Throughout the last five years or so, a new trend has blossomed around the idea of “extreme couponing” – the practice of combining coupons to effectively negate the price of products and reducing grocery and other shopping costs as close to zero as possible. Many families across the United States have committed to practicing this method, especially in the light of the economic downturn that has plagued the economy – and the trend is expanding to other countries and continents as well. Though extreme couponing isn’t for everyone, we can all learn about the power of rebates, coupon codes, and promotions through the tactics employed by these saver superheros.
Extreme Couponing: Understanding the Basics
In the most simple terms, extreme couponing is a movement that takes advantage of store and manufacturer coupons and sales in order to “earn money” on low cost products through coupons, which can lead to coverage of the cost for other products in a shopping cart. Extreme couponing often leads to the storage of extra items in a designated pantry, as often the math works out that many items must be bought in bulk quantities to negate the costs of other products through coupon duplication. Certainly, this level couponing is complicated – but many families have made the math easy through spreadsheets, calendars, and strategic shopping lists in binders that allow for coupon organization. Plenty of bloggers share their advice and tips for free on the subject, and extra coupon codes can be located online to enhance the offerings provided in the shopping circulars found in local newspapers and junk mailings.
The Emerging Lifestyle of Extreme Couponing: Saving Time to Save Money
Without a doubt, the extreme couponing trend comes with a lot of pitfalls, so before committing to practice of this trend, it is important to negotiate the pros and cons. Extreme couponing takes a lot of energy and effort from its practitioners, and it isn’t a smart choice for every shopper. Not every household can afford to spend so much energy and effort – in some cases, over fifteen hours of research each week – in order to produce the savings that are gained through extreme couponing methods. In some cases, the effort might reduce the shopping expenses dramatically, but will save far less for the family than if those hours each week were dedicated to a minimum wage job.
The Benefits of Maximizing Your Spendings Through Coupons
Whether or not you are an extreme couponer, you can save an extremely large amount of money by using coupons in your everyday shopping practices. Part of the big appeal of extreme couponing is that it provides an alternative to simply purchasing generic brands in order to save money. Buying generic does not always provide top quality goods and services, especially when promotion codes and rebates can reduce one’s spending. Without the dedication of too much time or effort, it is easy to search online for printable coupons, rebate forms, or coupon codes that apply to the products you shop for most, whether electronics, groceries, or services that you prefer. By searching for the discounts on the brands that you already trust, you can be sure that you do not end up spending extra to “earn” your savings on items that you ultimately do not necessarily need.
Coupons and rebates are also fantastic for big-ticket items, such as contracts for your household utilities, phone, and cable bills. Not many consumers are aware of how much can be saved on these monthly bills by applying a rebate, coupon code, promotion that leads to cash back. For example, by employing a Verizon Fios promotion code from couponcodes.io, you can not only save money on each monthly statement, but you can also earn a rebate that negates a part of the service costs. Considering that it is relatively easy to search for these codes and comparison shop for the services and products that you want, this method is not necessarily “extreme” – but you can expect to have drastic savings through a minimal amount of effort.