Heads up CVS shoppers!

If you are a pharmacy customer, head over to the website now and sign up for an online pharmacy account. Once you create your account you’ll be rewarded with a coupon offering $3 off your next shopping visit.

You can also earn ExtraBucks by managing your prescriptions online. Read more details in this blog post from January.

(UPDATE: The print limit has been reached. Thanks to reader Jodie for the heads up.)

Head over to the CVS website now and print this popular CVS Deal of the Day: A printable shopping pass offering 20% off all regular priced purchases.

This coupon is valid today and tomorrow.

A limited number can be printed, so if you’re interested get your’s now!

(Update: It looks like CVS had a print limit on this deal and it has already been reached. That was fast! Congrats to those of you who jumped on it early. If the retailer decides to add more I’ll update again.)

If you’ve never checked out the Deal of the Day section of CVS’ website, today would be a great time to start.

Head over there now and print your coupon for $2 off a purchase of $10 or more. This coupon won’t be available after midnight, so print it now before you forget.

This coupon is valid on purchases today and tomorrow (March 12 and 13) in stores only. Exclusions include alcohol, gift cards, lottery, money orders, prescriptions, postage stamps, pre-paid cards, tobacco products or items reimbursed by a governmental program. Additionally, this coupon cannot be combined with any other CVS/pharmacy coupons (like a percentage off coupon, it should still work with Extra Bucks).

Note: This is a popular deal so the website is moving pretty slow. Be patient and it will eventually load.

If you use the pharmacy at CVS, you could be on your way to earning even more Extra Bucks.

The new Pharmacy & Health Rewards program is offering CVS customers $5 in Extra Bucks for every 10 pharmacy credits a customer earns. Combine this with any rewards you receive with your Green Bag Tag and you can really rack up the rewards by visiting the pharmacy. 

This new program reminds me of the new Walgreens Balance Rewards program, which is also based on points.
Here’s the break down:
* New prescription = 1 credit
* Refilled prescription = 1 credit
* Fill or refill a 90-day prescription = 3 credits
* Get a flu shot or vaccine from a pharmacist = 1 credit
* Add prescription management and take care of prescriptions on CVS.com = 3 credits
* Sign up for prescription text alerts = 1 credit
* Sign up for refill reminder emails = 1 credit

So, the easiest way to get your points/Extra Bucks is to fill 10 prescriptions, and by signing up for any programs you’re intrested in on cvs.com.  You do have to enroll in this program to get your points – click here to do so.

I don’t love that this system is based on points, it makes me worry that other changes are on the way, but it seems simple enough.

Will you be taking advantage of this new offer?

You can find coupons for these products at CVS pharmacies. Photo courtesy of CVS Minute Clinic.

Visit your local CVS pharmacy now and you can find coupon books worth up to $9.

These books are full of coupons for cough and cold products — something many people are in need of during this vicious flu season.

You’ll find savings for products like Tylenol Cold, Motrin, Children’s Tylenol, Zyrtec and Sudafed in each book.

If you’re interested in this offer, I suggest you swing by your preferred location soon. Coupons tend to get scooped up pretty quickly, and there’s a limited supply. For more information, click here.

While making my usual trip to CVS this past weekend I saw something very exciting: makeup clearance.

Avid CVS shoppers may remember this from the past. Throughout the beauty department there are little stickers everywhere offering 25% to 75% off select products. This adds up to huge savings, especially if you have coupons to stack with the discounts.

Tons of popular brands were included in the sale. A few I noticed were Physicians Formula, Revlon, Covergirl, Dove, Herbal Essences and Sally Hansen.

I made some purchases that I would usually consider big splurges: Nexxus hair products and Organix lotion. The lotion even had a coupon for $2 off attached to the bottle.

This sale and the selection will vary by store, but it’s definitely worth checking out. You could find some awesome stocking stuffers or gifts to hold on to for later.

If you find some great deals, tell me about them in the comments section below.

This would make a great stocking stuffer.

Like the CVS MinuteClinic on Facebook and you can get a coupon for a free purse size Essence of Beauty hand cream.

The email will be emailed to you shortly after signing up and is good through Dec. 31. Registration for the coupon is open through Dec. 27, or while supplies last. I suggest signing up sooner rather than later.

As a shopping enthusiast sometimes you strike gold and sometimes bargain hunting feels like a waste of time.

Luckily, this weekend I struck gold at CVS, Kohl’s and Food Lion.

At CVS I lowered my checkout price from $50 to $17 with coupons and ExtraBucks before being rewarded with another $11 in ExtraBucks. Factor the new ExtraBucks in and my total bill was only $6.
That’s especially awesome when you consider some of my purchases: a new razor, razor refills, tissues, Glade air fresheners and mascara. Those can be pricey items.

I also found some gems hidden on the clearance racks at Kohl’s. I picked up two dresses and one top, which all came out to less than $10 each with my extra 15% off coupon (which they scanned from my phone, a perk I wish other stores would honor more often). I also grabbed up some Starbucks K-cups that were on sale and a few accessories for myself from another clearance rack. Kohl’s coupons are great since there are usually no exclusions, I got a discount on all of my sale and clearance purchases.
My total came out to just over $50, which also meant I got $10 in Kohl’s Cash to spend in the coming weeks. I’m hoping to stock up on some of the fantastic Christmas decor that was already on sale – some of it up to 50% off! 
Even though I spent over $50 in the store on this trip, I left with a big bag full of new stuff. What really helps put the savings in perspective is when you consider this dress that I found on clearance was originally $40, just $10 less than my total purchase for the day.

What was originally a quick stop at Food Lion to pick up ground chicken for dinner turned into big savings. I love Amy’s brand soups, but unfortunately they can be a little more than I want to pay on a regular basis. I was very excited when I found tons of cans on clearance for half-off ($1.99) in the store over the weekend and stocked up. These cans don’t expire until September of 2014.
I also found a great deal on thin-sliced chicken breasts in the meat department. I love cooking with these, but they can also be priced higher than I prefer. Food Lion often discounts its meat on Sundays, so I timed it perfectly to find a family-size pack of the chicken breasts for only $5.40. This was cheaper than the regular size packs in the cooler, and I can split the pack up and use it for multiple meals.

Have you had any shopping victories lately? Tell me about them!
 Tons of retailers already have Christmas specials and most Halloween/autumn goods are on clearance, so it’s time to stock up.

From time to time, retailers update their policies and smart shoppers need to stay in the know. Here are some changes that effect shoppers locally:

Dollar Tree stores, where everything is $1 or less, are now accepting manufacturer’s coupons.

If you’re shopping in-store, you can use up to two print-at-home coupons per shopping trip and one manufacturer coupon per item. There are a few important details: Coupons for free items with no purchase requirements will not be accepted and coupons cannot be redeemed for more than the purchase price of the item. Management also has the right to refuse any coupon or limit quantities, so certain rules could differ depending on which store you shop. For more information, visit www.dollartree.com.

Target recently introduced Target Baby Alerts. Exclusive baby coupons, deals and other announcements will be texted to shoppers up to six times per month. Some of the deals for August include buy one, get one half-off Gerber onesies, $2 off Burt’s Bees Baby Bee toiletry items, $2 off Huggies and 10 percent off your first baby order. To start receiving these text alerts, text BABY to 827438.

Walgreens is reworking its shopping rewards program and will soon introduce Balance Rewards.

Shoppers can enroll in the new program online early at bit.ly/R7Ohr8, though the program won’t officially start until Sept. 16. Full details haven’t been released yet, but the new program will be points-based, giving shoppers the opportunity to earn points for shopping and redeem them for products and other rewards.

Walmart is bringing back layaway for the 2012 holiday season after a successful run in 2011. Layaway will become available again Sept. 16 and be available through Dec. 14. Customers who “like” their favorite store will have the opportunity to put items on layaway two days early.

This year’s program offers an extended list of eligible categories. Also, shoppers who make their final payment will receive a refund of the $15 layaway fee in the form of a Walmart gift card. According to the retailer’s website, the down payment for layaway is 10 percent or $10 (whichever is greater). To be eligible, individual items must be priced at $15 or more, and the total layaway purchase must be $50 or more. For more information, visit www.walmart.com/layaway.

I’m a big CVS shopper. If you can get in the right rotation with their Extra Bucks rewards program, a lot of money can be saved. If you’re just starting out or an avid CVS shopper, this promotion is very attractive.

From Sept. 16 to Dec. 15, CVS is offering 4 percent back quarterly — double the 2 percent they usually offer — each time you use your Extra Care card in stores or for online purchases. You will have to sign up at bit.ly/PrSO8H to take advantage of this deal, but this could have a huge impact on the Extra Bucks you receive. Have your Extra Care card handy when you sign up, you will need to enter the number on the back.

Details about the evolving Walgreens rewards policy will be updated there as they are released.

I’m a big CVS shopper. If you can get in the right rotation with their rewards program a lot of money can be saved.

If you’re just starting out or an avid CVS shopper, too, check out these two new deals from the retailer:

From Sept. 16 to Dec. 15 CVS is offering 4% back quarterly — double the 2% they usually offer — each time you scan your Extra Care card. You will have to sign up here to take advantage of this deal, but this could have a huge impact on the Extra Bucks you receive. Have your Extra Care card handy when you sign up, you will need to enter the number on the back.

Beauty Club members will love this deal.
Click here to “like” the Beauty Club on Facebook and you can sign up for a 20% off shopping pass on beauty items. This discount excludes clearance and sale items, but can be combined with manufacturer coupons and Extra Bucks. Sign up quickly, there are only 100,000 coupons available.
The coupon will be emailed to you after you sign up and it expires 3 days after it’s claimed.

Know of any other great deals out there? Share them!

Are cards worth the cost to you? I love finding a greeting card that's just right, but I love saving money on them even more.

After a recent column about the quirky things we all do to save a buck, I received multiple messages from readers about greeting cards. I personally love finding the perfect card for an occasion, but I do hate the cost involved. It’s common to find individual cards for $5 or more these days.

A reader named Michelle from Bedford lets her son draw her greeting cards. She wrote, “My son Jared age 10 enjoys drawing things on homemade cards that he knows is their favorite things to cheer them up or bring a smile. This past Mother’s Day he drew a card with butterflies since he knows butterflies are my favorite. He also likes to use construction paper to cut out designs and glue on the paper. It can be a fun together project as well.”

One reader had a humorous trick to share.

Jeri from Roanoke wrote, “I buy two cards at the Dollar Tree for each birthday, anniversary, Valentine. Since they lay them down and don’t pick them up, I take them and put them in an envelope. Then on that day, I give them one of them, then the next year, I give them the other one. Then put that one away. So each year they get a card from the year before and they never remember getting it. If they do, I just say oh I didn’t remember that, I just liked that card. You can keep doing this year after year.”

That’s one way to reduce, reuse and recycle.

Andrea of Fincastle has a special tradition with her husband on their anniversary: “My hubby and I do not exchange gifts to celebrate our wedding anniversary, but we do like to exchange anniversary cards. However, the price of greeting cards (the really nice, sentimental Hallmark-like cards) is really outrageous. So for last 20 years or so on our 8/16 anniversary, we have made our annual trip to Wal-Mart where we each search diligently to find the perfect card with the exact sentiment we wish to convey. My hubby’s goal is to bring tears to my eyes, which he has on more than one occasion. After we read one another’s chosen card, we simply put the cards back on the rack and walk away. HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, HONEY!!” she wrote.

If none of these solutions strikes your fancy, try out some of these tips:

* CVS, Target and Walgreens frequently provide coupons or run promotions on greeting cards. Sign up for Target’s mobile coupons and check out their website for printable coupons on cards. It’s also possible to break even by earning Extra Bucks or Register Rewards after the purchase from CVS and Walgreens.

* Hallmark and American Greetings provide coupons and promotions of their own from time to time. I’m a member of Hallmark Gold Crown Rewards and regularly receive coupons in the mail offering dollars off a purchase or free cards with purchase. Both card companies also post printable coupons on their Facebook pages and websites periodically.

* If you’re all about digital communication, there are tons of resources for free eCards. Evite by American Greetings is one of the most popular sites. It allows you to pick from a wide variety of invitations and greeting cards that can be sent with personalized messages. If you’re sending out invitations, the recipients can reply with yes, no or maybe and include a personal message for the host. Most digital options are free and you get to skip postage costs, making them especially attractive.

* Those of you with nice printers may be interested in print-at-home options. If you’re sending out 20 or more cards, the cost of ink can be a factor. But if you have a lone birthday card to send, this could work for you. American Greetings and Blue Mountain are two popular resources for pre-designed printables, but there are many other sites that also print cards. Etsy also offers various print-at-home options.

After graduating from college, I used cardstock and matching envelopes to create my own printable graduation party invitations. I chose a color I liked and designed my text on Microsoft Word. The process was simple, and with coupons regularly available for stores like Michaels, AC Moore and Joann Fabric, it was also inexpensive. If you’d like to add a little more flair to plain card stock, consider framing it with scrapbook paper or cutouts. All of these products can be found on clearance on a regular basis.

* It’s also possible to get free professionally printed cards. Websites such as Shutterfly, Cardstore, Snapfish, Treat and Tiny Prints regularly hold promotions offering free cards to new and current members. Each website also gives the user the power of personalization — choose your own text or add a photo. This option takes a little more research. Some sites require you to order select cards in bulk. Or if you want a free card, you’ll have to hunt for a promotion code.

* If you’re looking for something more instantaneous, photo postcards from stores such as Walgreens, CVS and Walmart can be a bargain if you seek out promotion codes or coupons. Each store regularly has promotions for online orders, which is very convenient if you have your photos uploaded to your computer, but there are also weekly deals in each store’s ad as well.

How do you save on greeting cards? Share your tips and tricks!

Here’s a roundup of some new money-saving tips that might lead you to major bargains:

RedPlum, one of the coupon booklets inserted in Sunday newspapers, has provided printable coupons on its website for quite some time. But the coupons online and the coupons in print are often different.

Recently, RedPlum started offering their Sunday coupon booklets in an eBook online. There is a print limit to the coupons, though, so try to access them as early as possible on Sunday mornings. This will be especially handy for any household that doesn’t regularly receive RedPlum with their paper. To try out the new site, visit ebook.redplum.com.

I’ve had a couple of great experiences at Kohl’s recently that led to big savings. On one visit, the saleswoman gladly scanned a coupon from my smartphone when I realized I had forgotten to print it out. On a second trip, I was able to combine a sale price, a $5-off coupon and $10 in Kohl’s Cash — I ended up saving more than $30 on a single purchase.

So now you know, always remember to stack those coupons at Kohl’s. You can combine two dollar-off coupons or a dollar-off coupon and a percentage-off coupon.

Here are some other ways you may not realize you can save at Kohl’s:

If you come within $2 of the Kohl’s Cash criteria (you spend $48 of the required $50), the retailer will round up and reward you with your $10 Kohl’s Cash.

If you forget to include a promo code in an online order, call (855-564-5705) or email (http://bit.ly/oDVF5U) customer service and they will adjust the price of your order for you. You are allowed two promo codes per online order.

CVS has gone mobile. Download the free CVS/pharmacy app for iPhone or Android and you can use your smartphone in place of your ExtraCare card at the register. Up until now, it was not in CVS’ policy to scan coupons from smartphones and you could not access your ExtraCare Card barcode from your smartphone. Now both can be scanned from a phone at the register.

Additionally, you can access your account to view your ExtraBucks rewards and any other savings. You also can send any available coupons directly to your card and skip the printer.

If you use the pharmacy for your prescriptions, there’s also a tool where you can scan your medications to request a refill. After scanning, you will have the opportunity to select a time and location to pickup your medication.

This is the most useful app I’ve downloaded in a long time.

Many shoppers are aware that Target offers store coupons online, but did you know they also offer manufacturer coupons?

Mixed in with the store coupons you’ll find manufacturer coupons available for printing. This is a great opportunity to find coupons that may have reached their print limit on other coupon sites. The major downside is that you can’t tell which coupons are manufacturer coupons and which are store coupons until they are printed. Either way, you could end up saving a lot.

Target will accept one manufacturer’s coupon and one store coupon for a product, so start stacking. There also are coupons available for apparel, accessories and other products throughout the store.

If you have a smartphone, I would also suggest signing up for text alerts and coupons. Target will send you new coupons every couple of weeks for products in each department, even apparel. Just have the cashier scan the barcode on your phone at checkout to get the savings.

To sign up for text alerts, visit http://www.target.comand click the icon labeled Target Mobile. On the following screen you’ll see an area to enter your cellphone number, time zone and preferred delivery time.

How are you saving an extra buck these days?

Most of the time when we hear the phrase “buyer incentives,” it’s related to large purchases such as a house or a car. For those bigger investments, you sometimes can get a tax break, a special deal on your loan or some sort of cash back reward for making payments early. But flip through retail ads today and you’ll see that stores are offering buyer incentives on just about anything.

Sometimes, however, it means the buyer spends more upfront.

I don’t know anyone who would argue with a sale price. But when it comes to having to buy a product to save in the long run, things get tricky.

For example, both Kohl’s and CVS are popular retailers in our area who offer their own store rewards for select purchases.

Kohl’s offers Kohl’s Cash throughout the year when shoppers spend a certain amount. After the cash is earned, shoppers can return at a later date to use the “cash” on future purchases.

CVS has a similar deal. Shoppers earn Extra Bucks for spending a certain amount on selected products each week. These “bucks” can be used in future shopping trips.

If you are a regular shopper at a store that offers these incentives, they can be very rewarding. I’m in a cycle of shopping at CVS because I prefer to make short shopping trips when what I need is on sale as opposed to big Walmart trips. Even though the normal prices at CVS are higher than those at Walmart, I save 50 percent to 75 percent on each shopping trip thanks to my coupons and Extra Bucks.

However, if you’re enticed to pick up a product at one of these stores because of the rewards you receive with a purchase even though you rarely shop there, think twice. For retailers, part of the appeal of these incentives is that many shoppers will forget to use their rewards or not bother to return. Then you really haven’t gotten a deal at all.

Similar promotions also can be found at Target, which regularly offers free gift cards with selected purchases. The plus side to receiving a gift card with purchase is that it won’t expire like store “cash,” which usually is valid for only a month or less.

Then there is the best kind of incentive, which most of us see as an old-fashioned sale. For many shoppers, there’s not much better than a sign that reads “buy one, get one free.” The free product is indeed an incentive, but the reward is immediate.

Similar deals include “buy one at regular price, get one for a dollar,” or “buy one, get one half-off.” You may not have thought of these purchases as incentives in the past, but it’s important to start doing so to really see the value in what you’re buying.

Do you have a preference when shopping? Are you often enticed by rewards after purchase, or have you been burned by them in the past?