Try this eco-friendly slant to shopping.
I’m happy to share today’s guest post on coupon apps and e-coupons; this eco-friendly shopping method can save time, money, and trees.
Coupons are an effective way to save money on the products and services your family uses on a regular basis. Nowadays, as eco-friendly products gain more mainstream popularity, you can even find coupons for such eco-friendly products as Method cleaning supplies and Seventh Generation paper products in weekly store circulars and in the coupon section of your local newspaper. Mainstream manufacturers, such as Scott Brands, are also making eco-friendly versions of their standard product lines.
However, clipping coupons to save money on the eco-friendly products you love presents a conundrum: to get the savings, you end up contributing to the non-eco-friendly practice of killing trees to print the coupons. And that’s not even taking into the account the trees killed to print the newspapers that come with the coupons.
So, how do you save your family money without compromising your ideals? Sure, you can reuse and recycle the paper, but why not focus more on the “reduce” part of the eco-friendly equation?
Enter e-Coupons and Coupon Apps
e-Coupons are electronic coupons that you can load onto a store shoppers card, or redeem online by entering a code obtained from a coupon website.
Store shopper cards have several advantages beyond saving trees: they save you time because instead of clipping or tearing out each coupon you need, you simply log into the store website and click on the coupons you want. Shopper cards also offer additional store discounts on top of the
coupon deals.
For example, a store could have a coupon for Seventh Generation diapers and, at the same time, have an in-store special on all Seventh Generation products resulting in double savings. Another advantage is that you no longer have to try to organize your coupons, and carry them with you, while you are trying to shop – especially if you also have to keep track of your kids at the same time. You also don’t have to keep track of expiration dates because the coupons automatically drop off your card when they expire.
The only down side is that you have to keep track of what coupons you have stored, but that is often a simple matter of visiting the store’s website before you visit the store. Also, some stores have mobile apps that let you add coupons to your card on the fly, and review your stored coupons on your smartphone or tablet. Some stores also offer rewards for shopping, such as discounts on gas or rebates. You redeem e-coupons by scanning your shopper’s card at checkout.
Coupon codes are primarily used for online shopping at vendor sites, such as PetSmart or Kmart. By using coupon codes, you not only save money, you also reduce fossil fuel emissions and energy consumption because you can shop at multiple stores without having to drive to each location. You can find coupon codes at coupon code websites, or by doing a product-specific search. For example, a web search for Brownells coupons, or coupon codes for Brownells, brings up several results for sites with codes for purchase discounts and discount shipping. You redeem coupon codes by copying the code from the coupon code site, then shopping at the company’s website and pasting the code into the “coupons and promotions” field at checkout.
Coupon Apps
Coupon apps, for your mobile phone or tablet device, offer the speed and advantages of shopper’s cards, but they also reward shoppers with money or credits for the items they buy. Shoppers can then redeem those points for cash, or withdraw cash rewards, to be deposited into a bank account. Unlike the shopper’s card, coupon apps find deals from multiple vendors and manufacturers to find you the best deals. Some apps also allow you to make shopping lists and find coupons for the items on your list. How you redeem the coupons is based on the functionality of the app. In some cases you purchase the products at the store price then scan your receipt to redeem the savings in the form of cash rewards or points. In other cases, the app provides you with a coupon code.
Regardless of which method you use, the greatest advantage to all of them is that you help the environment by reducing your energy use, drive time and paper consumption.
We haven’t done a giveaway in a long time, so when the opportunity to give away a Conscious Box came along, I said “Yes, indeedy! We shall participate!” Conscious Box is an interesting way to try new and green things, such as Bath & Beauty, Food, and Health items – all nontoxic, all natural, and all safe for use. This monthly service gives you the chance to try out healthy green companies and products you might not even realize exist, all delivered to your doorstep.
