Comments: Coupons May Not Be Saving You Money

A few months ago I posted on the fact that coupons may not be saving you money and received the following comment that I wanted to share with all of you:

Here's a little inside tip from someone who works for a food manufacturer (and subsequently uses coupons very seldomly)... they know people who use coupons spend more, that's why they issue coupons. People who wouldn't normally buy a product, or buy it's generic or on-sale counterparts, will usually by the name-brand product if there is a coupon - even if it's not less expensive. They perceive it to be a deal. They also are much more likely to buy something they won't use. I do use coupons, like the Entertainment book. Often, we only use the coupons for places we frequent regularly, but sometimes we will browse and look for someplace new to eat out or something.

This is why you always want to compare prices -- even if you have a coupon, something may not be cheaper than an alternative.

Comments

[pagar]

Coupons are money. I got totally free washing power, dryer sheets, and hundreds of other grocery items totally free or reduced far below what any generic item could be obtained for about ten years when I lived in a double coupon city. I think telling people not to use coupons is wrong. What people need to be told is to use coupons and/or money wisely. The grocery chain does not care which one you use. It used to totally amaze me, to see people in the double coupon grocery store, standing in line to check out, gripping about the cost of grocercies when they didn't even bother to pick up the coupons from the blinky machines right in front of the product. An even more amazing thing, would be to hand an extra coupon to someone in line, who had the product in their basket, and have them hand it back to you saying "we don't use coupons-they're too much trouble"
If you aren't using coupons, for items you are going to buy anyway, you're throwing money in the trash.

[Kathy]

Coupons actually can save thousands of dollars if they are used correctly. The idea behind coupon shopping, however, is very different then how most people shop which is buy what you need. In order to save money shopping you buy what you use when it is on sale and you have a coupon for it whether you need it or not...especially when items go buy one get one free at which time you can use two coupons for the item often times resulting in free items. What this will do is allow you to stop shopping out of need and start shopping only when you see something you use because you have stockpiles at home. There are, also, several drugstore programs that give rewards and when used with coupons result in free item or even making money back on an item. I have been coupon shopping for a year now and before that time I too felt it made you spend more or would take too long, but once you have changed your way of shopping it actually has saved me money and time because all my shopping trips are planned out. Already for this year I have saved over $1000 just on toiletries and baby supplies alone. And average about a 50 to 75% savings on every grocery bill. Statistics show that it is college educated, middle to upper class people that use the most coupons so obviously there are good sides to shopping this way.