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Will I Pay for the Grocery Game?

Posted on July 23, 2009 by auburnchick

Tomorrow (the 24th) is the last day of my free trial period of The Grocery Game.

For one month, I’ve used the lists as a springboard for saving money.

You have all been reading about my shopping adventures.

Remember…I am not a celebrity.  I’m just a regular gal…the kind you run into every week at the grocery store.

I have not been paid by anyone to try this thing out, nor am I being paid to promote various web sites.

As I said, I’m just your ordinary blogging friend.

What have I learned this month?

  • Saving money takes some work.  Is it worth it?  Heck yeah!  I used to loathe shopping.  Just ask my family.  That’s one reason why Chicky started doing it for me.
  • Repeat after me:  “Thank you, Lord, for technology.”  Thanks to the Internet, there are loads of resources available to help you.  Remember…Google is your friend.  Need a coupon for Kotex (as I did this morning).  Just Google it.  What about Scotch Tape?  I Googled and found a great coupon that I used at CVS this week.
  • Stacking coupons saves you even more money.  Keep in mind that you can use a store coupon along with a manufacturer coupon on the same item.  Use two coupons on B1G1 (buy 1 get 1 free).  You’re getting two items, so you can use two coupons.  This is in addition to any store coupons you might have.
  • Stock up when prices are low.  Web sites such as Frugal Coupon Living, Southern Savers, and I Heart CVS put out lists of weekly store sales.  Make sure you click on coupon links!  Also be sure to check out the comments under these sites’ posts.  There are people just like us trying to figure things out.  In my case, a coupon wasn’t available at the link provided, but I found it at a different link and posted the information.  It’s all about helping out one another.
  • Subscribing to the RSS feeds of shopping web sites such as those above saves a lot of time when hunting for new posts.  Google Reader is my personal favorite.
  • Don’t buy what you don’t think you’ll use.  This is something I’ve done a good job of.  Although I’ve been uber-excited about all of my savings, I have honestly asked myself questions such as, “Will my family eat this?” and “Will this go to waste before we eat it?” and “How many school supplies do the kids really need this year?”  Don’t buy what you don’t need.  Or, if something is free, and you can’t use it, consider donating it to a food bank, school, or homeless shelter.
  • You will, initially, spend the same amount of money as before.  However, as your stash grows, you’ll notice that you don’t need to buy as much.  They say it takes about three months for this to happen.  I think in my case, it will be about two.
  • Save your coupon inserts and write the date on them.  Don’t cut them out before you need them!  Frugal Coupon Living and Southern Savers refers to the name and date of each supplement when providing coupon information.  Trust me.  It’s much easier to find coupons this way.  And, just because you don’t think you’ll need something, you might change your mind later.

Ok…time for some hard-core evaluating.  Will I pay for my Grocery Game subscription?

No.

Here’s why.

After recently discovering the Frugal Coupon Living and Southern Savers web sites, I think I can save money without paying for the “lists.”  These sites put out very similar lists only in a different format.  Their lists come out the first day store sales begin.

Southern Savers put out this post today that explains that they only list sales that reflect best prices, so if something is on sale but not on their list, try to hold off.  Chances are great that the item will be cheaper the next time it’s on “sale.”  This is, essentially, what The Grocery Game does only in a different format.

I will, however, continue to read The Grocery Game’s forums.  They are free.  The ladies there are awesome and will answer your questions quickly and in a friendly manner.

I am so glad my neighbor told me about The Grocery Game.  Her small comment got the wheels in my brain turning, and it piqued my curiosity.  They say curiosity killed the cat.

Well, in my case, curiosity saved me enough money to buy an entire litter, if I was a cat person!

Quite simply put, shopping will never be the same for me.  I like challenges, and that’s how I approach each planned trip to the store.  How much can I save?  Just how close to free can I get something?

It’s addicting.  And it’s like a virus that spreads to those around you.

The gal who bagged my groceries last week watched my bill go from $115 to $37.  She asked if I used web sites, and I gave her three to write down.

Today she bagged my groceries again.  You could see the look of anticipation as she waited for my total.

$54.55…before coupons.

After?

$16.43.

For this:

I had a coupon for every item in that picture.  In some cases, I had two or three coupons.

The Chef Boyardee was free…even a money maker of $.15 after my $1 coupon.

I got six packages of Carefree for $.34…total.  That’s $.06 a piece for a savings of 96% on that item alone!

The bagger was amazed…once again…and told me she had visited the sites I gave her and was planning on giving it a shot.  I wished her well.

I hope I haven’t bored you with my shopping adventures.  I will continue to update my total on the sidebar of my blog.  And there will be posts where I can’t contain myself and will just have to share stories of my latest shopping trip.

I hope I’ve inspired you to start saving.  If this poor economy does nothing but causes us to be more mindful of what we spend, then at least that’s one positive, right?  Why waste money if you don’t have to!

Oh, and for the record, since June 30th, I’ve spent $445.56.  I saved $519.12.  So, WITHOUT the coupons, I would have spent $965.08.  My savings was 54%.

With the numbers laid out like that, I find it a bit disconcerting to think about how much money we’ve been wasting the last few years.

My ultimate goal is to cut grocery and “miscellaneous (i.e. Target/Walmart/CVS)” shopping in half.  I think I’m on my way!

Filed under: Saving Money | Tagged: , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

Shopping Trip #1 While Playing The Grocery Game

Posted on June 30, 2009 by auburnchick

Obviously today was a big day for me.

First, I took the English certification exam (previous post).  I knew that I would also have to make a trip to the grocery store.  Current sales end on Tuesdays, and I wanted to take advantage of them.

You’ll recall that last week I signed up for The Grocery Game.  It’s a free, four-week trial period…during which I am allowed to get lists of all of my local stores’ sales.

Let’s talk about the “lists.”  The lists are what your membership fee entitles you to.  The lists group sales into three price categories:

  1. Only if Needed (i.e. on sale but not rock-bottom)
  2. Rock-Bottom Prices
  3. Free

Each category is color-coded, and regular prices, sales prices, coupon dates, amounts, and sources are listed beside each item.  This makes it easy to hunt for the coupon you need, and you know exactly how much you’re paying for each item.  There’s even a column to check mark the items you plan to purchase.

Before printing the lists, you can sort them in different formats…all items, original sorting order, only the items you check-marked, and a host of others.

A word of caution.  The original sorting order lists items in the same way that your stores are laid out (i.e. produce, dairy, frozen) .  I always seem to do things the hard way.  I sorted my lists by color and printed them that way…a very bad thing as I looked for items on my list while I shopped today.

Argh!

Lesson learned for next time.

The lists become available by noon on Sundays.  My only complaint thus far is the timing.  Because sales ads run Wednesday through Tuesday, this leaves me only two and a half days to shop.  This is not good.  Especially since I try not to enter a grocery store on Sundays…it’s just too busy and I like to relax on the weekends.

On Sunday, I printed the lists as soon as they were posted and bought a newspaper from Walmart, where my friend told me they are sold for $.99.  My mission:  hunt down as many coupons as possible.

Being organized is key here.  The way this system works is that you need to keep coupons for when prices hit rock bottom.  Teri (The Grocery Game founder) likens it to a stock market…buy when prices are low and double up when you can.  I love any opportunity to “get organized,” so I pulled out some extra folders and designated them for SmartSource, Red Plum, and Miscellaneous coupon sources…thus streamlining the time it takes to find the right coupon…

I printed the entire list for Publix…thankfully…as I made reference to it many, many times.  I bought quite a few items I did not originally plan on buying simply because I needed them and figured I was saving money, even if I didn’t have the coupon listed.  There were a lot of buy one get one free (BOGOF) offers.

Here’s a picture of my Grocery Game list, coupons, and the tiny list of “wants” that Chicky wrote out for me.  I was ready to roll.

I can’t say that I stuck completely to the items listed.  I don’t have a stockpile of goodies to use for recipes and, quite honestly, there are items you just have to replenish week by week.

Speaking of stockpiling…this is something that the site advises games to do.  If you can get something for pennies, buy it if you know you’ll use it eventually.  You don’t know how much time will elapse before the item goes on sale again.  My thinking is that this would be a great way to collect a bag of items for your local food pantry.

While I was shopping, an interesting thing happened.  I noticed that another shopper was using coupons.  No biggie.  But then something else caught my attention.  She had lists — lists that looked familiar.

Taking a deep breath, I approached her and asked if she was doing The Grocery Game.

Yes, she sure was!  We talked for quite some time.  She’s been playing since March and had loads of advice.  She told me about two coupon sections located at the front of the store.

She also told me there was another coupon handout that the store didn’t have.  I’ll be calling customer service about this one.

She reminded me that you can stack coupons…i.e. you can use a store coupon AND a manufacturer coupon on the same item.  I knew this already, but it was a timely reminder.  She also told me that you can use two coupons on BOGOF’s…even if the second item rings up free.  Personally, I think this depends on the management, but I was able to do it today.

After speaking with her, I visited the front of the store, where I picked up the coupon supplements she had referred to.  I then spent another 30 minutes looking for some of the items in these handouts.  I wound up getting three items for free!

By taking the time to methodically make my way through the store, I was able to spy out a very good deal that had not appeared on the list…i.e. I got free Caprisun after taking advantage of a buy one get one free offer on cookies AND a $2.00 coupon.

I couldn’t wait for the cashier to ring me up.  Look at my receipt:

The Advertised Special Savings were the BOGOF and bigger savings on chicken breasts.  Advantage Buy Savings were the little ones, like the $.40 I saved on detergent (which I combined with a manufacturer’s coupon to save even more $$).  You can see how much I saved by clipping and stacking coupons.

Amazing, eh?

The Mr. was not so impressed, claiming that we would have saved money on the BOGOF anyhow.  I beg to differ.  Those are the items you really want to have coupons for.  I mean, you’re already saving 50%, but to make it even more of a savings by throwing in a coupon!  Oy, the joy!!

My experience today was overwhelming, to say the least.  Would I have felt this way if I had not risen at 4am?  To some extent, I think I would have.

Was it worth the effort?

You betcha!

The end result was a buggy of goodies…

Which translated into a car full of goodies…

Which translated into a happy shopper.

I will keep you posted about my savings.  I want to visit CVS..a store that my new friend said she has loads of success at.

Filed under: This-n-That | Tagged: , , , | 5 Comments »

My Experiment With The Grocery Game

Posted on June 25, 2009 by auburnchick

A few days ago I was outside working in the yard.  One of my neighbors (the one who bought and planted the roses between our yards) came out, and we began to chat.

Who knows how one conversation led to another.  We might have been talking about bills, the economy, and whatnot.  Anyhow, she mentioned a web site called The Grocery Game.

I had never heard of it, so I listened in rapt attention.

The basic premise of this site is that it does the leg work for those of us who want to save money when we shop for groceries and miscellaneous items.

I don’t know about you, but over the years, I have gone back and forth in my efforts to save money.  I have spent hours upon hours at my kitchen table, comparing store ads, cutting coupons, and planning my store lists.

My life has gotten crazy, and to save time, I’ve paid “sticker price” for the stuff I buy…preferring to shop at one store.  Easy in, easy out.

My financial situation, though, is forcing me to make changes.

Hence, my curiosity about this site.

Now, I am always leery where it comes to sites that charge for such services; however, this site offers you a free, four-week trial.  You can sign up for any stores listed in your area, peruse store lists, and see how well you play the “game.”

I waffled.  Do I sign up or don’t I?

I finally took the plunge this morning.

I thought that as I play with the site, I would share my findings with you. I am, after all, your every-day person.  I’m not famous.  I don’t have much money.  I have picky, yet hungry children.  I need to save money.  I need to save time.

Will this site be a help to me?  Will I be able to train myself in this new method of shopping…which actually works on the premise of patiently waiting for things to go on sale and stockpiling?

Time will tell, as will I here on my blog.

Stay tuned for more…

Filed under: This-n-That | Tagged: , , | 1 Comment »

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