The Joy of Price Matching
Wal-Mart Shopping
Nov 16, 2011
Do you feel like you don't have enough time to go to every store to get every sale? Welcome to the wonderful world of Wal-Mart shopping!
Most Wal-Mart regulars know that Wal-Mart has prices lower than the typical retail price at most grocery stores. But if all you do is buy everything at Wal-Mart prices, you are missing out! True, retail price for a box of cereal at a typical grocery store is about $4 or more (yikes!), so Wal-Mart may have the same box of cereal for $3 a box. Yeah savings! Right? Well... not as much as you could save. The problem with Wal-Mart is there are no sales, just lower all-the-time prices. That same grocery store might have a sale one week and now that box of cereal is $1.50. But we've already discussed this, you don't have time to go to all the grocery stores, right? Discover the Joy of Price Matching! Wal-Mart will price match the sale for an identical item. So now, you can get your cereal at Wal-Mart for the same price. Now, just pair it up with a coupon and now you've got your “Yeah savings!” back.
Here's breakdown of the Wal-Mart coupon and ad matching policies:
Coupons Wal-Mart accepts:
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Print-at-home internet coupons
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Must be legible
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Must have "Manufacturer Coupon" printed on them
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Are acceptable in black and white or color
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Manufacturers' coupons
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For dollar/cents off
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May not be duplicated
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Competitors' coupons
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A specific item for a specified price, for example, $2.99
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Buy one, get one free (BOGO) coupons for items with a specified price
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Have a valid expiration date
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Are acceptable in black and white
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Soft drink container caps
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Checkout coupons ("Catalinas")
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Printed at our competitors' registers for dollar/cents off on a specific item
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Must have "Manufacturer Coupon" with specific item requirements printed on them
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They gladly match the following types of ads:
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Buy one get one free ads with a specified price. (example buy one for $2.49, get one free)
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Competitors’ ads that feature a specified price at a specific retailer.
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Preferred shopping card advertised prices for specified items that are in a printed ad that require a competitors’ shopping card for the discount to apply.
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For fresh produce and meat items when the price is offered in the same unit type.
Guidelines and Limitations:
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We will match any local competitor’s advertised price.
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We do not require the customers to have the ad with them to honor a competitor’s ad.
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Items purchased must be identical to the ad (size, quantity, brand, flavor, color etc.)
They DO NOT price match the following types of ads:
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Items that require a separate purchase to get the ad price. (Example- Buy A to get B for $C)
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Items with no actual price that require a purchase to get a free product. (Example- Buy A & B to get C for free)
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Items that require a purchase to get a competitors’ gift card. (Example- Buy A to get a $B gift card)
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Buy one get one free ads with no actual price given.
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Going out of business or closeout prices.
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Percentage off. (Example- 40% off mascara)
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Competitor’s private label price promotions.
They do not honor:
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Ads when the actual price for items cannot be determined.
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Internet pricing.
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Misprinted ad prices of other retailers.
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Competitor prices from outside the store’s local trade territory.
To read the coupon policy on Wal-Mart's website go here:
http://walmartstores.com/7655.aspx
To read the ad matching policy go here:
http://walmartstores.com/10563.aspx
They also don't require that you bring the ads anymore, so printing out the grocery lists from a coupon blog come in handy at the register. When in doubt, refer to the policies on their site, or find a friendly cashier who will help you. Happy Shopping!
Feeling Lost?
Oct 5, 2011
Are you new to coupons? Want to get started but don't know how? Well how about a few ideas to get you started?
You can start by finding a reliable website that covers the grocery stores in your area. Here's a few you might want to check out and see which one seems the easiest for you to use and understand:
http://www.thecentsableshoppin.com/
http://www.pinchingyourpennies.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=20
http://grocerysmarts.com/arizona/lists/splashg85ro1.php
These sites will help you figure out what is on sale at each grocery store every week, this is important because if you don't know what's on sale, you can't save money. Now most of you are thinking, “I can just look through the newspaper ads and figure that out, what's the big deal?” Well these lists not only tell you what's on sale, but also matches up any available coupons. This includes links to available online printable coupons.
Now when you get to these sites, you will find that couponers have their own unique language. Here's a break down of the most used coupon lingo:
Q= coupon
eQ= eCoupon
P&G = Proctor and Gamble (once a month in newspaper)
SS= Smart Source (in newspaper)
RP= Red Plum (in newspaper and mail)
GM= General Mills (occasionally in newspaper)
CAT= Catalina, a coupon that prints from the machine at the register.
OYNO= On Your Next Order, also called a Catalina, printed at the register and can be used as money for your next shopping trip at that store.
RR= Register Rewards (usually at Walgreen's), also a ONYO Catalina
ECB= Extra Care Bucks, register rewards at CVS
MFR= Manufacturer Coupon
OOP= Out of pocket cost
MM= Money Maker
There are lots of other sites that provide the same information as the one's I listed above, so by all means, use the one that is best for you. Take the sales one at a time, and try not to get overwhelmed by all of it, you don't have to buy everything you have a coupon for. Finding the right sale is the first step in helping you on your journey to saving money.
Money saving tips for groceries
Jul. 15, 2011
Ever wonder what day is the best day to shop? For me, Wednesday definitely tops the list for a few reasons:
Wednesday is the first day of a new sale cycle at most grocery stores, so sale items in high demand are more likely to be in stock.
Sunflower Markets (4 locations in Tucson) and Sprouts Farmer's Market (1 location in NW Tucson) do their ads from Wednesday to Wednesday instead of Wednesday to Tuesday. This means Wednesday is Double Ad Day! On Wednesday you can go to these stores and shop 2 weeks worth of sales in one day. Double the amount of items on sale!
Ever heard of the Oroweat Bakery Outlet? There are 3 locations throughout Tucson, and they are a must when purchasing bread items. Not only do they have great prices on brands like Oroweat, Entenmanns, and Thomas', but they also offer you a free item from their rack by the register when you buy $7 worth of product in the store. In addition to these great prices, they also offer a reward card that gives a stamp for every dollar you spend in the store. Once the card is full, you get any item in the store for FREE. What does any of this have to do with Wednesday? Every Wednesday and Sunday is double stamp day, getting you to your goal twice as fast! So you can spend $7, get a free item and get $14 worth of stamps.
Hope these tips help save you money! Happy shopping!
Email your money saving tips to couponsisters@kvoi.com
