Coupon Etiquette

I know you probably are already aware of regular store etiquette. (If you have a hundred items in your cart, usually let someone with five items go ahead of you, etc.) When it comes to couponing, there is a whole other set of etiquette rules that you should always try to follow.

1. If you are planning on doing more than one transaction, try to go during a time of day when the store will not be as busy. If there are huge lines, go through the line with your first purchase, then go back through the line again with the second one. Usually cashiers are not picky about this, but speaking as a cashier at a busy retail store it is kind of inconvenient to all the other customers when some of my customers want to do two transactions right in a row. It's always better to be safe than sorry. :)

2. I always let people go before me at smaller stores (like Rite Aid or Walgreens) because at these stores, I usually take awhile for the transaction because of all my coupons. This makes it so people are patient with the cashiers and patient with me. I often find it makes for conversations in line, and it can be a lot of fun to make someone's day just by letting them go ahead of you in line.

3. Don't argue loudly about coupons. Try to understand that cashiers are just trying to be as accurate as they can be to what they understand as their coupon policy. It helps if you carry the coupon policy with you so you can show them point blank if they are wrong. Either way, be gentle and patient with them and never try to show them up or anything. There are cashiers out there who treat you like you are stealing from the store, but you have to be gracious to them too. They are just trying to do their job, and maybe they are not having the best day in the world. Just try to be gracious about coupons and coupon policy.

4. Smile. A lot. I always try to seem as friendly as possible at the register. If the cashier is dealing with my coupons, I need to be friendly to them too. :)

5. Be ready when you get to the register. Pull out your coupons as you go through the store and pick up the items you will be purchasing. I like to reserve the front area of my coupon organizer for this purpose. I pull out each coupon and place it in the front of my organizer so that when I get up to the register I can just pull out the stack of coupons I will be using. This makes the transactions more quick and lessens wait time for people behind you. As you get up to the register, have any rewards cards ready, and your wallet out ready to go. This way the cashier will be able to help all customers in a quick manner, and make everyone feel comfortable and important. :)

If you stick to these, your coupon experiences should only get better and better. :)
Remember-If a cashier blatantly goes against coupon policy, feel free to ask for a manager. If that doesn't solve it, call the corporate numbers provided on their website and let corporate know that stores are not adhering to coupon policy. It will help them make things better for others.