Couponing 101: What kind of clipper are you?

Welcome to the second week of Couponing 101! If you missed the first post "Organization and Storage", click here.

There are a few different ways of handling coupon inserts that come in the newspaper. Just as with coupon organization, it's important to find out what works for YOU. Having a system that you enjoy will save you time and money, as well as prevent you from becoming overwhelmed at an ever-growing pile of coupons!

Here are 3 ways to deal with all of those newspaper coupon inserts:

1) Clip them ALL

Some of us actually enjoy clipping coupons! Or am I the only one? If you shop at CVS, cutting all or most of the coupons, even if you're not sure it's something you would buy, will probably come in handy at some point. Since you just never know what you'll end up getting for free at CVS, having a large assortment of coupons is beneficial!

Benefits of clipping every coupon:

• Once you clip each week's coupons and file them, you're done! When you need a particular coupon, you know right where it is, and it is already cut and ready to be used.
• You don't miss out on a deal because you threw out a coupon you didn't think you would need.
• You can give away coupons that you have cut out but don't need (for example, a dog food coupon to a friend with dogs, etc).

Tips and ideas:

• Create a storage system for keeping the clipped coupons organized, such as a coupon box (see one here), accordian style coupon organizer or a coupon binder (see examples here).
• Set aside a time each week to clip and file your coupons.
• Set aside a time each month (or week) to purge expired coupons, making room for new ones.

2) Clip Some

This is where I fall on the spectrum. If there is something that I know I wouldn't buy, even if it were free, I don't cut it. If the coupon is for something that I could give to someone I know (even though we don't use that particular product), then I do cut it.

Benefits of clipping only some coupons:

• Clipping only the coupons you know you'll use saves time.
• Your coupon binder/organizer is less crowded with unecessary coupons, making it faster and easier to locate a particular coupon that you're searching for.
• As with "Clip them All", once your coupons are clipped and filed, you're done! Each coupon is ready to be used, and you'll know right where it is.

Tips and ideas:

• Same as for "Clip them ALL"
• If you don't want to clip coupons you don't need, but can't bear to part with them 'just in case', slip some clear page cover inserts into your coupon binder for the remaining insert pages.

3) Clip as Needed

If clipping coupons and storing them individually seems like complete drudgery, then 'clipping as needed' might be right up your alley!

Benefits of clipping as needed:

• Saves time
• Easy to find a coupon from a particular week (for example: that $.50/2 Lenders Bagel coupon from the 3/9 Smartsource insert that you read about on Fiddledeedee is still in the original insert!)

Tips and Ideas:

• Create a storage system for keeping the coupon inserts organized, such as a binder with clear page protector inserts, or a portable filing system (see an example here).
• Use a sharpie to label each insert with the insert's date of issue. This makes it easy to spot the insert you're looking for.
• Include scizzors in your coupon binder/filing system so that you can clip coupons in the store if you come across an unexpected deal.
• Go sign up at Couponmom and use the "Grocery Coupon Database". This is a great resource for everyone, but can be especially beneficial to you "non-clippers"! The database lists the past few months' coupon inserts for each state. Since coupon inserts vary from state to state, it is easy to see if a coupon mentioned by a blogger from another state actually came in your paper, without searching through the insert. It also makes it easy for you to quickly search for a coupon for a particular item instead of pulling out all of your inserts. You can search for items and brands (i.e. "toothpaste" or "Tums") or just scroll through listings of all of the past few month's inserts. If you have your entire inserts labeled with the date and in a binder or hanging file folder, this makes it easy! Just search for the coupon on the database to find out which insert it's in, then go straight to that insert and clip the coupon you need. I am in love with this coupon database!

Which one of these three systems works best for you?