Organization is a Frugal Shopper's Strongest Weapon
One of the best skills anyone can develop that will have long lasting effects that help save money is organization.
How many times do we lose out on saving money at the store even though we've clipped coupons because we just didn't bring them? How often do we miss out on a rebate because it's expired by the time we find all the papers we need to claim it? How many sales do we skip because we lost the circular and forgot the date? How many frequent flier miles or hotel rewards have vanished into thin air because they weren't used by their expiration date?
If you're incredibly disorganized, trying to get your entire life under control can seem overwhelming, but if you just start with a few tweaks here and there and keep after yourself to make them a habit, you'll quickly find there are many benefits to being organized. It can also be enjoyable because you waste less time looking for things.
These tweaks are just systems you need to set up for yourself. It can be as easy as buying a small coupon organizer and a purse big enough to keep it in. When you clip a coupon, throw it right into the organizer and when you're shopping, check the organizer, which you'll always have with you, since you'll have your purse.
Gentlemen can make it a habit to keep your coupon organizer in your car. Yes, this means a little extra effort to walk out to the car to get it to put in new coupons and then to walk back out there to put it back, but if you have $5 worth of coupons in it for your next shopping trip, it's worth that effort. And let's be real here, most of us don't walk enough during the day as it is. (Coupons can also often be stored on your smartphone, and since most of us keep that within reach at all times, you have to think even less about storage.)
There are plenty of other ways you could decide to organize your coupons, the main thing is that you commit to one system and start conditioning yourself to actually use it.
If you've just purchased a lot of appliances or picked up several items that require receipts and bar codes and other hoops to jump through for a the rebates, pin them to a corkboard all in the same place or tape them to the fridge -- somewhere very visible, as you collect everything. In a best-case scenario, just do everything to claim the rebate immediately. (Although with a new appliance, it makes sense to wait a week or two to make sure the thing works before tearing the bar code off the box.)
Most frugal shoppers probably already know the secret to keeping their budget in check is to track it and that sites like Mint make that a piece of cake. However, making the most of your reward points also required tracking them and if you've got several rewards cards and lot of chain loyalty cards, a great site for tracking them all is AwardWallet. It'll notify you as your balances increase and warn you about any points or miles that are about to expire. You may have been saving up for free airfare somewhere, but if you don't hit the number you need in time, you can decide if it's worth it to purchase some miles or to redeem your miles for something else. Many rewards cards not only offer hotel stays but also have lesser known shopping options. Your frequent flier miles could be everyone's next Christmas gifts.
A little bit of research will also clue you in to the best times of year to make purchases. If you use your phone to set reminders, you'll never forget to stock up on hats, gloves and outdoor clothes in May or wrapping paper and Christmas lights the first week of January.
You can note any big purchases you have coming up in the next year and set reminders for the best time to buy them, too. If you know you'll need a mattress or are planning to buy a new TV, those purchases can be timed to maximize your savings. (May for those mattresses and November around Black Friday for TVs, although there are also big sales on the previous year's models in January). If a store rep clues you in to an upcoming sale, you can add that to your calendar, too.
A little organization can make your bank account stretch a lot further.
Mel Bondar blogs at brokeGIRLrich, where she explores topics including how not to totally panic over adulthood, working in the arts and retirement strategies that don't involve living in a cardboard box under an overpass.
