All month long we are talking about Extreme Couponing and how to Simplify the Process! One of my goals for 2015 is to show you that Couponing doesn’t have to be complicated and that you can save Money at Any Level! You just have to know and understand the process.
One of the most confusing things that I get questions about ALL THE TIME are Newspaper Insert Coupons! So many people don’t understand how they work or the processes we use to show you the deals so I want to break that down for you and hopefully simplify the process a little bit.
Here are 5 Things You Need to Know about Newspaper Coupon Inserts!
1. There are 3 Main Inserts In the Sunday Papers
There are 3 different Main Inserts that come in the Sunday Paper, these are referred to as the Smartsource Insert (Abbreviated SS), the RedPlum Insert (Abbreviated RP), and the Proctor & Gamble Insert (Abbreviated P&G). We don’t see every insert every week, but we do see these 3 brands of inserts at least once a month. The names are located on the front of the inserts so that you can easily identify the inserts. We do on occasion see a General Mills Insert or a Hasbro or Unilever Insert, those are rare and don’t typically happen more than once a year.
Smartsource Insert = SS
Redplum Insert = RP
Proctor & Gamble Insert = P&G
2. You should organize your inserts by the Date they are in the Paper
When you’re trying to organize your Newspaper Coupon Inserts it’s a good idea to organize them by the Date they are In the Sunday Paper because this is the date couponers use to identify the inserts. If someone tells you that it was in the 11/4 Redplum that means the coupon is in the Redplum insert that came in the Newspaper on Sunday November 4th. So knowing the Date and the Insert is important if you want to go back and find a coupon quickly.
TIPS FROM THE PROS
Did you know that every insert has the name and date it was in the newspaper located on the spine of the front cover of the insert (See the photo at the top of this post) It will almost always tell you what date it was in the newspaper, so if you forget to file your coupons away and you have more than one week stacked together you can use this quick tip to easily identify which date the insert is from.
3. The First Sunday of the Month & Quarter are the Best Inserts
I get asked a lot how many Newspaper Subscriptions I have, I actually only get 1 Newspaper each week because I don’t use a lot of extra inserts. I will purchase additional papers at the Gas Station by my house on the First Sunday of the Month or when I see there are going to be a lot of inserts that week, but on a weekly basis I haven’t found it worth the cost of having a lot of additional subscriptions in my area. You can check the Sunday Coupon Insert Schedule for a list of what inserts will be available each week, you can also find great High Value Printable Coupons that always make great deals so you don’t need as many copies of the paper as you used to!
4. Don’t Clip all Your Newspaper Coupons!
I know a lot of people who clip all the coupons from the newspaper that they want then they throw out the newspaper coupons! You actually don’t have to clip all the coupons in your newspaper, you can use the clipless method to File Your Inserts by the Date they were in the newspaper, then use the Coupon Database to look up coupons for items you need. If you have your coupons filed by date you can easily find a coupon by pulling out the insert from that date and flipping through the pages. This is the fastest way to organize your coupons each week and since you aren’t throwing them away you’ll have those coupons you might not have clipped for an unexpected deal that shows up.
You can watch the Video Above to learn more about how the Clipless Method Works!
5. Understanding the Coupon Lingo can save you money!
One of the things that can be very confusing for new coupon users is understanding the format of the matchups we post here on Passion For Savings.
When you see a matchup like the one shown above one of the most common questions I get is “Where do I find the coupons” So many times the best deals involve coupons from the newspapers, not just printable coupons. When that’s the case we can’t give you a direct link to the coupon (Since it’s not available online) But we can tell you how to find the coupon! We do that by giving you the Date and the Name of the Insert that had the coupon. If you file your coupons using the clipless method I just mentioned then you’ll be able to go back and find that coupon quickly!
Here is how to decode the Insert Coupon Matchups:
$4/1 Zantac Product, exp. 2/28/15 (SS 01/04/15)(use 1)
$4/1 – The First part is the Value of the Coupon ($4) and the second number is how many items the coupon applies to. So in this case you would save $4 off 1 Item.
Zantac Product – This is the Description of the Items that you can use the coupon on. In this case this coupon is for any Zantac Product.
exp. 2/28/15 – The Expiration Date is the last day the coupon can be used. So in this case February 28th, 2015 is the last day this coupon can be used. On 3/1 the coupon is no longer valid.
SS – This is where it gets tricky, this is the Code for the Insert where the coupon is found. There are 3 Main Inserts that come in the Newspapers, each of them has a code to make it easier to find your coupons.
01/04/15 – This second date is the Day the coupon was found in the newspaper. I put the date on the front of each insert on the Day I take it out of the paper. So if I pulled Coupons out of the Newspaper for Sunday January 4th I would put the Date 1/4 on the front. I know these Coupons are from the 1/4 Sunday Newspaper. This Date helps me go back and find these coupons quickly.
Now, hopefully any time you see these coupons listed in matchups you’ll know exactly how to go back and find the coupons quickly!
Don’t forget to check out the Extreme Couponing Page for more tips on how to save money using coupons!
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