Frustrated with coupon hating cashiers?

My experiences yesterday reminded me of several things that we have to remember when we choose to lower our shopping bills by using coupons.

1) Not all cashiers are sympathetic to our plight, and some of them are even out to try to prove us wrong, deny our coupons, or give us a hard time. These cashiers are few and far between, but they do exist. There are some in every store. No matter what made them into this coupon hating creature, the best move is to identify them and avoid them. There is always at least one other lane option to avoid them (unless, of course, you are at Rite Aid; then you might just have to memorize the crazy Rite Aid lady's schedule and not return doing those hours :))

2) Not all cashiers know their store's coupon policy. Neither do all the managers. You will usually be right. You have to decide how much of an effort you need to put in for the product you are buying. If it's worth the fight, then go for it.

3) Deal scenarios will not always play out exactly as you read them on a blog - some of the merchandise may be gone already, or a certain cashier will not accept a certain coupon. Be prepared to walk away and try again or be creative and create your own deal scenario. It may not be as good as the one you read online - they rarely are...the blogged scenarios are often the best case scenario deals, and many bloggers have not gone out and actually snagged these deals themselves.

4) You are perfectly within your right to use coupons. You are being a wise consumer. Never feel badly about couponing, and never let a cashier frustrate you to the point of being upset.