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Before I used coupons I wasn’t aware of the sheer volume of brands out there. I had been using the same toothpaste, shampoo, razors and contact lens solution (etc) for years. I just figured the money I paid for the items was the cost of BEING. They were just things you had to buy- the cost of life in general.
As I became more aware of what I was spending I got increasingly annoyed paying for contact lens solution. The stuff was $13 a bottle! It was the same brand I had always used and I knew that it worked. But there were other brands in the store that were around $3 a bottle with coupons and store credit. So after much inner dialogue I grabbed a bottle and decided the $10 difference was worth the risk.
It turns out in my case saline is saline. The “cheaper” brand worked just as well at storing my contact lenses and I spent $10 less! From then on I stepped back to reevaluate almost every brand I bought and tried to answer the question “WHY did I always buy that?”
As women we tend to get our brand loyalty from the other women in our lives- many times our mothers.
This often told joke is a beautiful example:
A young woman was preparing a ham dinner. After she cut off the end of the ham, she placed it in a pan for baking. Her friend asked her,”Why did you cut off the end of the ham”?
And she replied ,”I really don’t know but my mother always did, so I thought you were supposed to.” Later when talking to her mother she asked her why she cut off the end of the ham before baking it, and her mother replied, “I really don’t know, but that’s the way my mom always did it.”
A few weeks later while visiting her grandmother, the young woman asked, “Grandma, why is it that you cut off the end of a ham before you bake it?”
Her grandmother replied, “Well dear, otherwise it would never fit into my baking pan.”
YEARS of wasted ham over the generations.
Now I know there are some things no matter how expensive they get people won’t quit using. If you ever come to my home you will ONLY find Cottonelle Toilet Paper [2]
But do you really know WHY you use Dawn instead of Palmolive. Bounce instead of Downy? Pantene instead of Suave? What if you could save thousands of dollars just by trying new brands?
In all likelihood you can.
Here are five steps you can take to get rid of brand loyalty and save big money:
1. Grab cheaper (or even free) sample sizes. This is where FREE samples can be so nice. Sometimes it is hard to commit to buying a giant package of something but a free sample works just fine. Keep your eyes out in stores for sample or cheap travel sizes. Check out my post on How To Get Free Samples from Target [4]– some samples you can even find online without leaving the house. Or check out my Free Stuff category [5]. Also you can often call or e-mail companies and they will send you samples of their products.
2. Check out the store brand. I know it probably shocks you to read that from a couponer but it’s true. There are some items that the store brand is just cheaper. This weekend I made my famous Cowboy Caviar Recipe [6] and it requires several cans of beans. So I got the store brand instead of the name brand. It was about $.10 cheaper and tasted exactly the same- no one at the party knew they were eating generic. So be sure to compare the price.
3. Grab the latest and greatest. When brands release new products they really want you to try them. To persuade you they will often have high value coupons or put them dramatically on sale. Don’t be afraid to grab the newest razor or shampoo in the store if the deal is good!
4. Be sneaky. One of my favorite stories from coupon class was told by a hairdresser. When the recession started she saw a dramatic hit to her business and started looking for ways to cut back. But when she brought home shampoo from the store instead of the salon her two “tween” daughters were furious- they had ALWAYS had salon shampoo and this was unacceptable. Instead of giving in to them she kept the bottles from the salon when they were empty and filled them with $.99 Suave. They never had any idea and their hair looked exactly the same. If someone in your house isn’t playing along, a TINY bit of deception may help your budget.
5. Use coupons to get new items free. If you know how to shop the grocery and drug stores with coupons you will find items free constantly. If the full sized is only a few cents go ahead and grab it to try. If you use a small quantity and don’t like it, pass it off to a family member or friend to try. Or if they are individually wrapped you can donate to the food bank or local church pantry.
Following these five simple steps you can examine your brand loyalty and see if it’s costing you money! You might be shocked to find that Getting Rid of Brand Loyalty Can Help You Save Big!