More on Using Your Smart Phone to Streamline Couponing

When I wrote about how my new Droid phone has changed the way I organize my coupons, SoCalKal asked for more details. So here's what I do (sorry it took a while, Kal!):

I have three wallet organizers (like this)in which I keep clipped coupons. Each week, I clip the coupons that I would definitely use from Sunday's paper and put them in the wallet organizers - we're talking coupons on things that I would buy if I saw a good deal, like my preferred brands of body wash or dental floss, wipes, etc. The wallets also hold all of my other coupons - that's coupons from All You and other magazines, printable coupons, snail mail coupons, etc.

I keep the wallets in a shoulder tote bag, and take the tote whenever I go shopping. So I always have the wallets with me in store.

I leave the Sunday coupon inserts mostly intact, aside from the coupons that I clip right away. I write the date of the insert on the front cover, and slip the inserts into an expandable file folder (like this).Each week, as I prepare for my shopping trips, I review the store circulars and applicable deal posts online and clip whatever coupons I need for that week.

When I go shopping, I leave the expandable file in the car. If I'm in the store and see a good sale price on something I think I might have a coupon for in the inserts, I pull out my Droid and access Coupon Mom's regional database. There are quite a few coupon databases out there, but I like Coupon Mom when I'm out shopping because it's regional and limited to the inserts and a few printables. The fact that it's regional means I don't waste time looking for a coupon that people on the east coast got but wasn't put out here on the west coast.

If I find a coupon listed on Coupon Mom that I hadn't clipped, I can go out to the car to get it. Sure, it's a hassle, but it's something that happens very rarely since I clip the coupons that I know I would want to use if I happened across a great sale. The time I save by not clipping and filing every coupon is more than worth that hassle.