Playing Sales Sudoku

Doing well between work assignments by managing my budget and buying smart. Thought I would share with you a few of my shopping tactics so you can save money too. It looks like I bought a lot, but I only bought what I really needed this week.

Here’s a quick recap of what I informally referral to as Playing Sales Sudoku (aka how I line up all the saving opportunities to maximize my deals margin)

Search for online coupons before you buy. If you don’t have it today, go online tonight, and look for an online coupon to use tomorrow. Print multiple copies of the coupon, if permitted.
- $5 (15% off any one book ($27) at Barnes and Noble)
- $ 12.80 (4 Free cappuccinos at BN, one per visit, 4 visits in total)
- $6.00 (20% off one item at Borders Café. (Note: I bought a 2009 Entertainment Coupon book with the purchase to save even more money!)
- $4 (40% off coupon from Michael’s Online weekly email. Christmas Gift for my secret Santa!)

Stop by the Customer Service desk for in-store coupons. A quick stop can net you more than just a few dollars. Here's the tally for a quick trip to my local BJs:
- $ 3 ($3 off multi-vitamins)
- $4 ($2 x2 for shampoo & conditioner)
- $2 ($2 off semi-sweet chips)
- $6 ($1 coupon x 6 2-packs of paper towels. Note: BJs allows you to use multiple coupons on multi-pack items packaged for resale.)

Check-out the coupons you receive in the mail. Don’t toss the Value-Pack coupons that you receive in the mail without at least glancing through the offerings for a potential deal. I did and saved big as a first time customer at the new hair salon in town.
- $70 ($70 off a cut, color, and highlights. Hey -a gal has got to look good when interviewing!)

Same Stores – Multiple Coupons. Many coupons state 1 coupon per customer visit, requiring you to go through the line multiple times in order to maximize the deal. While it might not be a time saver, it certainly can be a money saver. If you hesitate to do repeat visits to the same store, just go to another nearby store location. Or do a visit to the store in your hometown, and the one store closest to your workplace. If you’re pinching pennies, it’s worth the effort
- $12 (40% off Michaels coupons x 3 items each $10. Great savings on Christmas gifts)

Coupons and In-store Promotions combined. If you wait 3-4 wks after the Sunday circular flyers, you’ll find several stores offering the same featured items on sale.) And don’t forget to show your rewards cards for even more savings. Hate carrying extra cards, ask your favorite stores if they can provide you with a key fob version of the loyalty card for easy access.
- $5 ($2 off 4 bags of candy + $3 off 2 bags for members only. Note: Happy Halloween to the kids in Chelmsford. Great candy bars coming your way!)

Use your AAA membership card – take advantage on one of the best kept secret. Show your AAA membership card to participating retailer and take advantage of extra savings. For my region, there are 70+ retailers offering additional discounts to AAA members on everything from shoes and clothing to restuarants, from movies tickets to lodging;from museum discounts to flowers:
- $13.72 (20% off $50 FTD floral bouquet for my fabulous Mom. Happy Birthday #79!)


$142.53 – Total savings. chia-ching!