Guest Post: When Savings Don't Add Up

Special thanks to Megan B. for this guest post! If you'd like to write for us, please read this.

When Savings Don't Add Up

If you've been couponing a while, you know the excitement of finding a coupon for an item that you use often. It's even better when you realize the item is on sale at your grocery store, so that when you combine your manufacturer's coupon with the store's sale, you save 50 percent or more of the cost! The thrill of the hunt can be so exciting that you rifle through the Sunday newspaper ads and surf the internet, snipping out dozens of coupons. No harm done; after all, it's all about saving money, right?

Well, yes. And no. Yes, the goal of cutting coupons is to save money. When done well, you may be able to save a large percentage of your grocery bill by couponing. However, there are two pitfalls of compulsive couponing you may wish to avoid: buying items that you would not use normally, and buying too much.

You have probably tried new items solely because you've had a coupon for it, and there's nothing wrong with that. Manufacturers send out coupons for new products because they want you, the consumer, to try them. Once you try them, you might like them, and you might even be willing to pay full price if it's really great. In this respect, using coupons to buy items you otherwise would not makes sense. Other times, however, it doesn't. If you normally buy potatoes and butter and milk, and make your own mashed potatoes, then coupons for ready-made mashed potatoes are not really going to be of any use to you. Sure, you might make a box in a pinch, but as you know, convenience foods are not as healthy as whole foods. You could, in some cases, be sacrificing health for coupon savings. Keep this in mind when evaluating your coupon purchases; while almost everyone uses some convenience foods at times, a steady diet of them is probably not worth the coupon savings, especially if you would not normally use them in the first place.

The other potential "danger" of couponing is buying too much. Items like toothpaste and shampoo and laundry detergent don't go bad, and can be used when you get to them. Stocking up on these items when you have a coupon and when they're on sale is a good idea, as long as you have the storage room. Non-perishable dry goods, however, are not non-perishable forever. Check the dates on the boxes of pasta, jars of olives and canned veggies you have in your pantry. If you are using coupons to buy more of these products than you can use before they expire, then you are not saving any money. Always think about what you have on hand already before buying more, and if you have a lot of a certain item, rotate your stock and check dates before consuming. Food poisoning is never worth saving a few cents!

By keeping these two caveats in mind, you can enjoy the money savings of couponing while avoiding the pitfalls.

Bio:
Megan B is a regular contributor for http://suitsandladders.co.uk/ a blog about finance and professional life. Admittedly an overzealous coupon cutter herself, she also enjoys spending time with her husband and her yorkie puppy, Alexa.