Busy Mom's Guide to Couponing, Day 1: Get Prepared

So this is the official start to the "Busy Mom's Guide to Couponing (the not-so-extreme way).  This may not be daily, but I will try to get posts up as often as possible.  I myself am a "Busy Mom" so sometimes it is hard for me to get my posts up daily, but I am getting better!!! I know you are ready to go out and start couponing and saving tons of money, but slow down, you must be prepared to make your couponing experience successful.  So as any success story goes, you must be prepared, so here is my tips on getting prepared to take on the coupon world.



First, know your store coupon policies, most you can ask for them  in person or print them online from their official website.  But make sure to check it often as couponing policies change frequently.  I have a few select stores that I coupon at regularly, but NEVER leave home without your coupons, you never know when you will find "that deal", and you don't want to miss out because you left your coupons at home.

Second, and one of the most important things, is to get you some coupons.  How do you get your coupons you ask?  It is easier than you may think, the easiest way is to get a Sunday paper, the cheapest option is usually to subscribe to your local paper, then you don't even have to leave the house to get it! And now I will give you some little hints on great ways to get extra inserts and/or coupons:

• Ask your coworkers, friends and family members that get the paper and don't use theirs to give them to you. (I get at least 2 sets per week, my neighbor always gives me their coupons) This is an easy and free way to get extras.
• Check with your children's teacher, you may be able to get them to collect from other teachers or parents and have them send them home with your child. (See isn't this soooo easy?!?!)
• If you get the paper delivered, ask your delivery person if they have any left over inserts and if so if they will leave them for you. (Wow, you just hit the coupon jackpot!!! And spent no time or money!)
• On the same  concept, if you have any friends or friends of your kids that deliver papers, ask them to do the same.
• Do you have friends or kids that work at a gas station? Have them pull the coupon inserts out of the leftover papers before they return them to the distributor. (When a friend does that for me I get at least 2-3 additional copies of each insert)
• Check with local hotels, a lot of them give out free Sunday papers.  Check with them and see if you can have their inserts out of them before they return or recycle them.
• Check with local recycling centers, see if they will give you extra inserts in exchange for alluminum cans ( I have heard this is a great way to get HUNDREDS of inserts, but I haven't tried it yet.)
• Printable coupon sites are another good way to get coupons, coupons.com, couponmom.com, redplum and smartsource are some of the best.
• Coupon clipping services, these are more for when you are already an established couponer and are looking for specific coupons.  Some good ones are Wiz Clipz and Couponfleamarket.

Well, I think that about covers the getting prepared, if you have any questions about this post or how to get your coupons, please feel free to leave a comment below, and don't forget to follow my blog on Google+.

Coming Next:  Day 2, Getting Organized

Happy Couponing to All!!!