By understanding some basic marketing concepts, you can build confidence about how you shop, why you buy certain items, and how to save the green.
The savings or preferred card entitles you, the consumer, to purchase items at a discount. Thus saving you money. This fantastic little card also tracks the most popular items that other consumers in your zip code buy, similar to a survey. This information helps the store with target advertising specific merchandise. The store may order more of a particular item knowing when you come in for the "hot deal" you will also buy this particular item, which may be overpriced.
Floor plans are well thought out. No you are not going crazy when you can't find the item that was on aisle 4, three weeks ago. If the item moved, it didn't sell fast enough. Grocery stores rent out space for a particle item for a certain amount of time. Relocating the item has a couple of advantages: re-introduce it as an advertised item and have the current consumers searching for the item, thus increasing the odds of another unexpected higher priced item in the cart.
Eye level is the hottest selling point. It's the easiest to reach while being rushed, bumped, answering the phone, or correcting children, and any other distractions not mentioned. The item is normally overpriced. Sometimes the item has the wrong price underneath it. I noticed this more then ten times at HEB, which I could only assume happened "accidently", of course.
End Caps are loaded with items that appear to be on sale, but 80% of the time these items are not.
Wording. As advertised is not the same as on sale. Know the prices! Don't remember them? Write it down to visually see the price cycles.
Hot Real Estate is the most highly sought after place in the entire store. They stack it high, in your face and in front, it just needs the whistles and balloons and sometimes they have that too. This lowest price item is normally seen upon entrance to get you in the store. Along the way there is a good chance you will pick something up that is not on sale or overpriced.
Paycheck Cycle Refers to how the grocery stores promote their ads to get the most money out of the consumer. Surveys tell us more people have "more money" at the beginning of the month. Money is spent faster at the beginning of the month and held on to longer around the end of the month trying to catch up on unpaid or missed bills.
These are just a few basic marketing techniques that every store uses. Normally every grocery store cycles about 9 to 12 weeks, look for this. You can plan on when to buy what or know what your grocery store will be pushing to sell in the next couple of weeks. Keeping you one step ahead of the game.
I have noticed some important money saving tips at certain stores that I would like to share.
All chain stores do not offer the same price. Some stores charge more for the exact same product at different locations. I noticed this at HEB and Wal-Mart.
Larger quantities do not equal great buys. Sometimes it is more. Get the calculator out to know for certain! I noticed this at Target.
Dollar stores (Dollar General, Family Dollar, Everything $1 and Dollar Tree) can dilute certain items without telling you. This is illegal for medicine but everything else is fair game. Break down the price to know if you are really saving.
Randall's allows you to use in store coupons with manufactured coupons together while doubling or tripling the value adding savings. Just remember most items are overpriced to begin with, weigh it out with a calculator to make sure it is a good deal.
HEB does not price match but honors online coupons as long as they are printed in color.
Wal-mart price matches and accepts coupons, but Sam's does not take any coupons.
Here are some links to print coupons online.
http://smartsource.mygrocerydeals.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=site.dspHome
This is smart source, the insert from the paper. It will tell you the best deals in your zip code. You will need to install a printer program to print the coupons.
http://www.redplum.com/
Installation of a printer program is needed as well.
The link below lets you in on great deals of all types. Don't get lost in the links;)
http://frugality.alltop.com/
One thing that does not relate to groceries but helps your frugality...
No prescription coverage? cash pay customer? Call around for pricing. I noticed a savings of over thirty dollars on the same prescription at different stores. Wal-Mart is not always cheaper. The discount card link below is free and saves with generics up to 50% and brand names up to 10%. It will list available pharmacies and pricing for a particular medicine.
http://www.pscard.com/
Holly Villarreal
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