Yes, couponing is a lot of work. I won’t lie to you. And that’s the excuse most people use when it comes to using coupons. It’s too much work. But to me, work = pay. So let’s look at how much coupons “pay” you. I cut our monthly budget $300-$400 a month when I started seriously couponing (I used to just be a “casual couponer”). So I basically get paid $300-$400 a month to coupon. Sounds to me like the “work” is worth it! :)))
So, if your new years resolution is to be a better couponer, the first thing you need to do is organize your coupons!
The easiest way to organize your coupons is a small “coupon-sized” accordion file. This is good for just starting out. Eventually, you’ll outgrow your accordian file as you begin to amass large amounts of coupons. (I’ll talk about coupon binders later…)
But, to begin with – let’s talk accordian files.
Most of them come with either tabbed index cards or they have the plastic slots with pieces of paper to write on and insert. You’ll want to organize your coupons by category. Some examples are:
Baby
Baking
Beauty
Beverages
Breakfast
Canned Goods
Condiments/Sauces/Spices/etc.
Cleaning Supplies
Dairy
Dry Goods
Frozen Foods
Meats
Medicine
Paper Products
Toiletries/Hygiene
You can modify as needed.
Now, with an accordion file there isn’t much “organization” you can do past inserting the labels. Each coupon goes behind the label for which it is categorized. You can keep them sorted within each category by expiration date if you wish. Or you can group like brands together. (for example, under breakfast have all the Kellogg’s cereal coupons together and all the General Mills cereal coupons together). This may help you when you are looking for a particular coupon.
So pick up a coupon organizer (I had a plastic one I really liked that cost less than $4 from Walmart in the office supply section) and get organized!
Just know that once you get the hang of this, you’re going to want to upgrade to a binder. But don’t overwhelm yourself just yet! :)))
Happy couponing!
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