Monday, June 6, 2011

HOW TO BUY COUPONS FROM EBAY




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*PLEASE READ*
There are some people that do sell coupons on EBay. 
I advise you to read the fine print on the coupon before making a purchase; Most coupons state they void if they are sold or transferred & I don't want you to get in trouble!
  To ready Ebay's Coupon Policy in Full CLICK HERE
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GETTING STARTED:

First, you will need to sign up for an Ebay account, no worries it is FREE!  All you need to do is go Ebay.com and click on “create an account” simple as that! 

Second, I would recommend creating a FREE PayPal account as well.  There are many different payment options with Ebay; I just prefer PayPal simply because it is convenient to keep my financial information in one spot rather than giving my credit card to several different sites and the insurance that comes with making your purchases through them!  If you don’t receive the product you purchases PayPal works as the bank and gets your money back!  PayPal is a very secure and trusted site that has your back!  I use them when buying from any site if they offer PayPal as a payment method (most of them do) 


THE NITTY GRITTY:

So, you have your Ebay account and a PayPal account…..Now you are ready to take the plunge into “buying coupons”!

Q: 
Why would I want to buy coupons from Ebay?
A:
I only post the deals that are worth my time!  These are rock bottom prices, as good as it is going to get and is always when I say you want to STOCKUP!  So, If the 5 coupons you are getting with your newspaper subscription is not enough you will want to purchase more coupons from Ebay.

Q:
When do I buy the coupons from Ebay?
A:
You want to buy the coupons as soon as you find out about a sale!  You want to purchase quickly before the price goes higher or they run out because other couponers will be after the same coupons! 

Q: 
I don’t want 20 coupons, can I buy less?
A:
When buying from Ebay you usually have to buy in lots of 10 – 20 coupons.  If this is too many for you then find a friend/friends that would like the same coupon and split the cost.

Q: 
I’m scared to buy coupons from Ebay, How do I make sure I buy legit coupons?
A:
While it is easy to get a very good deal when buying from Ebay, you can also get scammed just as easily.  I have a few guidelines that I follow when buying coupons from Ebay:

1.       Select to view the “Buy it Now” sells
a.       If you have the time to play the bidding war than do!  You will get a better deal!  But, usually you don’t have time to wait a week for your coupons so I like to view the ones that I can purchase right away.
2.       Buy from Top Sellers! 
a.       Numbers don’t lie!  These are sellers that have had great reviews, this rating comes from other buyers that have bought from this seller and have had a good experience.  That is what I want to have as well!
3.       Make sure the seller offers Expedited Shipping
a.       Expedited shipping is usually 1-3 days, this is very important since the time to take advantage of sales is usually very limited. 
b.      If you are worried that your coupons will not show up in time just email the seller before you buy.  Let them know when you need the coupons by and see if they are able to make that happen.  I have always had top sellers be very honest with me about time!
4.       Only buy coupons once you have seen a physical picture of the actual coupon you want to purchase!
a.       When you see a picture of the actual coupon you are purchasing you can read the wording on the coupon and make sure it is for the specific product you plan on buying!
b.      Check size limits, quantity limits, Can you double (Albertsons will double coupons even if they say “do not double”) and is the coupon item specific or does it say “any”
c.       This also allows you to make sure you are not buying copied coupons or other fraudulent coupons.

 Q:
How much should the coupons cost?
A:
You will notice that the price of the coupons will vary.  It usually depends on how “HOT” of a coupon is it and what the value of the coupon is.  You have to factor the cost of your coupons into the price of the item.  This is where you have to do your homework, use my Stock Up Prices for a reference.  Before you buy the coupons take what it is going to cost you to purchase and ship the coupons and divide that amount into how many of the product you are going to buy.  If the individual price per item is a stock up price then buy the coupons.  If the individual price is not a stock up price then don’t buy the coupons.  You won’t be saving any money if you are spending too much on coupons!

Example:  I paid $10.00 on 10 coupons that were for $1/3 Gatorades.  That can seem like a high price for 10 coupons but this is how I did my math to decide if the $10.50 was worth it.

              Albertsons Promo: buy 10 items get $5 instantly.  Also had Albertsons Double Coupons
                         Buy 11 Gatorades $1 each
                         =   $11 total before coupons
 -          $5 -  Instant Savings Promo WYB 10
 -          $3 – (3) $1/3 Gatorade coupons
 -          $3 – (3) Albertsons Double Coupons (only double 3 coupons per transaction)
 =   $0.00 – Paid OOP

I would do this transaction 3 times which would get me 33 Gatorades FREE! Doing the math:
$10.00(cost of coupons) / 33 Gatorades = $.30 each (that is a stock up price for me)


Q:
Buying coupons doesn’t seem very ethical.  Where are they getting the coupons to sell?
A:
This has been a debate between couponers for a long time.  To be honest I am not positive as to where they are getting coupons from.  This is why it is important to see a picture of the coupon you are buying.  I can tell from this picture that they are selling “peelies” that they peeled right off the product in the store without purchasing that product or if they are selling “tearpad” coupons that they took off of a display.  I personally am not ok with this and in my mind they are STEALING and are profiting from it. However, with all the bad there is good.  There are people who have access to multiple Sunday inserts, and are simply taking the time to sort, clip, and group them to sell them to others. 

It is illegal to sell a coupon; that is why you always see the disclaimer “you are not purchasing the coupons, you are purchasing the time and effort of clipping, sorting and grouping the coupons.” I am ok with buying these coupons that I can tell have been collected in an honest fashion and that they have taken the time to clip them.  We all know how time consuming it is to clip all those coupons so I don’t mind paying someone to do this for me!  As far as I’m concerned time is money; they did the work and deserve to profit for their time spent.  Use your better judgment, if a coupon looks like it may be fraudulent, then don’t get it!  This is why it’s so important to see a picture of the coupon, if the coupons look legit I don’t see any problem in buying them. Of course this is just my opinion and you can choose to do what you are comfortable with!


Are you ready to take the plunge?  Go to Ebay and get started!

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