They count on people coming into Walgreens because of their great deals and
1.) Buying other things while they are there. It is so easy to say, "oh I need..." and get everything in one place-DON'T. If you start "couponing" to save money you have to be very careful to actually save money. I do not purchase things if they are not on my list-unless they are on clearance and/or I have a coupon that makes them an incredible deal. Many times I take my other coupons to Walmart. It isn't good enough to just use your coupons at Walgreens b/c they have such a large mark up. Often times Walmart is cheaper without coupons-so use your coupons at Walmart and save even more. So I encourage you-stick to your list. When Walgreens has B1G1, Register Rewards and their own coupons added to Mfg coupons-their deals can turn out awesome-just beware of buying items you did not intend on purchasing.
2.) They advertise an item at the after Walgreen coupon price. For instance. Razors were $8.99 after $2.00 Walgreen coupon $6.99. I had a mfg $2.00 coupon and they were giving away 4 free refills. So I would only pay $4.99 for a nice razor and 4 refills. Great deal! It is easy to see in your mind that the razor is only $6.99 and run in to get it armed with your Mfg coupon-however-make sure you USE THE WALGREENS COUPON. Otherwise you are paying a higher price. They count on people forgetting to use their coupons. I have returned to the store on more than one occasion to adjust my receipt using the coupon. Otherwise I wouldn't have purchased the item. If you are going to coupon-you have to be diligent and organized or you will end up losing money.
3.) I have a feeling they charge more than the are allowed. I have a Dove B1G1 free coupon and it says, "up to $4.50" I have never had a problem with that until now. Walgreens has Dove on sale for B1G1 free, but the bottle is $5.99. I was wondering if that was even allowed-can they charge more than the mfg allows? After reading other women's comments it sounds like Walgreens is charging $2.99 for one bottle and $3.00 for the other bottle. So it's not really B1G1 free. The ad makes it look like a good deal b/c you get a free item, however the orginal price is ridiculous. Make sure you know "real" prices of items so you are truly getting a deal.
4.) There are many FAR (Free After Rebate) items. These are great and if you choose to get the money back on a Walgreens gift card you get an additional 10%. However, Make sure you photocopy every single thing you send to them. My coworker, my mom and I, all sent in for rebates last month and they found something on all of our receipts that they said did not qualify. We all called in and they apologized and sent us our money. They knew immediately we were correct. It said, "Was not found on receipt" as the excuse. Every item has to be circled and numbered-what do they mean it wasn't found? They need to get glasses I think. We believe they do that on purpose because people tend to either A.) forget to send in their rebate B)Don't send it in correctly-with all the required items or C.) if they do send it in they do not follow up to be sure they received all of their rebate. Again-Be diligent!!
We have noticed that the ads will make it look like an item is an awesome deal-when it is actually at regular price-it's just being "featured" in the weeks ad.I say all this b/c I want couponers to be careful. Walgreens does have good deals-just make sure you are only getting the deals and not the "extras." Have fun shopping!
4 comments:
Funny you posted on this when I just called Walgreens today about this very same thing! They had a NOT ON RECEIPT thing on mine and they explained that I had bought the 6 oz. Colgate instead of the 4 oz. which is why they declined to give me my $2.99 rebate. They were VERY friendly about it and instantly gave me the money back even though it was technically my fault. I think that they probably do the rebate program to scam people, knowing that most will overlook things or forget to mail it in, etc. Therefore, you have to be super sharp to stay on top of all the deals. I loved your post and agree heartily with your tips!
Great tips! I've really slacked on the whole couponing thing lately because we've been so busy. But I totally agree with everything you said.
Hey Lyndi..
I love your couponing posts! It is addicting isn't it? I have been staying away from Wal-Greens for a lot of the reasons you just mentioned.. I am organized, but not THAT organized.. I think I will just stick with couponing regular things at Wal-mart! Thanks for the breakdown.. it was really neat!
This is great to know as I begin my couponing journey! :) Thank you for posting this over 3 years in advance for me...haha JK
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