During your first few shopping trips as you use your new coupon skills, you may feel a bit like you’re stepping out on the high dive for the first time. When you get in line to pay, you may feel an air of uncertainty, the looming fear of something going wrong, and the impending confrontation that might ensue. But just like the high dive, standing at the top and over-analyzing is the worst part (well, that and the whole wearing a bathing suit in public thing). So take a deep breath and step in line; it’ll be over soon, it’s never as bad as you think it might be. And as you push your cart out the door after your first successful trip, you’ll experience the couponer’s “buzz”, and you’ll be hooked for good! So go ahead and don’t be afraid to make a splash. I’ve got a few more tips that are going to make certain you’re totally prepared. Let’s ensure that you can, in fact, swim before we tell you to jump. Do you know what can make or break your couponing experience? How organized you are when it’s time to check out.
Here’s how to keep your sanity:
1. Get organized before you leave the house. First, make a list of what you want to buy. You might choose to write yours by hand, or just print the store’s coupon match-ups
If you plan to purchase items that are part of a Catalina promo where you will be doing multiple transactions, do yourself a favor and write out your list, separating each transaction. Write the item, price, and quantity you plan to buy. Have a calculator by your side and make sure to take it in your purse to the grocery store. If you’re not organizing your pre-clipped coupons by category, find your coupons, and clip them now, before you leave the house. Place them in an envelope or in the front of your binder where they’ll be easy to find.
2. Choose wisely the time of day that you shop. I have found that in the morning, early afternoon, or late at night is best for me. You and your checker will be less stressed if there is not a line behind you. In fact, your checker may enjoy having something to do to kill the time during a slow shift. Don’t try to do five separate transactions with eighty coupons during the 5:00 p.m. rush and then act surprised when you get a grouchy checker.
3. Just for moms: If you’re like me and you have young children, the key is to do your shopping early in the morning or right after naps. It’s hard enough for a kid to behave at the grocery store, so I try my best not to take them out when they’re already cranky and exhausted. Another note for those with kids: checking out is going to be a much longer and more intensive process than you’re used to. It’s worth it, but remember that your kids will need something to do while you get your coupons rung through. You won’t regretpacking some toys or snacks to entertain your kids at checkout. Check your grocer’s bakery to see whether they have free cookies or snacks for children and if so, make that your last stop before checkout. The ideal first shopping experience would be to shop without kids, if possible, so you can totally focus on what you’re doing. The first trip or two, consider shopping late at night when your spouse is home or even getting a babysitter for your daytime shopping trip. Couponing will soon be second nature, but if you have the luxury of a babysitter close by, take her up on any offer she’s made to watch your kids for an hour or two while you go shopping, just until you get the hang of it.
4. Consider shopping with a friend. Friends make everything more fun. This is espe cially true for beginning Krazy Coupon Ladies. On a big, multi-transaction trip, having one person to watch the items ring through and hand the cashier the coupons while the other person sets items onto the conveyor belt and separates them into transactions is an absolute lifesaver. Even on smaller trips, it’s still great to shop with a buddy. You can share coupons and take turns watching each other’s kids if need be or helping each other check out one at a time.
5. Talk to your cashier before your transaction begins. Greet them and let them know you’re going to be using coupons with your purchase. If you’re participating in a Catalina promotion, make sure to ask whether the Catalina machine is on and working! (You would not believe how often they’re turned off or non-functional. Most customers don’t care a bit, so the store doesn’t have much reason to upkeep the machines). If you’re planning to do several separate transactions, let your cashier know. Sometimes if I say, “I’m doing five different transactions with coupons today. Is this lane okay?”, they’ll either open a new lane for me, or they’ll pull across behind me the coiled black wire that holds the “this lane closed” sign. They don’t do that very often, but I love it when they do. It’s nice not to have to say, “Pick another checkout lane, honey” eighteen times. If I am shopping during a time of day that is busy, I only put one transaction on the conveyor belt at a time. This way, if a line starts to form behind me, I can finish my purchase and get back in line. Ask your cashier how she would like to take your coupons. Would she like to scan an item and then take the coupon? Or would she prefer to scan everything through and then take all my coupons? I find cashiers usually prefer the latter, but I still talk them through the stack of coupons. I’ll let them know the quantity and value of each coupon as they scan them in. And I’m ready to answer any questions they might have. The easier I can make their jobs, the happier they are-and that’s always a good thing! If you are particularly Type A, or if you are nervous about cashiers not ringing in some of your coupons, insist that they ring up one item, and then the coupon. This will help you keep track of your savings and will make sure each coupon gets scanned.
6. Do not be afraid to ask for a member of management to come clarify some-thing for you. Often, you know more about the store coupon policy than the checkers, so don’t be afraid to ask nicely for a manager to explain something to you. Many times, I have had them call over a manager, and it ends with the checker saying, “Huh. I never knew that!”
7. Keep a copy of the store’s coupon policy in your binder. Keep the store policy with you, and don’t be afraid to show it off. The reason you went through the trouble of getting a copy of the policy is twofold: first, to educate yourself, and second, to let it do your talking at theregister. One reader writes: Thank you for insisting that we keep the store policies with us while shopping. I just returned from a shopping trip that would have been a waste of time had I not been carrying the policy. My checker was uninformed of the store’s policy, and I may have been too nervous to stand up for myself had I not had a written copy to use as reference. I was able to pull out the store’s policy and have the checker read it. He immediately accepted the coupon and apologized for the trouble!!
8. Cashier profiling: It’s real, and I’m endorsing it! Once I am ready to checkout, I take a mental inventory of the available checkers. I’m a profiler. I look at the checker and decide whether he or she is going to be good. And, yes, I base this completely on stereotypes. Judge me if you must. If there are young, male checkers available, I go to them every time. Not because I’m trying to sneak anything past them, but just because I’ve found they are generally low maintenance. I don’t have to whip out my policy or explain every word of fine print. Once you become a regular at your store, you will know whom to go to…and the good checkers will probably know you by name, and maybe they’ll even have your store loyalty card phone number memorized. I’m still waiting for a love connection between a Coupon Lady and her checker.
Here’s how to keep your sanity:
1. Get organized before you leave the house. First, make a list of what you want to buy. You might choose to write yours by hand, or just print the store’s coupon match-ups
If you plan to purchase items that are part of a Catalina promo where you will be doing multiple transactions, do yourself a favor and write out your list, separating each transaction. Write the item, price, and quantity you plan to buy. Have a calculator by your side and make sure to take it in your purse to the grocery store. If you’re not organizing your pre-clipped coupons by category, find your coupons, and clip them now, before you leave the house. Place them in an envelope or in the front of your binder where they’ll be easy to find.
2. Choose wisely the time of day that you shop. I have found that in the morning, early afternoon, or late at night is best for me. You and your checker will be less stressed if there is not a line behind you. In fact, your checker may enjoy having something to do to kill the time during a slow shift. Don’t try to do five separate transactions with eighty coupons during the 5:00 p.m. rush and then act surprised when you get a grouchy checker.
3. Just for moms: If you’re like me and you have young children, the key is to do your shopping early in the morning or right after naps. It’s hard enough for a kid to behave at the grocery store, so I try my best not to take them out when they’re already cranky and exhausted. Another note for those with kids: checking out is going to be a much longer and more intensive process than you’re used to. It’s worth it, but remember that your kids will need something to do while you get your coupons rung through. You won’t regretpacking some toys or snacks to entertain your kids at checkout. Check your grocer’s bakery to see whether they have free cookies or snacks for children and if so, make that your last stop before checkout. The ideal first shopping experience would be to shop without kids, if possible, so you can totally focus on what you’re doing. The first trip or two, consider shopping late at night when your spouse is home or even getting a babysitter for your daytime shopping trip. Couponing will soon be second nature, but if you have the luxury of a babysitter close by, take her up on any offer she’s made to watch your kids for an hour or two while you go shopping, just until you get the hang of it.
4. Consider shopping with a friend. Friends make everything more fun. This is espe cially true for beginning Krazy Coupon Ladies. On a big, multi-transaction trip, having one person to watch the items ring through and hand the cashier the coupons while the other person sets items onto the conveyor belt and separates them into transactions is an absolute lifesaver. Even on smaller trips, it’s still great to shop with a buddy. You can share coupons and take turns watching each other’s kids if need be or helping each other check out one at a time.
5. Talk to your cashier before your transaction begins. Greet them and let them know you’re going to be using coupons with your purchase. If you’re participating in a Catalina promotion, make sure to ask whether the Catalina machine is on and working! (You would not believe how often they’re turned off or non-functional. Most customers don’t care a bit, so the store doesn’t have much reason to upkeep the machines). If you’re planning to do several separate transactions, let your cashier know. Sometimes if I say, “I’m doing five different transactions with coupons today. Is this lane okay?”, they’ll either open a new lane for me, or they’ll pull across behind me the coiled black wire that holds the “this lane closed” sign. They don’t do that very often, but I love it when they do. It’s nice not to have to say, “Pick another checkout lane, honey” eighteen times. If I am shopping during a time of day that is busy, I only put one transaction on the conveyor belt at a time. This way, if a line starts to form behind me, I can finish my purchase and get back in line. Ask your cashier how she would like to take your coupons. Would she like to scan an item and then take the coupon? Or would she prefer to scan everything through and then take all my coupons? I find cashiers usually prefer the latter, but I still talk them through the stack of coupons. I’ll let them know the quantity and value of each coupon as they scan them in. And I’m ready to answer any questions they might have. The easier I can make their jobs, the happier they are-and that’s always a good thing! If you are particularly Type A, or if you are nervous about cashiers not ringing in some of your coupons, insist that they ring up one item, and then the coupon. This will help you keep track of your savings and will make sure each coupon gets scanned.
6. Do not be afraid to ask for a member of management to come clarify some-thing for you. Often, you know more about the store coupon policy than the checkers, so don’t be afraid to ask nicely for a manager to explain something to you. Many times, I have had them call over a manager, and it ends with the checker saying, “Huh. I never knew that!”
7. Keep a copy of the store’s coupon policy in your binder. Keep the store policy with you, and don’t be afraid to show it off. The reason you went through the trouble of getting a copy of the policy is twofold: first, to educate yourself, and second, to let it do your talking at theregister. One reader writes: Thank you for insisting that we keep the store policies with us while shopping. I just returned from a shopping trip that would have been a waste of time had I not been carrying the policy. My checker was uninformed of the store’s policy, and I may have been too nervous to stand up for myself had I not had a written copy to use as reference. I was able to pull out the store’s policy and have the checker read it. He immediately accepted the coupon and apologized for the trouble!!
8. Cashier profiling: It’s real, and I’m endorsing it! Once I am ready to checkout, I take a mental inventory of the available checkers. I’m a profiler. I look at the checker and decide whether he or she is going to be good. And, yes, I base this completely on stereotypes. Judge me if you must. If there are young, male checkers available, I go to them every time. Not because I’m trying to sneak anything past them, but just because I’ve found they are generally low maintenance. I don’t have to whip out my policy or explain every word of fine print. Once you become a regular at your store, you will know whom to go to…and the good checkers will probably know you by name, and maybe they’ll even have your store loyalty card phone number memorized. I’m still waiting for a love connection between a Coupon Lady and her checker.