Chugiak woman makes coupons pay -- and blogs about it

Her secret? Coupons.

"It's pretty unreal," said the Chugiak resident who recently launched a blog that gives readers the scoop on how to save in Alaska.

Jessica Salyers and her son and shopping buddy Aiden, 4, know how to find deals. Salyers says she spends 15-20 hours each week organizing coupons and researching store prices. Then she posts the information on her blog so readers can achieve her savings with a mere three to four hours work per week.

The blog went online in May and to date has received about 5,000 hits.

Known among friends, and even store managers, as the "coupon queen," Salyers has figured out the art of slashing bills from dollars to cents.

On one recent trip to Target, she saved $12.48, leaving her bill at a grand total of 14 cents. On another shopping trip, also to Target, she saved $50.98, while paying only $15.15 out of pocket.

"We really like Target," she said, but deals are also to be had at other big box stores like Fred Meyer, Walmart, Carrs Safeway and Walgreens.

However, the huge savings don't come easy. Salyers spends a combined 40 hours each week -- the equivalent of a full-time job -- searching out the bargains then blogging what she learns and advising others who seek her help.

Besides tracking down and organizing coupons into a three-ring binder and pocket-size accordion folder, she's created a database of prices, researched stores' coupon policies and sought out a woman in the Lower 48 who mails her newspaper inserts that are unavailable in Alaska.

Salyers said the most important message when it comes to couponing is to wait until the price is low and then to buy enough to last until an item goes on sale again.

This approach has left her with a stockpile -- or "mini-store" as her family refers to it -- that at times can get out of control. When this happens, she turns to nonprofits, donating groceries to the Food Bank and personal care items to Abused Women's Aid In Crisis. She recently cleared 50 sticks of deodorant out of her house.

Salyers' blog sprang out of her friends' interest in what she was doing. For almost a year before starting Alaska's Best Grocery Deals, she regularly sent out e-mails with coupon tips and tricks.

Debbie Bates, a friend and avid blog reader, credits Salyers with saving her hundreds of dollars.

"She goes through and marks what the coupons are and how to put them together to get the best deals," Bates said.

Both Salyers and Bates agree that the best deals occur when manufacturer coupons are combined with store sales.

"I know what's on sale, I know what's coming up and I know when to use my coupons, which is an art," Bates said.

Salyers also helps her blog readers understand the legal and ethical boundaries of couponing.

"I appreciate that she's very ethical about what's OK and what's not OK, how to combine stuff and how you can't," Bates said.

Selling coupons is against the law; copying Internet printables is also a no-no. And each store has its own definition of words like "transaction," which Salyers has researched.

Salyers is not the only Alaskan getting the word out about how to use coupons. In July, Nichole Smith and Kara Altman debuted Alaska Coupon Diva and in April Palmer-based Erika Buswell launched Alaskan Bargain Hunter.

"I think we all saw the need," Smith said.

Alaska Coupon Diva received about 40,000 hits in the first six weeks it was online, in large part due to the social media Smith and Altman use to promote it.

Readers can follow their blog on Facebook, Twitter, RSS feed and Google Friend Connect. They also link their posts as often as possible to larger Lower 48 coupon blogs.

Smith said she coupons for two reasons: to save money and the thrill of the experience.

"It really is kind of a high when you walk out and you know you've just saved 90 percent," she said.

Smith, a mother who made plans for her blog while living in Eagle River, said couponing also creates the added benefit of building up a food storage in case of an emergency.

Since launching Alaska Coupon Diva, Smith has been surprised to discover the huge amount of non-grocery related deals. Retail is a whole other realm to dive into, she said.

Smith said she gets mixed reactions from cashiers when she presents dozens of coupons at checkout -- some are annoyed, but most are impressed.

Smith hopes Alaska Coupon Diva will help stores to be more coupon friendly and know their own coupon policies. She, like Salyers, emphasize that couponing is a win-win scenario. Not only do customers get more for less, but stores also get reimbursed for manufacturer coupons and manufacturers get people to try their products.

While couponing may be all about the savings for Salyers and Smith, it's not all about money. Salyers' goal for her blog is just to share what she knows. Smith would like to sell enough ads on her blog to earn a few hundred dollars to help offset time and costs, but as she notes, she and her business partner are only making about 50 cents an hour for their work.

"If it was just money based," Smith said, "it wouldn't be worth it."