One of the most expensive every day costs of raising a baby involves the two items you will be buying often: diapers and formula. Right now we spend about 0 a month on formula and a month on diapers. I am always looking for ways to save money, and I will share some of my ideas with you
The first technique I will mention is the most obvious -- sign up for coupons direct from the manufacturer. Almost all formula and diaper companies have clubs you can sign up for in exchange for coupons. Most of these coupons come through the US Mail. I am a member of the Similac and Pamper's clubs and I probably get coupons every month in the mail. Usually the savings are a few dollars off diapers and up to dollars off formula. Just yesterday I received four coupons for Similac formula totaling dollars. Not bad for doing nothing!
In addition to signing up at manufacturer sites, I also leave my phone number at Babies "R" Us whenever I shop. Just by doing this, I am always assured the latest coupons in my mailbox. I noticed BRU sends out coupons every quarter and usually its off diapers and off a box of baby wipes. There are never coupons for baby formula, but the cases usually go on sale for a few dollars off.
The second money saving tip that has worked for me is shopping at membership clubs (Costco, BJ's, and Sam's Club). Being a member of BJ's Wholesale Club, I save approx. - a month on baby products. Every wholesale club charges a yearly membership fee (BJ's is ), but the cost of the fee is recouped in about a month from the money you will save.
Besides the wholesale prices, I save extra money by using coupons. BJ's accepts manufacturer coupons and vendor checks (Costco does not). Also an extra bonus is that most of BJ's products technically count as two items, even though they are in one box. For example, their box of diapers actually contains two packages of Jumbo diapers, so I can use two Pampers coupons on the one box. BJ's also sends out coupons every so often. Just recently I received a baby themed coupon book in the mail with a ton of coupons on virtually all of their baby products.
Currently I buy diapers, wipes, puffs, and formula at BJ's using all available coupons. I still buy baby food at my local grocery store because they have a program called "Baby Bucks". For every you spend on baby products, you get a off your next grocery order coupon. As far as I know, only ShopRite and A&P stores have this program.
The third and final money saving tip is finding coupons and vendor checks on eBay. Coupons are in constant supply on the auction site. Doing a quick search, I found over 600 auctions for Similac coupons and 900 auctions for Enfamil coupons. With a little patience, you can find great deals for coupons. For example, I spotted one auction offering worth of Similac coupons and the final bid was only . Another auction was for worth of coupons for . That's an average savings of !
I have been an eBay seller for over ten years and I want to offer some advice when shopping for coupons (or anything) on eBay:
Make sure the value of the coupons is more than the auction price (obvious). To make it worthwhile, I would look for a savings of to . It is easy to find, with a little browsing.
Make sure the coupons have not expired! Some sellers list the date in the listing. I would rather see a clear picture of the coupons so I can read the date myself. Be careful, some sellers purposely take the pictures at an angle to skew the date.
Some coupons are only for specific formula. Some of the coupons Similac issues are only for the powdered formula or a specific type of formula. Mark sure the coupons are for the formula you buy.
Only deal with sellers with a positive feedback rating. Personally, I would only deal with a seller with a feedback rating higher than 95% and more than 20 feedback comments.
Make the most of your bid. When I browse the listings, I look for multiple coupons in an auction to get the most savings. An auction with at least four coupons is ideal.
Pay attention to the shipping price! Some sellers like to list the auctions for a very low price, but on closer inspection the shipping is more than ! Shipping for coupons should only be the price of a postage stamp. Most sellers offer free shipping as well.
You can also find diaper coupons on eBay, but the savings are substantially less than you would get with formula coupons, so it is not really worth the time. With a little patience and common sense, you can save tons of money by purchasing coupons off eBay.
Side Note: You can also find online coupons for various baby products at "print your own coupon" sites. I stay away from these sites in general. In order to print the coupons on most of these sites, you have to download software and it may or may not be filled with advertising. I have also found I get more "spam" or junk e-mail after signing up for some of these sites.
