Coupon Class Day 7 – Walmart

Sorry for the postpone yesterday of our coupon class. The Kroger mega event threw us all off! There was so much to post on all the good deals and trying to help everyone figure out how to shop the sale took up the day!Day 7 of our coupon class is going to be all Walmart. We will have a few “experts” giving us some awesome tips on how to make the most of your shopping experience there!Are you ready?!

If you have missed any of the days, you can check them out below:

Day 1 – Getting Started

Day 2 – All about coupons

Day 3 – Organizing Coupons

Day 4 – Creating a stockpile

Day 5 – About Grocery Stores

Day 6 – CVS & Walgreens

Day 7 – Walmart

Day 8 – Target

Day 9 – Resources

We will start with Walmart today. Walmart is the #1 retailer in the country. As much as I love Target, I am in Walmart a lot more. And for MANY people they ONLY have a Walmart.Today we are going to be covering the Coupon Policy, the Ad Match policy and Shopping Strategies at your Walmart store.

The Walmart coupon policy had a major overhaul in 2011. It became very coupon friendly and added the element of overage which is really cool. It is always very important to print a copy of the policy and have it with you when you are shopping there. The biggest obstacle I have had at Walmart is a cashier that doesn’t know their own policy.

We gladly accept the following types of coupons*

• Print-at-home internet coupons
  • Must be legible
  • Must have “Manufacturer Coupon” printed on them
  • Must have a valid remit address for the manufacturer
  • Must have a valid expiration date
  • Must have a scannable bar code
  • Buy one, get one free (BOGO) coupons with a specified price
  • Are acceptable in black and white or color
  • May not be duplicated
• Manufacturers’ coupons
  • For dollar/cents off
  • For free items (except those printed off the Internet)
  • Buy one, get one free (BOGO) coupons
  • Must have “Manufacturer Coupon” printed on them
  • Must have a valid remit address for the manufacturer
  • Must have a valid expiration date
  • Must have a scannable bar code
  • May not be duplicated
• Competitors’ coupons
  • A specific item for a specified price, for example, $2.99
  • Buy one, get one free (BOGO) coupons for items with a specified price
  • Have a valid expiration date
  • Are acceptable in black and white
• Checkout coupons (“Catalinas”)
  • Printed at our competitors’ registers for dollar/cents off on a specific item
  • Must have “Manufacturer Coupon” with specific item requirements printed on them
  • Must have a valid remit address for the manufacturer
  • Must have a valid expiration date
  • Must have a scannable bar code
  • Are acceptable in black and white
  • May not be duplicated

These are some of the most common questions @iheartthemart and I get asked about Walmart.

1. YES! You can use a coupon and price match! Walmart wants you to get the same deal at Walmart that you can get at another store. If you couldn’t use a coupon on the item, then why price match it?! You could get a better deal at the other store! Sometimes when I have explained o that way to a cashier they realize how silly it is to not let you use the coupon.

2. Walmart will ad match any local competitor. It is up to the manger to decide who they consider a competitor. One store by me will match the Dollar Stores and another wont. It is best to simply ask your manager if they price match a store in your area that you are interested in. They do NOT match an online ad for any store. (Most locations have begun to discontinue their Ad Matching policy so be sure to ask before checking out)

3. There is not a limit on coupons you can use at Walmart. After 40 coupons the register will beep and a CSM will just need to turn the key, but that doesn’t mean you can’t use more then 40 coupons!

4. In the Walmart coupon policy it is clear that they allow overage in the form of cash back. That is why you carry the coupon policy with you. Walmart  is reimbursed 100% for the coupon. If you have problems you need to call 1-800-Walmart and ask them to help you fix it.

I was not planning on doing this post… But I hear this all day long every day. I am a firm believer in following the coupon policy and letting mangers make decisions for their own stores.

HOWEVER, Walmart seems to have some issues with managers and cashiers claiming that there is a “new” coupon policy. This is often said when they are unsure of the current policy or want an excuse to not accept a coupon, issue that you might have. BUT when pressed, they can’t produce a new coupon policy or even the current one at all.

In EVERY situation that I have asked to see the “new” policy there has not been one produced EVER. That gives me the chance to pull the current one out of my binder to show them what it says. I also usually say “I love to follow the rules, and I will be happy to follow any new policy you have, but until you can show it to me, let’s go by the one that is currently on the Walmart.com site.”

The Walmart policy does NOT state that you can not use a coupon on a price match item. If you explain to the cashier or manager what I explained in the LAST POST, they usually see the light and let you do both. If they don’t I would call 1-800-Walmart often until they fix that. Also, I would suggest calling 1-800-Walmart to ask them if they allow coupon + price match. I have called a LOT and each time they have told me that they do.

Should they ever come out with a statement, or policy that says they will not do both. Price Matching is dead. There is no point.

***Many Walmart are no longer doing Price Matching so ask BEFORE checking out***

I love ad/price matching! What an awesome way to save some time and money! The idea is that you can use the sales ads from the other stores to get the same price on the SAME item at Walmart.

The ad match guarantee says you do not have to have your ad with you. I bring mine anyway to avoid any hassle.

Paul @iheartthemart has some tips to price match (he also has some good videos on You Tube, you can find him there under “i heart the mart” Paul also does about 20 different stores a week weekly price match lists you can print and take with you to the store.

1.Check the other grocery stores sales ad’s for great deals. Make a list of the items and prices. Check to see what coupons you have or can print to match up with these sales. Check electronics, I have saved HUGE this way at Walmart!

2.Take a look at the price matching policy. They will not do B1G1 free sales unless there is a listed price, but they will do 2 for $4 or 2/$4. They will also NOT do % off, like 25% off all soda. Florida’s policy is different on BOGO’s so make sure you look first.

3. Go shopping! Bring your other store ad’s with you. Most will require that you have them. Don’t cut them up, they will need to verify the dates on them. You can only use a current ad.

4. I always place items that I am NOT price matching on the belt first. Then I place my items that I am price matching and lay the ad on top of them so I don’t forget… or get distracted by children! I inform the cashier that I am price matching BEFORE they ring up my items, and show them the ad if needed. I saw a woman once that had placed sticky notes on her items, the cashier LOVED her! I don’t have that kind of time, but it was a good idea! Do the “Happy Dance” that you saved a bunch of money!

Price matching at Walgreens, CVS and Rite Aid can be confusing at first, but it is easy to get the hang of it. When price matching a store with a customer rewards program you price match the sale price BEFORE the reward. That is because Walmart doesnt have the same program or the ability to print you a RR or a ECB.

For example in the razor deal above you would price match the “with card” price of $8.99. In the toothpaste deal on the right you would price match the $3.49 price.

The best question to ask yourself is “what would the OOP price be” that you are paying at the store you are price matching. That is what you are allowed to do at Walmart.

The OOP on the toothpaste is $3.49 (minus any coupons you would have) so that is the price you price match. Now, doing that deal at Walgreens you would get back a RR which Walmart can’t print. So some deals are better done at the store that has it in the ad.

:: Walmart Savings Catcher! :: 

There is a new app at Walmart that will help you save some money. It was supposed to start August 4th but the Savings Catcher was busting at the seems and actually rolled out August 1st in many areas. What this app does is allow you to scan your receipt and Walmart checks to see if you could have saved any money at your area stores. If you could have it will give you the difference back. I really love this program and what it means for the casual shopper, for coupon and price matching pros like us I think it is a scorecard and a safety net. It is so simple to use and reaches so many stores.

When I submitted my receipt from my regular Walmart Savings Catcher said it was comparing prices from 99, yes 99 different stores!! I submitted a receipt from a Walmart a little further south and it had a whopping 103 stores it was checking, WOW that is a lot of stores!

I have submitted two receipts and I got a total of $2.23. I was actually really excited about this because I am a price matching fool baby!!! It means I am doing it RIGHT!!!

I have put most of the details about Savings Catcher below, I am going to go through a few of my own thoughts and answer a few common questions I am getting.

Yes, you can still Ad Match. I wish they would have stated this on Walmart.com You can submit as many as 7 receipts a week 15 a month and get as much as $599 back a year.