Extreme Couponers/Groupon

[Autumnovember]

Who watched this show on TLC tonight?!

Wow. I'm seriously speechless!

I caught the last ten minutes and this one woman who uses groupon, went food shopping and bought 600$ worth of food and only actually spent 6.00$!!!

Mind boggling.

How does groupon work anyway?

 

[manderz]

You can go check out the website, and either just look at deals in your area, or you can sign up for email or download the app for your android/iphone. I have both living social and groupon apps. You get all kinds of offers, for things like art work, adventures, massages, restaurant deals, tanning, hair removal, all kinds of crazy stuff.I've gotten some really great deals, like
-$10 for $20 amazon gift certificate
-$7 for $15 ebay gift certificate
-Buy one get one movie tickets
-70% off cooking class
-$70 for $175 worth of wine, with free shipping

There's one that I'm also thinking about, as it's an idea that's been floating around in my head for a long time... $50 for a consult, xrays, and the molds for invisalign braces, plus $1000 off the full treatment. Even with that, it's still going to be a lot of money, which is holding me back.

 

[Jessie702]

I dont know, but cant wait to watch this tonight( Ill be watching after survior), i want to be an extre couponer, so i get money back from the store. LoL...

 

[Autumnovember]

Watching the full episode now...


Another lady bought 1,000$ worth of food....for 100.00


WHAAAAAAT!

 

[Skippy123]

Watching the full episode now...


Another lady bought 1,000$ worth of food....for 100.00


WHAAAAAAT!

but how much work does one have to do and are they stockpiling??? I know when I get thrifty and go to great lengths to get a deal afterwards I realize how much of my own extra time that took. Sometimes it is fun but then other times it is a bit crazy. lol I do do Groupons but you get daily emails as a reminder. Once I bought a Gap Groupon and forgot to use it before it expired, DOH! So sometimes it isn't worth it.

 

[Autumnovember]

Watching the full episode now...


Another lady bought 1,000$ worth of food....for 100.00


WHAAAAAAT!

but how much work does one have to do and are they stockpiling??? I know when I get thrifty and go to great lengths to get a deal afterwards I realize how much of my own extra time that took. Sometimes it is fun but then other times it is a bit crazy. lol I do do Groupons but you get daily emails as a reminder. Once I bought a Gap Groupon and forgot to use it before it expired, DOH! So sometimes it isn't worth it.

They are stockpiling and it is taking up a lottttttt of time. It IS a bit crazy for sure.

 

[Jessie702]

I like the people who buy all the stuff and donate it to churchs and homeless shelters. I will agree, you do have to have a LOT of time.

 

[lliang_chi]

Groupons are kind of like "pre-paid discounts". So the business already receives the funds upfront. You typically need to make them aware of that you have a groupon ahead of time. I use them off and on, but only for things around where I live/work. If I have to go out of my way, I know I'll never use it.

~LC

 

[iheartscience]

Watching the full episode now...


Another lady bought 1,000$ worth of food....for 100.00


WHAAAAAAT!

but how much work does one have to do and are they stockpiling??? I know when I get thrifty and go to great lengths to get a deal afterwards I realize how much of my own extra time that took. Sometimes it is fun but then other times it is a bit crazy. lol I do do Groupons but you get daily emails as a reminder. Once I bought a Gap Groupon and forgot to use it before it expired, DOH! So sometimes it isn't worth it.

Yeah the extreme couponers seem to do it as a full time job. I read a blog once about this guy who used coupons to live on a dollar a day for a month, and he trimmed down the amount of stores he could go to to make it more realistic, but it was still too many! I don't have the time or the desire to go to two different grocery stores four times a week! (Not to mention take the time to find all the coupons online, in the paper, etc.)

I don't buy Groupons unless it's something I've actually been wanting lately. I've actually only bought 1 the entire time I've been on the Groupon email list. It was to a garden store I had just found out about a few days before I got the Groupon email, and I had been planning to go there.

 

[orbaya]

I watched last night. Who needs a 100 bottles of mustard, really?

I don't get the whole idea of buying a ton of the same thing JUST because there is a coupon for it. Sure, there is useful stuff, but yikes.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

I've not familiar with groupons, but did read an article in the paper about a woman who spends only $50 a month on food. One thing I noticed is she was buying in bulk. Those huge packages of chickens, whereas I'll buy one package of organic chicken for what she was paying for a months worth of meat. She was saving a lot but buying low-quality food. Not salad, etc.

I'm pretty sure I save about $10 a week on coupons but ONLY buy things I need or will use within the next few months (I won't use a coupon just b/c something is a good deal). Oh, and many places won't double manufactor's coupons so it can be a bit more tricky to use coupons than one thinks, but one thing I noted is that, say you have a Kashi Cereal coupon, and use it on a Kashi frozen food item, it will still work. The coupons don't track the item, just the brand! That's how I've saved a bit. Not sure if that is cheating. lol

 

[MichelleCarmen]

You can go check out the website, and either just look at deals in your area, or you can sign up for email or download the app for your android/iphone. I have both living social and groupon apps. You get all kinds of offers, for things like art work, adventures, massages, restaurant deals, tanning, hair removal, all kinds of crazy stuff.I've gotten some really great deals, like
-$10 for $20 amazon gift certificate
-$7 for $15 ebay gift certificate
-Buy one get one movie tickets
-70% off cooking class
-$70 for $175 worth of wine, with free shipping

There's one that I'm also thinking about, as it's an idea that's been floating around in my head for a long time... $50 for a consult, xrays, and the molds for invisalign braces, plus $1000 off the full treatment. Even with that, it's still going to be a lot of money, which is holding me back.

See but do people actually need/want those things? Just b/c an item is a great deal, doesn't mean a person should spend money on it. My mom did that all the time. If there was a great deal on some random item, she'd buy it then NEVER use it! She stock piled strange things!

 

[Yimmers]

Groupons are mainly to entice new customers. My cousin and friend have businesses, and have offered Groupons, but note that they don't make money off of them, because they are literally offering services for 1/4 the cost (1/2 off the normal price, and Groupon takes 1/2 of that).

It has earned them new business, so it's a form of advertising. But my friend who owns an organic dry cleaning business lamented that one of her regular customers literally bought the maximum number of Groupons - each spouse maxed out (6 each, so 12 altogether). It's a big hit for her business. Some people don't realize/care about this. So, I try to be mindful when I do Groupons.

 

[packrat]

Out in the boonies you can't be "extreme"-it's just impossible. There are no double coupon days here. Neither grocery store allows you to use more than one coupon for 1 item (like you can't use 5 50cents off coupons on a jar of Miracle Whip to get it free). And both stores watch like hawks so if it's a coupon for 2 big cans of SpaghettiO's, you can't use the coupon for 2 small cans, and you can't use it like mentioned earlier, Kashi cereal coupon for a Kashi something else. And I don't know where I'm going to store mega multiples of every item-unless there were like 10 of us going in on everything and splitting the bill/groceries.

 

[kittybean]

It has earned them new business, so it's a form of advertising. But my friend who owns an organic dry cleaning business lamented that one of her regular customers literally bought the maximum number of Groupons - each spouse maxed out (6 each, so 12 altogether). It's a big hit for her business. Some people don't realize/care about this. So, I try to be mindful when I do Groupons.

I think it's important that businesses who offer Groupons understand that it is not a great deal for them and that it will hurt their bottom line. It should be considered an advertising/marketing cost and appropriately figured into the business' budget. It frustrates me when businesses do not realize this and subsequently become aggravated when people use their Groupons and chip away at the business' bottom line. If that is a big concern, other strategies for marketing or advertising should be considered.

I am on the Groupon email list and have bought about 4 Groupons in the last year, but like Thing, I only buy them for places I would've gone or items and services I would've purchased anyway. I was planning on getting canvases made from our favorite wedding photos, so when Canvas on Demand had a big Groupon discount, I purchased several at about 70% off and used them right away.

Otherwise, I am not much of a coupon person. It is difficult and time-consuming to keep track of them all, and I would rather not spend my limited free time getting the most amazing deal I can. If I had more free time, I'm sure I'd track down and use more coupons.

 

[Miss Sparkly]

I love groupons but have noticed that some businesses inflate the value of their services. For example, one photographer stated that two hours of photography plus was cd Rom was valued at $675. I paid $225 for a top photographer to do the same thing a couple months ago. Or the bowling groupon I bought was a great deal but they valued two bowling games at $10 when they were really $6 full price for two.

 

[lbbaber]

Who has time for that kind of couponing??? I'm a SAHM and even I dont have that kind of time. And if you budget in the hours they spend doing this and the amount of gas spent driving to different stores---forget it!! No thanks, Not for me.

Besides, I never remember to bring the coupons anyways. I got a coupon in the mail for a Sunglass Store in the mall worth $75 off my next purchase (bc I buy there often). Even though I bought 2 pairs recently, I never remembered that darn coupon and now its expired! What a waste...that one annoyed me a little--but not enough to drive home and get the coupon before I bought my sunglasses!!

I shop at Costco once a month. That's my bargain shopping

 

[manderz]

You can go check out the website, and either just look at deals in your area, or you can sign up for email or download the app for your android/iphone. I have both living social and groupon apps. You get all kinds of offers, for things like art work, adventures, massages, restaurant deals, tanning, hair removal, all kinds of crazy stuff.I've gotten some really great deals, like
-$10 for $20 amazon gift certificate
-$7 for $15 ebay gift certificate
-Buy one get one movie tickets
-70% off cooking class
-$70 for $175 worth of wine, with free shipping

There's one that I'm also thinking about, as it's an idea that's been floating around in my head for a long time... $50 for a consult, xrays, and the molds for invisalign braces, plus $1000 off the full treatment. Even with that, it's still going to be a lot of money, which is holding me back.

See but do people actually need/want those things? Just b/c an item is a great deal, doesn't mean a person should spend money on it. My mom did that all the time. If there was a great deal on some random item, she'd buy it then NEVER use it! She stock piled strange things!

I agree, a lot of it is really unnecessary. But, I will always buy stuff on ebay. I will always buy something from amazon. FI and I do have occasional movie dates. It's not like I'm buying them just for the sake of buying them, I only take advantage of the ones I know I'll use.

 

[Ara Ann]

yeah, something I noticed was the kinds of foods they were getting deals on were not 'good' foods at all, most of it is processed and canned (besides TP and sundries and such)...I don't think I'd want to reply on the kinds of foods they are stockpiling, for every day meals! I HOPE they buy real-fresh food sometimes too! I saw part of the one episode and a woman bought like 35 bottles of antacids! WHO needs that much ant-acid? She was also buying tub style margarine, so maybe her diet and savings plan isn't the best to follow, from a health perspective.

Someone I know (who happens to be very overweight) was talking about couponing and said how excited she was to get 10 2 liters of Pepsi for $1.00 or SLT and it struck me that is isn't a 'good deal' if it isn't healthy for you.

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

I actually have a few friends who I would consider extreme couponers (though not to the extent of the women on the show). Yes they have stockpiles of stuff that the might not use before the expiration date or like to eat, but "purchasing" a lot of that stuff gives them "free" money to use on real groceries like milk, meat and produce. They don't live off of canned tomato sauce and sugar cereal. But they have to make the initial investment in that stuff to save in other places. It's a spend money to save money thing. These friends will let anyone and everyone come and "shop" in their stockpile because they know there's no way they can use it all. But they also donate a lot to food pantries and stuff so it's not going to waste and they get a tax deduction.

Also, I live in the northeast and most of our grocery stores are not coupon friendly. They don't double and they're very very picky. It seems like it's more common in the south. Publix and Kroger are two stores I hear about a lot. southernsavers.com is a great site for people who want to learn about couponing, etc.

I've also heard about some people selling stockpiled stuff on ebay for extra $$$

 

[Tacori E-ring]

I love coupons and deal of the day websites! Why pay more if you don't have to? I watched the show and thought two things. First, kudos to the man they showed who donates regularly to his local food bank! That is a wonderful way to use his "talents." Second, the first two women appeared to be hoarders. Stockpile that amount of food/stuff is crazy. I can see having a year supply, but 30 years of TP? Hopefully they can get help with their process addictions (hoarding & shopping).

 

[qtiekiki]

It has earned them new business, so it's a form of advertising. But my friend who owns an organic dry cleaning business lamented that one of her regular customers literally bought the maximum number of Groupons - each spouse maxed out (6 each, so 12 altogether). It's a big hit for her business. Some people don't realize/care about this. So, I try to be mindful when I do Groupons.

I think it's important that businesses who offer Groupons understand that it is not a great deal for them and that it will hurt their bottom line. It should be considered an advertising/marketing cost and appropriately figured into the business' budget. It frustrates me when businesses do not realize this and subsequently become aggravated when people use their Groupons and chip away at the business' bottom line. If that is a big concern, other strategies for marketing or advertising should be considered.

I agree. I don't think the customers need to be mindful of whether the businesses are losing money for offering groupons. It's part of their expenses; they make the choice to offer them.

 

[jewelerman]

i was really impressed and it inspired me to consider using store coupons more then i already do.

 

[Black Jade]

bump

my sister is an extreme couponer.
She gets very healthy food. there are actually coupons for some of the name brand salad bags and for fruit and sometimes meat.
I started doing it. I am not very advanced yet. but I figure with the price of gas and other things I can't control going up so fast, I had better control what I can. Besides, I (and you) pay companies money to advertise their brand names and put out coupons, we might as well use them.

My sister does not go to dozens of stores a week. she has a good list and goes to no more than 2 stores. She goes prepared, has map ofthe store and so forth and is not spending a great deal of time on this. she is a teacher and has four kids who she spends a lot of time with and also volunteers for her church. Her life is not couponing. but it helps her as a single mom to keep costs down and she can do other things with her money, like fix up her house and so on.
She gets many things totally free!
She recommended this book: Supershop Like the coupon queen by Susan Samtur. I am finding it useful


http://www.amazon.com/Supershop-like-Coupon-Queen-Every/dp/B004LQ0EIW/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1303322861&sr=1-1

There are also useful websites like hip2save.com

 

[ForteKitty]

I'm crazy about groupon, livingsocial, and lifebooker, and feel very fortunate that los angeles gets a lot of deals. I also scour orange county and san diego because it's not that far. We've purchased deals for many restaurants that we love, tried a few new restaurants that were amazing, got some massages & facials, shellac manis and pedis, haircut at this awesome and normally overpriced place, got cheap movie tickets, went on activities like kayaking and whale watching, rock-climbing, and i got my laser hair removal treatments too. All at 50% or more off. (i made sure it wasn't inflated before i purchased!) We even purchased our activities for hawaii on groupon. They were things we planned on doing anyway, so it's great that we paid about half!

The laser hair treatmeats ended up being $200 for 12 treatments (split among two areas: underarms and full brazillian). Plus they took out $60 because i had a few referrals. Groupon gives you $10 for each new referral. I've only had two treatments done but my hairs are nearly gone, i'm soooo happy. Had i paid full price, it would have been a LOT more. If you are considering it, DO IT!!!

 

[mg1234]

I have used a few deal of the day sites like Groupon. I have found that sites like http://www.eDealio.com are very useful in sending me daily emails on these deals from many sites