The Nation Gets Serious About Coupons
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A team of very nonscientific researchers has finally discovered one thing that can distract the nation from Britney Spears: coupons.
According to Google, searches for coupons have outstripped those for the pop train wreck since 2008.
In addition, Coupons.com reported that Washington area residents printed $2.85 million worth of coupons last month. The top items were ready-to-eat cereal, baby products and baking ingredients.
"A lot of my readers are now out of work," said Ashley Nuzzo, who runs the blog Frugal Coupon Living. "A lot of my readers are trying to make it from day to day."
She started "couponing" a year ago when she decided to stay at home with her new baby and the family had to live off her husband's salary. The blog began as a resource for her friends and family, who demanded to know how she found her phenomenal deals: Nuzzo estimates that she saves about $1,000 a month on groceries and toiletries.
Traffic to her site exploded as the economy tanked. Then Dr. Phil asked her on his show in February, and she's been swamped ever since. Here are some of her secrets:
-- Don't spend it right away. Wait for a sale and then double down by using your coupon, as well. For example, Nuzzo found a $4 coupon recently for a razor that normally costs $9.99. She waited -- and when the razor went on sale for $4.99, she got it for 99 cents.
-- Stay organized. Ashley enters all of her receipts into Excel and tracks her monthly expenditures, as well as her savings. She and her husband stay away from credit and debit cards. Ashley said cash keeps her accountable and is harder to hand over to a salesperson.
-- Set a bar. As a rule of thumb, Ashley refuses to buy anything unless it is discounted by at least 70 percent or costs less than $1.
-- Ylan Q. Mui
