This week we're going to talk about Catalina coupons and store rewards programs. Make sure to check out my other posts on Super Couponing - Couponing Mama, The Super-Duper Couponing 'Secret' and Couponing Beyond the Sunday Papers.
Catalina coupons are the coupons that you receive from the printer at the store register. They are automatically triggered when you purchase certain products (or a combo of products). They are often a flat dollar amount off of your next order, which is fabulous to apply to produce and meat which very rarely have coupons. To find out what products will trigger these high value coupons visit:
http://www.couponnetwork.com/yourbucks-catalina-coupons.
*Please note: you do not have to print these coupons! The coupon, which is good on your next order (ONYO) prints at the register.
Store Reward Systems
Nearly every store these days has some sort of rewards program. Most come with those pesky cards that clutter up your wallet or fill your key chain. In my humble opinion, a good rewards program is a simple one. The more confusing they are, the more I tend to shop elsewhere. That being said, you really can save a lot of money using a good rewards program. Here are a few of my favorites.
Target
Target doesn't use the traditional rewards platform but instead offers discounts when you use their credit or debit card (5% off plus free shipping on online purchases) The (Target Red) debit card is linked directly to your checking account. There are no fees, no interest, and no points to count - just simple savings.
CVS Extracare Rewards
CVS has several different ways to earn their Extracare Bucks, such as a beauty club, a diabetes care club, pharmacy club, and bucks from their weekly ad. I personally only have experience with the rewards from their weekly ad which is a quite simple program: Extracare Bucks are issued when you purchase a qualifying product. Your rewards print on your register receipt once the qualifying purchase has been made. Beware though, they do have an expiration date. My CVS
will still take them up to one month past their expiration date. For more info see their website: CVS .
Kohl's Cash
Another simple program (I don't believe it runs all of the time though). For every $50 you spend, you get a $10 off coupon to use on your (in store or online) next purchase. Check it out here
Kohl's Cash
Rainbow Foods (Formerly Fuel Perks)
I absolutley love my Rainbow Foods! They are the only grocery store near me that offers Double Coupon / Double double coupon days - which is where I really can save a LOT of money! Their new program is named Fresh Perks and so far, seems like it could be a money saver! They offer: cash back promotions (select times throughout the year), select manufacturer coupons can be loaded directly to your club card (cannot be doubled), extra Double Daze coupon events. Surprisingly, I couldn't find a page with any real detail on Rainbow's page but thanks to my favorite couponing site, Pocket Your Dollars, I found this brief youtube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=DnTRdFjKxNU
Walgreens Balance Rewards (Formerly Register Rewards)
Walgreen's program used to be one of the best in my area. It was very similar to CVS's Extra Bucks but because they were considered to be manufacturer coupons, you could also use them elsewhere. Well, Walgreen's pretty much put the cabash on that when they switched over to their current points system, known as Balance Rewards (Note: I loathe point systems).
I, like many people, have since stopped couponing there. Maybe that was their goal. In any event, to check out their new program go here.
That's about it for the rewards programs that I find to be worth any trouble. Do you use rewards programs? I'd love to hear about them - leave me comments below!
Tune in next week for my final post in my couponing series - Valuable links and extra ways to save your hard earned dollars!
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