Whether strolling down the street or flipping through a local magazine, nothing excites people about grocery shopping like a good deal. Offering enticing promotions and discounts is one of the easiest ways to lure local shoppers into your supermarket’s aisles.
This engaging game teaches real-life shopping and math skills with a board that resembles actual store aisles. Each player is given a list of food items that must be ‘gathered.’ The list includes illustrations for students with limited reading skills.
1. Make a list
The key to successful grocery shopping is having a list of items you need to buy. This will help you avoid impulse purchases and save you money in the long run.
Whether you’re a master of extreme couponing or glance remorsefully at receipts after every trip to the supermarket, having a comprehensive grocery list is essential. There are many templates for grocery lists available online, but make sure to customize them to your specific needs.
Consider your regular weekly meals and build your grocery list around those products. That way, you’ll likely find sales without using coupons.
You can also look for sale items on your local supermarket’s website or download a free app, which offers weekly flyers and deals from multiple stores. It’s a great way to keep track of your shopping, and you can use the in-app checklist feature to cross off items as you find them. You can also set reminders to buy specific products on sale.
2. Join your supermarket’s rewards program
Grocery loyalty programs such as RetailMeNot can save shoppers a lot of money. The classic point and reward mechanic incentivizes repeat purchases by rewarding customers with discounts or free items while adding gamification as shoppers strive to reach higher loyalty tiers.
Even discount supermarkets can capitalize on loyalty programs, such as the simple yet effective A-List offering exclusive grocery discounts to loyal shoppers. This approach aligns with a minimalist brand and resonates well with consumers.
Similarly, some programs make signing up easy without visiting a store. The only catch is to remember to scan your MVP card when you shop to earn and save offers, which can include digital coupons.
Other than joining a loyalty program, there are many ways to save on groceries. These include comparison shopping across stores, taking advantage of warehouse clubs, checking unit prices, and signing up for e-clubs or apps from unique grocery and food brands. For example, some programs are free to join. It provides members with weekly ads and monthly grocery deals, including a great deal on bulk products like eggs and avocados.
3. Use coupons
While you may have seen extreme couponing on reality TV shows, getting in the groove of a regular grocery shopping routine with coupons takes time and attention. Experts recommend scheduling a weekly time to comb through circulars, coupon books, app deals, and manufacturer websites for coupons on the products you use. You can even make a habit of checking supermarket sales dates and planning your meals around items that are on sale.
Once you have a solid collection of money-saving coupons, don’t let them expire. Instead, organize them by expiration date and keep them in a special binder, baseball card folder, or other organizer, suggests one expert. Alternatively, some stores allow you to load digital coupons on your customer card for automatic savings at checkout.
Don’t get hung up on brand loyalty when using coupons. If you love a product but it’s not on sale, consider purchasing another similar brand from another retailer that accepts your coupons to save more. Or, try buying it in bulk from a discount store. That way, you can stockpile it and save even more over time.
4. Shop at multiple stores
Regarding grocery shopping, you may be used to sticking with whatever store is closest to your house. However, it’s worth looking into other stores offering lower prices for your favorite items. Grocery stores often price items to sell at a loss to lure customers into their stores and encourage repeat purchases. However, by shopping at multiple stores, you can ensure you get the best possible deal. Many grocery stores also have loyalty programs that give customers points on every purchase, which they can redeem for discounts or free products. This gamification element is popular with shoppers, making their experience more personalized and fun.
Consider signing up if you’re not already a supermarket’s rewards program member.
5. Compare prices
Comparing prices at a few different stores is essential when shopping for groceries. This will help you save money and avoid sticker shock at the register. There are many ways to do this, including searching online for deals, keeping track of receipts, and using apps and websites that compare prices.
When looking at a price tag, zero in on the number in the larger font first to get an idea of how much you’ll spend for the entire package of food. But look closer at the smaller print, and you’ll find a second number that tells you how much you’re paying per unit (such as per ounce or pound).
Conclusion
Remember this as you shop for groceries and decide what to buy. You’ll probably spend less when you choose the store with the lowest per-unit price on items you know you use. And remember that even though an item may be on sale, you should only buy it if needed. You don’t want to be tempted by a bargain and end up with extra groceries you won’t need.
