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As we talked about in our last post, you can get some EXTREME savings from couponing. Couponing can be a valuable way to save money but the wrong approach might result in wasting money and wasting product.

Here are some couponing tips for those just starting out:

1. Organize your coupons. Organize so that you don’t forget to use them or have them expire. You can use a binder or even a few envelopes and divide coupons by type. Organize your coupons before you leave to go shopping so you have the coupons you expect to use handy.
2. Get notified of deals. Join websites, blogs, groups, and notification services that will share info with you so that you can get in on valuable deals. Some deals are only offered online. Some are only daily deals so you need to act fast. Getting instant deal notifications will help you maximize savings opportunities and minimize time bargain hunting. (Hint: you can follow Twongo on Facebook or Twitter as well as subscribe to email updates). Click the icons below this post.
3. Plan. Plan your shopping trips so you maximize savings and minimize time spent. Plan to use coupons around sales and plan your menu based on expiry dates so you have an opportunity to use coupons.  Many couponers sit with their flyers and coupons and plan a weekly strategy with shopping lists so that they have a game plan for getting savings, minimizing gas mileage, and so that they know when they’ll use the products they’re about to buy.
4. Don’t let your best coupons expire. Use coupons with expiry dates first and periodically clean out your coupons so you aren’t rifling through an endless array of useless coupons whenever you shop.
5. Be strategic! Plan ahead when using coupons for perishable products. If you have a freezer, figure out if what you’re buying can be frozen, for instance. That way you can take advantage of bulk discounts and stock up on items you use a lot of.  Warning: Some new couponers are over zealous and make mistakes by buying too much.Don’t overdo it otherwise you could find that you’ve gone from watching extreme couponing shows to being featured on an episode of Hoarders and losing more than you’re saving because things are being wasted.
6. Track your savings. Make plans for those savings so you can quantify your efforts. Save for a holiday, build a rainy day fund, split your savings between a fun fund and an emergency fund, etc.
7. Take advantage of group buying. Share bulk packs with people, share purchases where products are perishable, and so on. Group buying deals on the internet (from companies like ours) can also help you save more money than a single discount.  Sign up for Twongo in your city and notify your friends about great deals with your Twongo Gimme Five referral code. Their participation in deals will serve you well in two ways. 1: You’ll save more on the deal (if you’re participating) because of their participation and you could get referral bonuses that you can apply to future daily deals. Here are some more tips for Maximizing Savings with Twongo.

Got any tips for  couponing clipping success? Please feel free to share in comments. Thanks!

There are a lot of ways to find great discounts and deals online and offline. Bargain hunting can go to an extreme — in a good way and in a not-so-good way. If you’ve not yet heard much about extreme couponing but want to rev up your money saving efforts, read on for some info and some helpful tips:

What is “Extreme” Couponing

In today’s economy, it’s smart to try to stretch your dollars further. With rising costs and often shrinking incomes, a bit of effort in budgeting and bargain hunting is going to positively affect your family.

There are coupon sites, group buying blog sites, and even television shows and specials now focused on people’s couponing habits and focused on sharing information about cost saving opportunities.  People can take advantage of coupon use to save substantially on any number of items. More companies than ever make coupons available via more than just the weekend newspaper and knowing where to find coupons and how to maximize savings with them could translate to more money in your pocket and a dramatically reduced variable spending budget.

TLC’s Extreme Couponing show is an example of the fact that a bit of effort and ingenuity can help people save massive amounts of money through several techniques.

If you’re someone who hasn’t bothered much with coupons, that’s probably because you haven’t seen a substantial way to save yet. It might seem like more effort than it’s worth to save fifty cents here and there. But ways to save more than nickels and dimes include:

• Coupon Stacking. This involves using two different coupons for one purchase. You can get even more strategic about it when you do this when there’s already a sale on.
• Buying small or trial sized items with non-restricted coupons. In this case you might even get a refund or store credit, depending on the type of coupon and it could be a great way to try out new products.
• Combining coupons, sales, and special deals where you get loyalty points, BOGO (buy one / get one free), free gift cards, and other offers.
• Waiting until end of season and clearance sales (which can offer deep discounts) to use your coupons.
• Doing group buying.  Group buying involves getting bulk pricing by participating with other shoppers. Twongo offers deals where you can accelerate savings by encouraging more people to join in on a deal offer and through other activities.

Some families save enough money with coupons to make a major purchase with the difference.  And there are deals out there that could allow you to do more fun activities, eat at restaurants more often, and find new things to try because of deep discounts for new customers.

Want to save more money? Sign up for coupon sites so you’ll get notifications and subscribe to Twongo for instant notifications of our daily deals in your city.

Subscribe to the  Twongo Blogo. Our next post will give you helpful tips for newbie couponers and help you avoid common pitfalls new couponers often fall into.