Ad Matching

It is probably no secret by now that we like saving money.  I would consider it a hobby, but also it is a part of my job as a mostly stay at home mom.  My job is to stretch what we have as far as I can so that we can do fun things occasionally, so we can plan for the future and so that we can help others.  That being said, in conversations about finding the best deals or grocery shopping or managing a household in general one statement often comes up.  “ I don’t have time to go to all of the stores to get the best deals.” 

                This is where ad matching can be a help.  Meijer, Walmart and Target all participate in this practice.  How this works is that you can bring an ad from a competitor to these stores and they will give you the advertised sale price at their store.  Here are some guidelines and tidbits to follow:

·         This will not work for meat or produce. 

·         It will work for milk. 

·         Meijer will accept the advertised price for Kroger brand products.  For example, if Kroger salsa is on sale for 10 for $10, Meijer will sell you the same size Meijer brand salsa for a dollar as well. 

·         You need to bring the entire ad so that the cashier can check the dates for validity.

·         The cashier will pay very close attention to the brand, size, and if it says select varieties, there may be an issue.  Every detail must match.  Some cashiers are more picky than others. 

·         None of the merchants will ad match prices that are a part of the buy 10, get $5 off deal that Kroger has been doing lately.

·         This works for items other than food as well.  I have matched diapers, baby wipes and household items. 

·         Think about ads from Walgreens, CVS and other stores as well.  Often each store will have “loss leaders”, which are low priced items to get you in the store.  If you take advantage of ad matching, you won’t have to go to every store to get the best deals. 

·         You can use the coupons that Kroger sends out in the mail to their Plus Card customers at other retailers.  As long as they say MANUFACTURER coupon in the upper left corner, you are good to go. 

·         Also along the line of ad matching, if a non-food item goes on sale at Meijer or Target within two weeks of the purchase, take your receipt in for a price adjustment. For example, I bought a pair of Capri running pants for $20 recently.  A week later they went on sale for $15.  I took the receipt in and they gave me $5 back! 

Every little bit helps, whether you are talking about saving money or saving time.  Ad matching is a great way to do both in Fort Wayne.