Ways to Organize Your Coupons
There is no right or wrong way to organize large number of coupons. Some couponers use binders while others choose to use boxes with tab dividers. There are even some that choose to not clip anything, keeping their coupon inserts whole until there is a sale advertised for an item they have a coupon for. Organization is extremely important and the method that couponers choose is as varied as the type of coupons people collect. Coupon Binders This method of organization is the one that you see the most on the TLC television show Extreme Couponing. A lot of the couponers on this show choose this method because no matter how the binder is carried, the coupons will usually stay in place inside the binder. They are easy to put together and the supplies needed to start one are fairly inexpensive. It is easy to create a coupon binder. The only things that you will need are the binder, clear plastic baseball card protector sheets and dividers to create your categories. Decide what your specific categories are, put the binder together leaving plenty of pages in each category and slide the coupons into the pages. Be sure to have enough pages that each coupon has their own space. You should be able to view each individual one when turning the pages because a coupon slid behind another one may be forgotten or missed. Coupon Boxes You will see this type of organization on occasion but it doesn't seem to be as popular as the binder. It's exactly like it sounds; it is a box full of coupons. The box can be just about anything including recipe boxes, small tool boxes, shoe boxes or a plastic storage box. This type of organization is easy to put together and use but if the box is ever dropped, it can feel like a tragic moment watching the coupons spill out and scatter. Choose the box you want to use for organizing your coupons. You will need something to use as a divider for the categories of coupons that you have. Index cards work well for this type of organization. Cut one card in half and staple it to another one leaving a raised tab at the top where the category can be written in. You can have as many or as few categories as you want with this method of organization. Once your coupons are filed into their categories, the box is ready to go with you on your shopping trip.
Clip As You Go A lot of couponing experts show this method of organization for coupons but I personally find it unreliable for a few reasons. One is that you will miss out on a lot of opportunities because the majority of your coupon collection is not at the store with you. Another reason is that it takes a lot of time to go through all of the store ads and try to do the matchups that are specifically for your area and may have been missed by the site or sites that you use to see what the best deal is for that week. When you have all of your coupons with you, it is not necessary to do your own matchups. You see the item on sale at the store and can immediately pull your coupon out of your box or binder if you have everything with you. If you choose this method of organization, you will need a space to store all of your uncut inserts. Remember to put the date on the outside of the insert as you acquire them so you can easily find the insert that contains the coupon that you want to clip. It can be frustrating trying to sift through two months of undated inserts to locate one specific coupon. No matter which form of coupon organization you choose, it is important to choose one! Successful couponers know that saving starts with organization. Learning how to coupon takes a little time and the more organized and ready you are for that sale, the more successful you will be when it comes to check out time. Want your fair share of the savings? Click HERE!
Nadine Brown $2.99
Angela Newsom $4.99
Sarah Holmes $0.99