Talk and Act
In 2010, we must all become educated customers in order to trade out of the current financial hardships that a lot of us are facing. One of the key areas where we must become smarter is in the area of grocery shopping. Bottom line, we all have shopping lists we follow or try to follow whether it is a list on a piece of paper or we mentally remember what need. However, we always find ourselves taking those extra unplanned products on the way out of the supermarket. Did you know that according to marketing experts some 75% of our decisions are actually made in the store itself. Hence, the playing of soothing music by supermarket chains is working on us consumers. Further research indicates that you will usually buy 30% more than was planned.
Supermarkets are well aware of those numbers. In fact they pretty have done all the research in order for that to occur. The issue is then how do we place ourselves in a good place where we will not be tempted to blow the budget on groceries that are pointless? Hopefully the following hints will help you to develop good habits and ensure that you stay within your budget.
Your list should be as detailed as possible – When setting up the list, gather all the weekly catalogues together and circle all the products that you need that are on special. Write the product, the brand and price on your list. Be as detailed as possible to avoid confusion. This will also increase the speed in which you purchase products and decrease the time spent in the supermarket which means less temptation to purchase.
Be wary of freebies given away at the Supermarket – Often ‘free’ taste testing will lead to a purchase which will definitely blow your budget. Unless you are strong willed, avoid these kind of freebies, even though in the right context they are useful and actually do save you money.
Look for cheaper products, of the same quality on lower and upper shelves – Supermarkets are multi-million dollar businesses. Hence they will put brand name products or products that produce the greatest return on shelves that are at eye level. Home brands or supermarket branded products which often have no difference in their quality are located above or below these premium shelf spaces.
Shop without the kids – Following on from the above point, it’s best to shop unaccompanied so that you are not distracted from the task at hand. Having children nagging about something that they see on the lower shelves whether it be toys or sweet “health” food will lead to the inevitable purchase to avoid embarrassment or to keep them quiet. So where possible shop without the children.
Follow the above tips to help educate yourself to become the thrifty shopper and save yourself hundreds if not thousands over the year in grocery shopping where the money can be put towards your child’s education or paying off the mortgage.
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Tags: cheabies, Coupons, Free Samples, Free Stuff, Freebies
Posted in Tips · March 12th, 2010 · Comments (0)
Did you know that more than 70% of people in America claim to use coupon discounts to save money and around 85 percent use coupons to buy grocery and consumer goods? Quite amazing statistics I think you would have to agree. That means that if you’re reading this article and don’t use coupons regularly, you are in the minority! The good thing is that anyone and I mean anyone can begin and use coupons to save themselves money at anytime with no skill required. In this difficult economic situation, it becomes even more important to understand the use of coupons and how they can save you serious coin.
Apparently the concept of coupons being used as a promotional tool was conceived by C. W. Post. He initially offered a coupon worth one cent to his patrons on every purchase of Grape-Nut. Since then, the term couponing has become a global phenomenon for both businesses and consumers alike. Over the past decade as developing countries have become greater users of the Internet we have seen an explosion in popularity of the use and release of coupons. Traditionally, coupons were distributed through magazines, newspapers, and more in the 90’s and early 2000s via email. Whilst these mediums are still in play, the most common form of distributing coupons is via the Internet. This is due to the fact that hundreds of millions of people access the Internet on a daily basis and it also helps companies save their money as the Internet is relatively inexpensive. As we move into the deeper understanding of web 2.0, social networking has also increased the popularity of using the Net as the sole medium to distribute and promote coupons. Just think about Facebook and Twitter. These 2 sites alone generate such buzz around topics and products that businesses are able to judge quickly if their new product line will be successful or not.
Even within the coupon sector, there are different “product” lines. Here are 2 types:
Manufacturer Coupons: manufacturer coupons are created by the product manufacturing company to boost sales and increase brand awareness. These coupons are often distributed via online surveys, email newsletters or straight from the manufacturer’s website. Simply the consumer takes the coupon to the store and gets a discount or in some cases free product and the manufacturer pays face value of the coupon to the store owner.
Printable coupons are also available on websites offering coupon deals online, such as www.FreeStuff4Free.com. On such websites, users will not only have access to coupons offering discounts, but often coupons that give the user freebies and free samples. These sites are a great way to access hundreds of discount coupons in a variety of consumer products categories.
Understanding these 2 product lines will put you in good frame of mind to begin to save on groceries and many other shopping categories. If you’re still in doubt, go to Google and type in key phrases like free stuff, coupons, discount coupons and observe what search results you will find. You will be well on the way to saving you and your family thousands of dollars annually!
Tags: cheabies, Coupons, Free Samples, Free Stuff, Freebies
Posted in Uncategorized · March 8th, 2010 · Comments (0)