Stuff you should never buy without a coupon!

Free or nearly free sounds good right?

I've had experience with all of the below items, and it's a popular topic on coupon blogs - stuff you should NEVER pay retail for. 

If you're new to couponing, start here. 

At the Grocery Store:

--toothpaste, toothbrushes (and floss) - everyone knows a dentist visit will give you some free sample to use, but full size products are always going on sale too. Sales for these items typically go down to .99, and this is easily combined with 2 for $2 and $1 off coupons. These are items that should always be FREE for you!

--Deodorant - secret and old spice always have $1-$2 coupons, which are quickly combined with store sales for those amounts. Again, something that should always be FREE

--Candles - wait for the clearance sales and combine with the glad candle coupons that are always around for free or nearly free candles. 

--Air fresheners - Glade and Febreeze usually have coupons around, and I usually get these brands for free when I wait for a good sale to double up on a deal. 

--Dish soap - Palmolive and dawn have coupons, and a couple times a year, there are great sales that make high volume liquids for very cheap. On top of this, many dishwasher companies will have "full value" mail in rebates zoo try their products. I don't even have a dishwasher, and I have a few dishwasher cleaning products (would last me a few months when undo get a dishwasher haha)

--Paper products - no brainer if you've ever walked that aisle! Toilet paper, Kleenex and paper towel are always on sale! Combine great sales with coupons for that brand which are always around and never pay more than a toonie for 24 rolls! I even got expensive hot pink toilet paper for $1 because there was an in store sale and a promo coupon from the brand. 

-- food items: Soup, cheese, bread, Pasta (for the most part), bottled water. - these are items there are always coupons for and/or on sale. We've never paid more than $1 for a case of water. Cheese is expensive, so wait for the half off sales and combine with a coupon then. Same with pasta and sauce, it went on sale last week for $1 for a huge bag or one can. 

--Laundry soap and softener - same deal as above. Our favourite has been the arm and hammer massive jugs that go on sale for $12, combined with $3 off coupons. It's 5 months and were still on one jug!

--Cleaning supplies - windex and green works have been my best scores so far, as free on buy 2 get $4 deals when it went on sale for $1.99 each. 

The key for all of these is hanging onto your "high value" coupons until a good sale comes along for them. In some cases though, check those app rebates which may add onto a current sale + coupon to make the item completely free - I would use my coupon in these instances too. 

Not in the grocery store:

--Interest on credit cards - why? If you can't afford to pay for it, don't put it on the credit card! My favourite line on my credit card bill is the line about how long it would take to pay off my bill if I only made the minimum payment. Never! Credit cards have crazy interest rates, and this is how they make money. 

--Atm fees - plan ahead or shop at a place that gives cash back. Even buying a pack of gum and getting cash back at Walmart can be cheaper than using their $2 ATM fee across from the registers. 

--Calendars - if you need one, these are easily printed or requested like the Milk calendar.

--Return address labels - this is probably a tasteless one, but many charities will send out packages with your name and mailing address on them in the hopes that you will make a donation. War Amps, SPCA and others. 

--Grocery bags - buy some ikea ones once and always leave them in your car. 5 cents a bag adds up quick, plus you're helping the environment not contributing. Some places like NoFrills will have boxes at the front for you to put groceries in lieu of bags. If you absolutely need plastic bags, try shopping at Walmart where they are still free. 

--Stuff you won't use - this seems simple but if there's an incredible sale on mustard but no one eats it in your house, the money spent would be a waste UNLESS you donate the item. I've done this with diapers and wipes when the deal was too amazing to pass up, but I don't have a baby. 

Buy and Sell stuff - Kijiji, EBay, Varagesale

This is an easy one, but if you'd like some spare change in your pocket, sell some stuff or look for stuff you want to buy for sale by others!

Almost all of us will have stuff we don't need or got as gifts that just aren't us. There is a huge market of people like me who don't want to spend full price on stuff if they don't have to, so they will take to searching Kijiji or Facebook sell groups to see if someone has it for sale. 9/10 I have found what I'm looking to buy for sale by someone else cheaper. 

This work both ways; sell your own stuff and look to buy previously used stuff on the same sites. In not a pro at this, but I've tried to list some tips I use below:

Selling:

- do some research, figure out what the product was/is priced as new. Then, sort out whether your item is still in "like new" condition or whether you should make it half price due to wear and tear. Also do some research for your item on the sites you're going to advertise on; what do other people have it priced at?

- take pictures of it. This seems simple, but there are a ridiculous number of ads that have no product pictures of what they're selling. I don't even look at those ads, as there's a trust factor for me. Try to take pictures of all the views that you would want to see if you were buying it. 

- Write a description. Fluffy details of how it came to be in your life are not needed, more important would be keywords like "new with tags", "brand new", "like new condition". Try to be open about the product, if it says Large and fits like a small, say so. It helps build trust in the reader that you are forthcoming. Remember to state "pet friendly home" if you have a dog, and "smoke free" if you're not a smoker, these are important things people ask about for items. 

- copy the description and post it a bunch of places!  Kijiji is always my first stop, followed by a new app called Varagesale (virtual garage sale), followed then by posts in "for sale" groups on Facebook. There are A TON of Facebook sell sites - both for specific items (like horse tack or Disney collectibles), and for generic location-based sell groups. 

- you can also print up small posters and place them in nearby coffee shops (with permission). For large or expensive items like bed frames, couches or instruments this seems to work well. 

- when you post, make sure you only post contact info that is absolutely necessary. I only ever give out my email on posts, and my Facebook name is not my real full name. If you don't want to respond to emails, put only your phone number. When responding to messages, again, just be careful what you put. 

- NEVER arrange to meet at your house unless it's necessary (like a couch or something). I always take my stuff to a coffee shop across the street, for my protection. I advise everyone to do the same: pick a lobby of a grocery store or such, meet at a Tim Hortons and just advise you'll be wearing some bright coloured coat. Safety first!

- if possible, bring a friend. Added backup, plus someone to talk to while you wait for the buyer to show up. 

- people will barter. I usually try to price my items 10%-20% above what I actually want to get for it. People will low-ball as well, so you just need to figure out before you post the item what your lowest is. If in three months of constant posting you still haven't sold it, maybe it is priced too high, and I would suggest researching the price online again. 

Another thing to consider is what you're trying to sell. People have made businesses out of selling items on EBay and Etsy. There's a lady my mom follows online who dumpster dives for items, cleans them up and then sells them on eBay. Some people around town here take tables and chairs slated for the garbage and redecorate them to be pretty beautiful new items, and then sell them on commission in someone else's store. Others do handmade necklaces and charms, and have great stores on Etsy. A lot of all these people have Facebook pages that document their progress on new items, as well as announce upcoming sales to their fans. 

Below are a few examples of some i follow (Tumble and Lorraine do online etsy sales that sell out immediately, and Unique is a storefront that has so many different artisans inside that bring their items to the shop to sell. 

Buying:

- research, again. Learn what the storefront price is and what it comes with. Then, look on Kijiji, Amazon, the shopping channel, Facebook. See who has it and for what price. Figure out what you would be willing to pay after the research. Maybe through the research you found it on sale for half price and don't need to look any further!

- check out bargain bin stores around town. My roommate and I were looking for this one DVD for a year, did not want to spend more than $10 on it. Finally, I posted on a Facebook sell group if people had this for sale and someone said to try this discount DVD shop. I did, and bought the movie for $4. Some of the liquidation world stores around town have surprised me with what awesome stuff they have at the the time.

- post on Facebook or on Kijiji that you are "in search of" or "looking for" the item. Put in pictures and maybe a link to the full price item you want, and feel free to put in the price you want to pay. I've done this for a bunch of items and the buying/selling community has a lot of eyes and ears to help you do some of the leg work 

- it doesn't hurt to ask - ask the seller if there are any further discounts or if they'll come down another __$. I've been in stores and asked this and they've said they could apply some coupon I didn't know existed, and some people I've bought Kijiji stuff from have said they'll come down in price. For Kijiji and Facebook, just like how people will try to haggle you down, do the same (respectfully of course). 

- if buying from a person and not a store, arrange to meet somewhere not at their house. Don't walk into someone else's domain, you don't know who else is there. 

- just like selling, try to bring a friend. 

- bring small coin instead of a $20. If you can get them down a little cheaper than the $20 they're asking for, the last thing you then want to do is ask for "change". Bring toonies and loonies and $5 bills. 

Just some tips and tricks I've used. Feel free to share your own!

Discounts for becoming a rep

Just another way to get a discount : become a rep for the product!

I know a bunch of places have this scheme, buy the starter pack which has a bunch of stuff you'd probably actually want, and then get a time limit discount (in some cases it's a lifetime discount) on the products you're interested in. 

I'm a rep for Regal Gifts, though I in no way use this as a business. I use it as a discount offer for myself and family and friends because I think their products are so cool. I signed up, bought the starter pack of catalogues and such, and then got a year long 25% discount on all their products. They have a tiered program that if you sell a certain amount in the year you get a certain discount, so my 25% off turned into 15% off this year because I only "sold" (bought) $1000 of products in this last year.

 Regal also gives you a free "web store" so that you can direct potential customers where to buy stuff that doesn't even involve you. My favourite part about Regal is that you don't "Have" to buy a certain amount every month though. You can, and be entered into draws and such, but there is no requirement, like most companies have. (If there is any interest in you reading this to become a rep and get the discount too, let me know. There are "referral rewards" which would give me a gift card :) )

Most makeup companies that use reps have this program too, like a friend of mine that sells Aloette products (which are great): start with hosting a girls night in party, let the rep do the spiel and hope that people at your party will buy some products, plus you get a free shopping spree for hosting the day. Then, get signed up and even if you don't want to be a rep anymore, keep the discount. I might have missed some details, but I can direct you to my friend if you're interested in learning more. 

There's also Younique makeup products. Buy a $119 starter pack worth over $200, full of cool stuff you'd actually want, and become a "rep", which most people just use for their own discounts. You get a web store as well, but have to sell a certain amount to keep it each year. They also want you to sell/buy $125 every 3 months, and to keep the lifetime discount, you need to sell/buy $1000. Again, if there is interest in more details I can give you my reps/friends contact information. 

There are so many more, but even if you don't want to knock on doors and sell stuff, they can be great to save a little more money on the stuff you'd like to buy anyways. 

Basically everything I can think of has a rep program attached to it: Cleaning products (Norwex), cooking (Epicure), candles (PartyLite and Scentsy), Tupperware, more makeup/creams (Avon, NYX, plus lots more), scrap booking (Close to My Heart), "just for fun" (like Cloud9 lingerie or Fantasia sex toys), leggings (SweetLegs or Mayberry), jewellery (Silpada, Suetables, Kalung, so many more) and clothing (they call the home parties "trunk shows"). If something interests you, try googling it with the search term "be a representative from home".

If you wanted to make one of these a great side business though, there are lots of tools at your disposal to make this happen: social media still seems to be the best way to spread the word and keep interested people informed of the deals and offers. Email blasts, Facebook pages, Pintrest pinning of your favourite products, YouTube videos showing the transformation using the makeup - all of these could help you actually make money in these different opportunities. I love reading the online stories of people who have got out of debt, bought some expensive thing, or just been able to pamper them self from these work at home businesses. :)