper coupons.  I find that the early previews are usually available sometime on Thursday.  My favorite sites for early previews are: www.wholecouponinserts.com and www.thecouponclippers.com.
• Tear Pads – These are a pad of coupons usually found hanging from a store display.
• Peelies – Sticker-like coupons that are stuck right on a product -you just peel it away!
• Blinkies – These are found in coupon machines right in the aisle of the grocery store and usually next to the item that the coupon is for.  The coupon is dispensed from a machine with a blinking red light.  These coupons are my little boy’s favorite to get for Mommy!  He loves to see the red light blink when the coupons come out!
• Hang Tags and Wine Tags – These are coupons found right around the neck of a product or bottle.
• Ebay-Did you know that you can purchase coupons on Ebay for just a small fee? I find that Ebay is great way to stock up on coupons if I want to purchase large quantities of a sale item such a pasta.
• Store Coupons – If your store has a turnstile or display where they keep the weekly store ad, chances are, you can probably find store coupon booklets or pamphlets there as well.  Those store coupons can be gems especially if your store allows you to stack a manufacturer’s coupon with their own store coupon!  This is how I often get items for free or for just pennies on the dollar!
• Mobile Coupons– Stores like Target are now jumping on the Mobile Coupon bandwagon. This is so neat because all you have to do is show your mobile device to the cashier. They scan it, and just like magic it takes off the coupon! You can sign up for Target’s mobile coupons HERE.
• Facebook-If you do not have a Facebook account, you really should think about signing up for one. It is FREE to do so and I can’t even begin to tell you the awesome freebies and coupons that I have received through them! If you have a favorite brand chances are that company is on Facebook. Just like them, and you never know when they will offer up freebies or coupons!

……Up next in the series, Couponing Lingo for the Bargain Enthusiast!