Money Saving Mondays Vol.2: The Grocery Game Week 1

Last week, I introduced you to a money saving, grocery coupon website called The Grocery Game. I told you all that I’d just joined the $1 first month trial and that I’d test the site’s money saving plan out and report my results here.  So, here I am… bursting at the seems to tell you all about it!

I’ve made a list of the pros and cons of  The Grocery Game based on my first impressions of using it the first week.  I’ve included my saving results and I’m going to share some other saving opportunities that you should check out. Here goes..

Cons:

1. You’ve got to have the Sunday paper coupons to get the most savings. The Grocery Game matches your grocery store weekly specials with current coupons.  Some of the coupons can be found on The Grocery Game website in Teri’s Coupon Corner, and some on the merchandiser’s websites.  But most of them come from the Sunday paper. Do I think it’s worth it to start getting the Sunday paper for these coupons? Yes, I do.  I subscribed to my local paper before joining The Grocery Game site and I had already saved more than what I spent on my subscription by using those Sunday coupons.

2. If you’ve been clipping your Sunday coupons, it will take you longer to get ready for your grocery store trip. Teri recommends you pull out your Sunday paper coupon inserts and tag them with a marker by date. That way, when you print your list you can just go that insert and clip the ones you need. I had been clipping the coupons from my Sunday paper inserts… and not all of them. I only clipped the ones I believed I might use. So, not only did I not have some of the coupons that were listed on my Grocery Game list, but it took me longer to get everything all set to go to the store because I had to sort through ALL of my coupons to find the ones I did have. *argh* I have now begun doing things The Grocery Game way, so this is only a temporary issue.

3. My Grocery Game list was not printed by aisle. You’ve got a few different options on how you can print your list. I could swear that I read that choosing “Teri’s original sort order” meant that the items would be listed by aisle, so that’s how I printed my list. I wanted to use my list to grab my items while making my way through every aisle of the store.  When I got to the store, my list was not by aisle which made things a little confusing. I had to flip back and forth on my list pages sometimes to find things, which took more time. However, the items were grouped by aisle, so it wasn’t too terrible.  This could have been because of the store I chose or the store’s format - I really don’t know.

Pros:

1. It’s changed the way I shop and provided me with a new mindset. Let me explain… I used to make a grocery list each week and buy only what I needed. I’d sift through my coupons and hope to find ones for those things.  If things I normally bought were on sale, I may have bought a few of them, but usually I would only buy items on my list (things we needed) and hope to save the most that I could for that week.  A big part of the Grocery Game strategy is the idea of “stockpiling” your groceries (non-perishables, of course). This means you buy items you’ll eventually need at rock-bottom prices with a good coupon. You get the most savings this way and I agree with the philosophy now that I’ve been introduced to it. I seriously can’t believe I never thought of this before! BTW-According to Teri, using The Grocery Game, you’ll have a well-rounded stockpile after about 12 weeks.

2. You can decide what store to shop at based on your list. OK, this one kind of blew my mind! I had always shopped at Albertsons because I assumed they were cheaper (though looking back, I’m not even sure why).  My sister has always shopped and Vons and always swore they were cheaper… which got me thinking. After the $1 Grocery Game month long trial, your first grocery store list is $10/month every 8 weeks and each additional list is $5/month every 8 weeks (lists are printed weekly). During the trial, I’m checking all three grocery store lists in my area (Albertsons, Vons, and Ralphs) to see where I can save more.  I was SHOCKED to find that last week, Ralphs had more items on my list and for better prices. I always believed Ralphs was most expensive and never even questioned that before. Wow - Forgive me Ralphs! [A side note: If you are going to try a new store for the first time when your also just starting the Grocery Game - be prepared... it's a little overwhelming. I didn't know where things were like at my usual store, so not only was I learning how to navigate the list, but I was also learning how to navigate the store. I'll admit it was a lot more confusing than I thought it would be.]

3. I saved A LOT of money!! OK, here’s the BIG ONE - the whole purpose of the Grocery Game. I saved just over $100 and even the cashier was impressed (her exact words were, “Wow! You did REALLY well!). Check out the snapshot I took of my receipt below for proof:

That’s pretty great, right?  Now, I will admit, I did spend a little more total than I’d like to for the week, BUT that was because I needed stuff like shampoo and dish soap (you know how that inflates your grocery bill) and I was knew to stockpiling, so I got a lot of stuff by the 2s and 3s that I usually didn’t. All-in-all I was very pleased.  And if you’re wondering if I felt like the extra work and confusion I endured to get a hang of things was worth it to me - DEFINITELY! Ask yourself if an extra 30-45 minutes of prep time for the grocery store is worth $100 - I think you’ll agree.

I’ll report more of my Grocery Game results next week, so be sure to come back OR subscribe to our RSS Feed. In the meantime, here are a few great opportunities to save that you don’t want to miss:

Chadwicks is having a huge clearance sale up to 80% off!

Save $20 on orders of $80 or more at Brylane Home! Use coupon code: BHBEACH

The Get Cash 911 Blog is a leading source of money saving tips, debt management, credit repair, cash payday loan information, coping with financial stress, coupon offers, and payday cash advance details. If you find yourself in need of quick cash, visit PaydayLoanToday.com or just click below.