The first elusive “freebie” I got was toothpaste. Walgreens had a sale on Colgate, and after Register Rewards (coupon toward the next shopping trip), it was free. (I even had a Colgate coupon that gave me money back. (Score!)
But how much did I need?
And how long would it be until I would be able to get the same free deal?
I had no idea. I didn’t know how much toothpaste we go through, and I didn’t know when the next free toothpaste deal would come up. Even if I accepted what the experts said that sales go in quarterly cycles, I had no idea how many tubes of toothpaste we would need for 3 months.
I ended up buying two (in two different transactions… more details on Register Rewards in another post).
But I also decided that if I was going to stock up on the great deals on household products, I needed to know how much to buy.
So, what I started doing was writing the date I began using a product on its container.
I did this with toothpaste, laundry detergent, fabric softener, and toilet paper.
And if I determine that sales cycles really do come about quarterly, I’ll know how much I’ll need to buy when those great deals come along, to last me 3 months.