Keep sending in those questions – we love to answer them! Just remember if we didn’t get to your question this week…we will do our best to cover it another week!! As always a big thanks to my buddy Christy over at Haphazardly Hobbying who gives me so much help to get the questions answered.
Remember–there is a tab at the top of the site called “Q & A” where I organize the questions and answers from this feature so that it can serve as a quick reference!
Here are this week’s questions:
- If a clearance item is marked 2/$X, do I have to buy 2 of that item in order to get the clearance price?
- What are good stock-up prices for produce?
- Do you have any suggestions about organizing unused coupons post-shopping trip?
- Are you able to use two printable coupons with a BOGO sale?
- Do you count the cost of your newspapers or any coupons you purchase online in your budget?
- Should I feel bad about using so many competitor coupons at Publix (since they don’t get reimbursed for them at all)?
- On more than one occasion, I’ve realized that I had products on one receipt that needed to go with two different rebates. Do you have a plan or system you use when shopping includes rebate deals in order to avoid this situation?
- Do you know if there is a way to print coupons from an iPhone 3GS?
- If Publix is running a B2G1 sale and I have a B2G1 manufacturer coupon, do I only end up having to pay for one item?
- How can I make sure that I’ve gotten ALL the deals – weekly ad, advantage buys, unadvertised deals, etc – when I make my weekly shopping list?
And here are the answers!
- Christina wants to know: If a clearance item is marked 2/$X, do I have to buy 2 of that item in order to get the clearance price?
- Heather wants to know: What are good stock-up prices for produce?
- Pam wants to know: Do you have any suggestions about organizing unused coupons post-shopping trip? My biggest problem seems to be that I end up with unused coupons after a trip (either out-of-stock, a higher price than I anticipated, it just didn’t work with whatever deal I was doing, or peelies/blinkies I picked up). Usually they are clipped together based on the store I intended to use them at, and they end up everywhere! These are usually great coupons that I intend to use, but I end up missing out on other deals because they are scattered. Any suggestions? I use the insert filing method, plus a notebook for my IPs and Peelies.
- Jennifer wants to know: I know every Publix is different, but are you able to use 2 printables with a BOGO? A cashier once told me only one printable on the BOGOS (with same expiration) as they could be photocopied. Just wondering what your store’s policy is.
- Stephanie wants to know: Do you count the cost of your newspapers or any coupons you purchase online in your budget? It seems they would need to be factored in somewhere to make it “saving” money. Are there deals available on newspapers?
- Tiffany wants to know: Should I feel bad about using so many competitor coupons at Publix (since they don’t get reimbursed for them at all)? Some weeks I use quite a few competitor coupons and feel almost guilty knowing Publix gets nothing for them. Please tell me I am not the only one that feels this way and help me clear my conscience!
- Anna wants to know: I’ve recently started doing rebates along with my coupons to bring in that little extra cash. On more than one occasion, I’ve realized that I had products on one receipt that needed to go with two different rebates. Do you have a plan or system you use when shopping includes rebate deals?
- Deanna wants to know: Do you know if there is a way to print coupons from an iPhone 3GS?
- Lisa wants to know: I want to make sure I’m understanding this correctly. If Publix has a buy 2 get 1 free sale and I have a B2G1 manufacturer’s coupon, do I pay for only one and get the 2nd and 3rd one free ( the 2nd paid for by Publix and the 3rd paid by manufacturer)?
- Sherri wants to know: How can I make sure that I’ve gotten ALL the deals – weekly ad, advantage buys, unadvertised deals, etc – when I make my weekly shopping list? I usually print the weekly ad, then print the different advantage buy ads, and then sometimes go back to the deals tab to make sure I haven’t missed anything. Then I go make my own spreadsheet. Is there an easier way?
Christy: You shouldn’t have to buy two to get the clearance price – I never have at any of the stores in my area, at least! As always, check with your service desk, but I’m pretty certain about this one! 🙂
Michelle: You can just purchase one and get the sale price.
There are so many others but this are the ones that I buy most frequently and the price I like to pay (lower is even better!!)
grapes- 99¢/lb
apples – $1 /lb
bananas – 49¢/lb
peaches – 89¢/lb
berries – $1.99/pkg
watermelon – 49¢/lb
cabbage – 50¢/lb
onions – .99¢/lb
salad bag – $1 per package
spinach – $2 per package
avocado -$1
green beans, $1/lb
Squash $1/lb
bell pepper 50¢ each
broccoli $1
asparagus $2/lb
mushrooms $1.50/ 8 oz pkg
lemons/limes 25¢
tomatoes – $1.29/lb
Chrsity: I have a “to be filed” coupon bin – a shoebox would work, as would an old tissue box, etc – that I keep near my desk. When I get home from shopping, I generally have a bunch of random coupons, too. I just put them in the bin and (in theory) make it a point to re-file those coupons before I make my next shopping list (in reality, sometimes it takes a week or two 🙂 ). Still, at least I have one set place where I can look for those coupons if I realize that one’s missing!
Michelle: I also have an ongoing “to be filed” pile of coupons. I try to keep mine in a zip pocket inside my binder but in all honesty I usually have a pile there and on my desk. I try to be organized but sometimes life gets in the way.
I would love to hear any ideas you guys have…I could use a better system myself!
Michelle: You should be able to use two coupons no matter if they are printables, tearpads or blinkies…the type is not important. If your cashier fears that you have made copies be sure and show them that the code on each coupon is different (go HERE to see where to find this on your coupon).
Michelle: I have mentioned in the past that I use the money I earn from my survey sites to cover the cost of coupons. I usually only get one set of full inserts each week and they are from my home delivered paper. I budget for a year of Sunday delivery each week and then use my “monopoly money” to cover the cost of additional coupons. I find that between this and trades I can usually get what I need without touching my bank account. Some people also roll the cost of their papers in their drugstore deals which is a great way to use the various drugstore money!
Christy: I understand where you’re coming from, Tiffany, but I don’t think you should feel guilty. The competitor coupon acceptance policy that Publix has is one designed to keep their customers coming back to Publix rather than going to other stores, and it’s working! If you think about all the revenue you generate for Publix – not just the out of pocket amount that you spend, but the hundreds and even thousands in manufacturer’s coupons that you bring in to their stores – I think you’ll agree that it’s a win-win situation!
Michelle: I don’t think you should feel guilty at all. I am guessing that you likely spend more than the few dollars worth of competitor coupons that you use. While this may be a good incentive to get us in the door…I think we can all agree that we go back for many other reasons 🙂
Christy: In general, I try to keep my rebate purchases on separate receipts whenever possible. If that just doesn’t work, I make a note on my shopping list to ask for multiple receipts (you need to do this BEFORE your cashier starts to ring you up).
Michelle: I try to make sure I do separate purchases. It is really the only way to make sure you will get your rebate. Publix can print a duplicate receipt immediately after your receipt has printed BUT be aware that you may be denied your rebate as often they terms state that “original receipt required” . The duplicate receipt may be rejected as it is not an official original receipt!
You can check out the Coupons.com iPhone app HERE. It states that it is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iPhone OS 3.0 or later . If you give it a try come back and give us a review!
Christy: That’s right! the B2G1 coupon attaches to the third item, the sale pays for the second item, and you pay for the first item.
Thanks to your question…you can now find all of the hot deals listed in the ongoing deals page (weekly super deals, hot advantage buy deals and any other great deal reported)! Of course I can’t list everything but I will try to list the best of the best. This site is really a running list of all the deals at Publix but I will try to keep the good ones in one spot for easy reference 😀
I hope our answers to these questions were helpful! Make sure you ‘tune in’ next week for even more Q&A with I Heart Publix. If you have a question you’d like to see answered, email me at contactiheartpublix@gmail.com.
I use the coupons.com app on my iphone, and I love it! (You don’t have to have a wireless printer, I just have my printer hooked up to my wireless router). If you can, download the app on all of your portable Mac products (Iphones, Ipad, Ipods), you can get multiple prints this way! I wish there were more options to print coupons from these devices (like from Bricks etc), but right now Coupons.com is the only option!
I was so excited to read about this! And then I realized that I have a Brother printer, not HP…hopefully they’ll expand soon, we have 6 Mac devices that we’d love to print from !!!
In response to question #10, I always copy and paste Michelle’s lists (weekly ad, advantage flyer, Ongoing deals) into one Word doc. I delete items that I’m not interested in purchasing and any coupons I know I don’t have or can’t use at my Publix. I can then save the Word document in order to print the onlines (the hyperlinks carry over) and I print a hard copy as my shopping list and to organize all the coupons I need prior to going on my shopping trip (checking off each item as I find the coupons). If a new deal is posted on the site, I will just cut and paste it to the Word doc.
My brain is always going in so many directions and this is the only way I have come up with to stay organized and keep track of all the deals and coupons – while still maintaining my sanity!
I really like this idea!
I do the same thing! =)
Can someone help me with a question? Is it ok to photocopy a target Q printable to use as a competitor coupon? Since the store isn’t getting reimbursed, and the coupon isn’t actually scanned, I’m not sure that it’s “illegal” Some insight?
it is illegal to photocopy a coupon regardless…
I’d say it’s a gray area. The reason I say that is because you used to be able to print as many as you want from Target, and if you notice there is no “security feature” on Target Printables. Because of the language on the coupon at most Targets you cannot use more than one of the same coupon in the same transaction.
I think the only thing you will risk is making your store stop taking Target coupons. You’ll also send up some red flags to your cashier if you have a lot of Target Coupons for the same item.
It’s a tough question, for sure.
I too have the coupons.com app. I have it on the plain iphone 3G. The only catch, as mentioned above is that you have to have a wireless printer. I scored mine on an super duper deal from Amazon or I would never have bothered with any of it… I always feel super cool when I’m laying in bed and read a post on iheartpublix about a good coupon and can just push my app and push print… lazy… but cool!!! =)
This is in response to question #3. I, too, have coupons “to be filed.” It’s just a stack though and it fits in one of the pockets in my binder. If I put them in a box, I’m afraid I’d never get to them! But after I get home from a shopping trip and go through the grueling task of getting everything put up, I sit down with my purse and pull out all “leftover” coupons and add them to my “to be filed” stack in my binder, They are all together and I can get to filing them whenever I get a minute. I don’t know about you guys, but my stack is hardly ever empty. I have an ongoing “to be filed” stack! I won’t let it get out of hand, though. Be as organized as you can, nobody’s perfect!! 😉
HOW TO HANDLE LEFT OVER COUPONS. I pull all the coupons I plan to use and put them in an envelope marked Today and I hand that to the cashier at check out. I have already removed any coupons I didn’t use before giving it to the cashier and I return them to the envelope so that when I return home I can put them in the proper category. I use a notebook with baseball card holders so I just slip the coupons back in the plastic. Mine is organized by aisle as my store just rearranged their store layout so it helps me learn the new layout and not miss an item. The notebook goes with me into the store in case there’s an item I want to get that’s not on my list. My daughter-in-law taught me the baseball card/notebook system and it’s very efficient just like she is.
Tiffany- I often feel the same way about competitor coupons. 🙂