Thursday Discussion, buying things not on sale part 2!

Thinking about what I posted last week on tips to buy things you need that aren't on sale and you don't have a coupon for. I decided to summarize my super long post and add some more information.

Summary of previous info:

Here was Emily's question- "What do you do for regular grocery items that you need each week that don't match up with coupons or any sales?"

And here was my general answer:

1. You want to notice those items you are constantly getting for your family, and then make sure in the next few months those are always on your radar to stock up when they have a sale on them. As you do this, and you can go longer and longer between getting the item, you will soon realize you're only getting that item at a rock bottom low price, and then you notice you're getting EVERYTHING at rock bottom low prices, and building a food storage- for WAY LESS than your normal food budget. It pretty much rocks.

2. See if you can do without it. I don't really base my dinners on what I want to make, but what I have on hand. I substitute items or choose a different dinner if the materials I need aren't there.

3. If you do need to buy something at full price, or not on a very good deal, buy the bare minimum to get your family through and try to hold out for sale.

4. I only buy produce every two weeks. This gives me much more flexibility when choosing sales on these expensive items, and I always have a big stock of frozen vegetable bags on hand.

So that was last weeks post. Here are a few more tips on buying those not on sale needs.

-Call the company of the product you just can't do without. Let them know how much you love their product. At the end of the call they will usually say can we send you some coupons of our product as a thank you for your time today? You better say YES, I would LOVE some! If you have a valid compliment, complaint or concern call up the company and give them 5 minutes of your time for some great savings!

-Did you know bigger boxes or packages are sometimes more expensive than the smaller packages? I know I have looked at peanut butter before and the huge tub of it was more expensive per ounce than the small tubs! Crazy I know, but make sure you're looking at those ounce prices- sometimes a smaller product size is a better deal! (And if you combine it with a coupon, you're usually getting a better deal if .35/1 is matched with a $1.85 priced item than a $2.50 priced item)

-There are tons of coupon trading forums like this one at PYP and even ebay sells coupons at a pretty minimal price. If you need a coupon for something that you don't have, check out those places- you're probably going to find something there!

-Keep a running total list of your price points. This means if you see something on sale that you normally buy, you can quickly look at your price point list and know if that deal is worth it or not.
***I was just at Target last week, and was planning to buy some salad with my $1 off coupon, and just happened to look at the meat section as well. They were selling a package of hamburger for $2, I thought it was for 1 lb- so I was just about to pass by it, when a lady started putting 10 in her cart. I asked how many pounds it was, and she said 2. 2 lbs for $2- you better believe that is in my price point for hamburger- and really good Target meat too. I got 6 lbs, and now have enough hamburger for a month for my little family now. But I knew my price point for hamburger well enough to know I needed to stock up at that price.***

-I try to keep my normal grocery shopping total to $30 a week. That way we have a little leeway if we want to go out to eat, or I find an incredible deal that I wasn't planning into my budget- like the Target meat. My total budget is $50 a week for EVERYTHING, doctor's visits, birthday gifts, groceries, playing, eating out, etc. So having to stay under $30 helps give me more money in those unexpected expenses. If I have money left over at the end of the week, I roll it into the next week. ***The point of this tip? Have a budget, and plan for the unexpected! You don't need to start out on my budget, it has taken 9 months to get us here, and stocking up as we go. But make it a game at first and try to come under your grocery budget $10 or so. If it's super stressful and you try to cut out too much too fast, you won't stick with it- just like a diet. We're working on changing habits, and that takes time.***

I hope these tips will help you stick some extra money in your pocket and a smile in your heart!