The Disappearing Coupon – OUCH!
Image source: Perry Merrity II
The secret to capturing a coupon’s value is to activate the coupon, make the purchase during the eligibility term (before it expires), and be sure you follow the rules.
Last week I had some meetings in New York City. On the subway, I noticed an ad for Charles Tyrwhitt, three fresh linen shirts for $99. I figured why not – spring is here and summer is around the corner. And I purchased some of their dress shirts in the past and they were good quality and reasonably priced.
My stop at Charles wasn’t planned. I had a few minutes between meetings and I was near the shop. . .
American Express – AMEX – offers some great coupons to cardholders. We’ll cover this in a future post. One discount offer was Charles Tyrwhitt – a $20 statement credit. I had activated the coupon on my American Express card some weeks earlier but didn’t check the Amex portal before going to the store.
I tried on a ‘fresh; linen shirt and purchased three for $99. In my haste to pay and head to my next meeting. . .
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It didn’t occur to me that my purchase price was $99 and to receive the $20 discount, I had to spend at least $100. Oops.
In the case of the Charles Tyrwhitt discount, the customer had to purchase clothing with a cost of at least $100. Which I did not do. Oh well.
To capture the discount, I would have had to buy another item to bring the total spend to over $100. The least expensive product the store offered were accessories for $10. That would have brought my total spend to $109. But that would have activated the discount which was a $20 statement credit. The net savings would have been $20 minus $10 or $10. I would have lost a little money on sales tax because right now, for clothing purchases that are less than $99 there’s no sales tax. But net, net, I would have saved some money.
Lesson learned: look before you leap! [Or you click to buy]
To capture the discount:
Clip the coupon, add it to your app or add it to your credit card or website.
Study the rules of the road before you make the purchase.
Note the expiration date – when the deal expires.
Buy the right products or enough of them in order to receive the value of the discount.
If helpful, use a reminder – a mnemonic device. For example, with paper coupons, I often wrap the coupon around my credit card that I need to use to get the discount – very difficult to make the purchase without the credit card. You can do the same if you pay with cash.
Happy savings!
Arthur
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To Save More Money on Groceries, Every Day – click here.
See you next week.
Arthur
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