When we first started printing coupons online, my husband questioned the expense of it. After all, both paper and ink cost money. Ink especially is expensive, which could negate the savings from the coupon or maybe even cost more than the coupon. Does he have a point?
There are good reasons that coupons are more available online. Even the publishers of coupons, such as Redplum and Smart Source make some coupons only available for print and not included in the Sunday paper as was the traditional method. This is because printing costs are getting more and more expensive. Why not let the consumers carry that cost if they want the savings? The convenience factor of getting coupons instantly online sometimes masks the cost of printing them.
Still, printing coupons can be worth the expense. It is easy to follow store match ups and print the coupons right then and there. Here are some tips to reduce the cost of printing these coupons and make it all worth the effort.
Set your printer to print in draft form. This will use less ink over time and save you money. I haven’t had a problem yet with any store taking a coupon that is printed in draft form. As long as the bar code and the expiration date are clear on the coupon, you are good to go.
Print your coupons from websites that aggregate the coupons on one page. This will allow you to use less paper. You can also print coupons on both sides of your paper (making sure to turn the paper to get a blank back side for each one) to reduce your paper cost.
Did you know that you can print out coupons right there in the store in some places? This means that the ink and the paper is on them! Target is one such store that will allow you to print your coupons right there in their kiosks. Have your list in hand to make things go faster.
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Coupon Pitfalls to Avoid Part 3