What Do You Think Of 1-2 Day Limited Coupons?

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1daycoupons

With so many people unable to redeem their Kellogg’s Special K Cracker Chips today due to winter storms and a lack of stock, I wondered what you think of these limited time coupons.

I remember similar complaints when the Chocolate Cheerios coupon was to be redeemed on a work day.  I checked a couple of stores on the way home from the office, gave up and popped into Longo’s to grab a salad for dinner and they were stocking them as I walked through looking for coupons and you got a free clamshell of strawberries if you bought them so it worked out, but didn’t for so many others.

Do these coupons excite you about a new product or does having only one (or two) days to redeem them put you off when you can’t find the product?


74 responses to “What Do You Think Of 1-2 Day Limited Coupons?”

  1. Lindsay T says:

    It’s stressful and frustrating. I had to go to 3 stores today before I found them. I hate throwing out a FPC though.

  2. I really think that the coupons limited to one or two days are frustrating.

    If I wasn’t doing my shopping today, I wouldn’t have redeemed it, and if there wasn’t a box left at Walmart to grab it, I wouldn’t have gone looking for it, and then I would have been disappointed. I think it’s better for companies to give a decent expiry date (a month or two at least from when you would receive it) to allow people time to find where it’s being sold, and find it in stock.

  3. AH MUIN says:

    I had a hard time to find it from the stores. Some store, like Food Basics in area where I live, do not stock up the two flavours as per coupon. It would be nice if the coupon has a duration of a week or so, at least more than just ONE DAY!!!

  4. Dotty says:

    It’s frustrating, but so is going to the grocery store for your week’s groceries, having noted the specials in that week’s flyer and having nothing advertised in stock. (Thanks, No Frills!). While those items are still valid for the week, should I waste the gas and time to go back periodically just to purchase what I’ve noted?

  5. George says:

    I don’t mind that it’s only valid one day.

    If i get it i do and if not then the company looses and I won’t try the product.

    I actually went to two stores today (had two coupons) one for one flavor and one for the other and I noticed a price difference for more then 2 dollars (not that it mattered).

    And luckily these cracker chips where free because I don’t like them at all so i didn’t have to waste money on them.

  6. hcao says:

    It’s stressful and frustrating.

    Went to several stores, no have them.

    I did not want to waste gas, so Gave up!

  7. Mary-Ellen says:

    No one around me had them. So I killed myself to get that coupon for nothing….

  8. Louise says:

    It’s incredibly annoying when you know 2 weeks from now this product will be launched and will be everywhere but you can’t find it in one place today, the only day the coupon works

  9. arwen999 says:

    They are very frustrating. I went to 3 stores and all of them did not have them.

  10. Kurt Meyer says:

    I hate companies trying to tell me when I should shop. This goes for both coupons and one day only sales. It’s a 15-20 min drive from where I live and then stores are out of stock. Stop telling me when I can or cannot save money.

  11. scouponer says:

    I don’t like the one day coupon. went to 4 stores today and either store didn’t stock those flavours or they were out of stock. Didn’t really want the the product to start with but as it was free I would have donated it. I don’t know that companies are making fans if so many people are frustrated by the experience.

  12. Patricia says:

    I forgot about the coupon I had for the crackers! So much for that!

    I hate the one day coupon sales. On those days I have to stop by Walmart EARLY before work, just to get the item. Not really worth it in the end.

  13. abbasgirl says:

    They’re annoying. I didn’t have any problems finding them today but I have in the past. They only had one of the two flavours though and they didn’t have very many left. Limitting it to 2 flavours was especially annoying. At least this one was redeemable on a Saturday though. I hate having to hunt things down at the end of a work day when I’m already tired.

  14. George says:

    Driving specially to use a coupon does not seem word it to me.

    I was doing shopping for other goods anyways other wise i would not have bothered.

    I may walk to the store close by (Safeway) and they ended up having tons of them. But if you have to go and start doing crazy things just to use a coupon then i think you will not end up saving much.

  15. Femme Fatale says:

    Awh man, I totally forgot about that coupon, and I was out today! I hate one day coupons.

  16. Dm says:

    If we want this to change we are the ones to do it . I will no longer run all over for free think of the gas . If they want me to try some thing change how long we have . Some stores have they put them in the back and left the other flavors out . Tomorrow they will be back on the shelf they don’t want to deal with the coupons .And in some places weather had nothing to do with it .

  17. torontogal12 says:

    It landed on a day when the eastern half of the country was buried in snow. That’s just one of the reasons these one day FPCs are silly. I just wish we knew what the reason for one day coupons is. To create hoopla in the stores? Other customers without FPCs start seeing Special K crackers in lots of carts, empty shelves. They’ll think there is a run on a new product.

    Dear companies, explain this one-day logic to us! You want us to think we are getting a free product but putting up obstacles means really don’t WANT us to redeem these, right? If you really wanted us to, you’d make it easy

    If the store is not easily accessible, it is not worth it to dig out the car, spend time and gas money driving around, when the city hasn’t even plowed the streets properly yet, for something that costs $3.59 and that you may not even like anyway.

  18. miss tree says:

    i have had more luck finding new products with 1-day FPCs than i have with finding new products with long expiry dates on their FPCs. even though it’s a PITA having to schedule your shopping around a specific date, at least most stores either have the product in stock or had the product in stock but have run out. i think the companies have the incentive to get their new product out on time & to as many stores as possible so as not to upset customers. new products with long expiry dates on FPCs don’t seem to prompt companies to get their new product out as aggressively, IMHO.

  19. kerry says:

    I don’t like them,they are not convenient enough,I usually can’t find the product in the stores,I shop in that day,or I just forget about the coupon.

  20. Jenn says:

    Senseless!

    I had similar problem, went to three different stores and no one has them.

    If the company want the consumers to try their product, then they should not put such limit(s) on their offer. It make no sense. If they want to limit the number of sample they give out then maybe they should just limit it to one per household. Consumers in general just doesn’t like to be inconvienced. It is just frustrating because one can forget, don’t have the time or have trouble finding it in the store. It just end up “turning off” some consumers, doing the opposite of what the company intended.

  21. Nadia says:

    I don’t mind at all! I’ve had several one day coupons over the last 2 yrs and have NEVER had trouble getting the product. Today, first store I walked into had the crackers, then the second store I walked into also had a HUGE display of just those 2 flavors. FPC’s are a privilege and not a right and personally i’m kind of tired of all the whining!

  22. Leia says:

    I went to 4 stores before finding a box. Three of the stores were in the same plaza, so that didn’t take up too much time. Two of the stores didn’t carry those two flavours. At the third store, they were out of stock. An employee told me that a woman had come in earlier in the morning and got 19 free boxes. The fourth store only had one box left of each flavour.

    I wish that the companies would wait until all stores have started to stock the new product.

  23. Sumi says:

    I went to superstore this morning and redeemed one coupon for BBQ flavour. I saw plenty of them. However at checkout I saw this lady checking out 15 boxes and holding a stack of coupons. She was able to process the order without any questions. However, the cashier had to call for over write. I was shocked and I wonder how she was able to able to get hold of 15 of them!

  24. Kary says:

    I totally forgot about this coupon, probably because I didn’t want it that much in the first place. I totally would have redeemed it if the coupon was valid on the day I usually go grocery shopping.

    I hate one day coupons because they force you to go out on that day, and usually that item is not available!! I don’t think it’s fair that we as consumers have to search so hard for that certain product. Free should be free, not free only if you’re able to find me, and it’s not easy.

  25. jess_147 says:

    I agree they can be a little frustrating, but I appreciate any fpc’s that they offer.

  26. Sandra5 says:

    Two words: chintzy and annoying. One day redemption FPC create a negative connotation and experience for the product and company (I’m lookin’ at YOU General Mills) rather than a fun, pleasant one.
    The recent free FPC for butter ball turkey bacon is a good example of how to do FPC right. With a month expiry date, you have the consumer’s convenience in mind rather than the company’s.
    Make my experience fun, pleasant and non-stessed and I’m much more likely to repurchase your product.

  27. cath007 says:

    In fact a hate 1 days fpc…because all the persons attack the store and none left..so if that would be like the other fpc coupons loonger date expiry..the store would have time to get more and everybody will be happy…I had to do 3 places at 9 am this morning because findiing something not cleared out..So I wonder how many fpc’s are waste becauuse of that.Not really a good markething strategy.And in my city more couponer than before;so it is difficult to have something.
    Next nightmare the B1G1 cherioss nd get 1 peannut butter one..

  28. Tammy says:

    My problem is you might forget because its only one day I think like George I would like to get it but if I don’t no big deal because the company is losing out since its unlikely I will try their product because I never heard of it before. I was lucky I was on my way to work and forgot my dinner so I dropped into Foodland and they had them I had two coupons and they allowed me to use them both at the same time but I can only get the one flavor because that’s all they had I tried earlier that day when I had to go to shoppers for something and they never had it.

    I tried the Special K cracker chips and I actually like them I would buy them as a snack but if I hadn’t got them free to try I don’t think I would have bought them.

  29. Tammy says:

    Forgot to mention I gave one of the free boxes to a friend at work who also never heard of this product and she also liked them and said she would buy them so they so the company offering free coupons worked for them on this one.

  30. Caroli says:

    I’m with everyone on this one, stop the one day coupons!!! I did get 2 boxes from sdm, they didn’t have the flavours on the coupon so they allowed me to choose from what they did have, also they didn’t charge me tax like some people mentioned on this site.

  31. Trent says:

    These type of coupons create interest in the product but usually fail to deliver the product as they are usually out of stock. My biggest concern is the negative environmental impact this type of coupon scheme, caused by people making a special trip to obtain the coupon’ed product.

  32. Esme says:

    I’m against these coupons. I don’t want to be treated like a dog in the Pavlov experiment : ring that bell (coupon) and I’ll go mad and visit every single store in my area to get the item ? Seriously ?

    My dignity is more valuable than a coupon.

  33. Ann says:

    I did get to use my coupon, but really hate the one day ones. I don’t like to go shopping on the weekends as it’s usually a nut house, and would prefer the one day to be a weekday, however I realize that doesn’t work for most people. I think that if they really want us to try the product they should make it a limited time offer, like a week maybe. But how do we change something like that? Anyone have any ideas?

  34. Christina says:

    I didn’t get my coupons used either because RCSS was out of stock by noon and with the snow storm, I wasn’t driving around town to find a store with stock. What a waste

  35. EasterSummerSolsticeStarSpangledSky says:

    It is frustrating to have one-day free product promotion coupons since so many petty people wait outside in the parking lots until the stores open just to get their blasted free products and/or some petty store owners purposely hiding the products. I was lucky to get the free Nature’s Valley bars on Tuesday, July 24th, 2012 since there was a plentiful quantity and I did get Kellogg’s Special K Cracker Chips in Zesty Southwest yesterday.

  36. Natalka says:

    I just don’t understand their reasoning for having it be one day only; it doesn’t make sense.
    We did get the Special K cracker chips in BBQ yesterday, though – we wouldn’t normally shop on a Saturday!

  37. Anna says:

    Well as someone who doesn’t drive and goes grocery shopping around my husbands work schedule I find it frustrating. I obviously appreciate the FPC but it gets stressful. I went to my Superstore yesterday and they didn’t have any of the two new flavours in stock. The storm really affected all the grocery stores in Ontario. However, the manager was kind enough to let me pick other flavours and still use the coupon. Which was great because I really like the original flavour. I still want to try the new flavours, which was the point of the coupon though.

  38. Greg says:

    Great, idea if you want to waste $2+ in gas and time, I don’t bother with these, I’d rather buy the product and than waste time and $$ on searching for the 1 day item, Kelloggs take note give the consumer 30 days to redeem a free product, Thanks but no thx.

  39. Natalka says:

    Added – oh, and though I totally appreciate the FPC, at Safeway had to pay an additional 27 cents – stoopid inflated price there of $4.27.

  40. nisiepie says:

    the companies issueing these very limited coupons should make sure the specified products are supplied to all participating retailers well ahead of time.

    so far, with such promotions, i’ve never seen this done successfully.

    the manufacturers and distributers have done a poor job in ensuring these promos are easy for customers to participate in.

  41. nisiepie says:

    as someone else has mentioned, the selection of a particular day may not be convenient for everyone.

    these promotions are less about promoting products to customers, and more about creating a flashy public image.

  42. coley3 says:

    I didn’t get a chance to use it. We were busy and by the time I had a chance to go it was after supper. And because of other past experiences I didn’t want to have to go from store to store to find them. I had just 1 coupon. But sadly it goes unused. The companies loss not mine. I will stick with snacks I already know.

  43. Gazpache says:

    I never got a chance to use mine. I MUCH prefer the coupons that are valid on weekdays only. Saturday is my one day a week to do nothing and I hate having to leave the house. (I work Sunday-Friday). Once I saw the date for the coupon was yesterday I knew I wasn’t going to be able to use it. Unfortunately, I only noticed this Friday so it was too late to try to pass it on to someone.

    And as most other people have said, I hate going out to the store just to use it and find the store doesn’t have it in stock, then the next day they have pallets of them!

  44. Chantal Leblanc says:

    I went to Sobeys on my way home from work at 2:30 in the morning and they didn’t have either of the new flavours at all. I convinced the night cashier to let me have another flavour instead since they didn’t have the stock. You would think that there would be some kind of coordination between the manufacturers and the major grocery stores when they launch new products like that so that the product can actually be made available to the consumers. If the product isn’t there at 2:30 in the morning, they didn’t run out, they just never had any.

  45. Rosie says:

    It was frustating trying to find out which stores carried them. At first, I thought it was good for any variety until a friend of mine pointed it out that it was only valid for the BBQ and the Southwest.

  46. macw1960 says:

    I am not really impressed by 1 day FPC’s but that being said I will order them on the off chance that I may be out and about. I was able to get them at Sobey’s yesterday and they had tons of them as they were on sale for $2.49.

  47. Carol says:

    I was laid up and could not get out today so I asked my husband to stop on his way out and cash in on the coupon. He came back with a different flavour than the 2 specific ones indicated on the coupon. He said they did not have those 2 in stock and just grabbed the one he likes and they didn’t even question it at the cash! Guess he lucked out.

  48. D says:

    Hate them. Probably won’t have a chance to redeem the chips one good for today. Such a waste.

  49. annie says:

    How are people getting 15 coupons???

  50. Dm says:

    Web saver would not let you have 15 accounts they are stretching the truth or they are getting them from some one who did not want them . And if they do have 15 accounts sham on them no wonder we can never get some of the coupons .

  51. cdngal75 says:

    I almost forget about the Special K one yesterday. Just happened to be in Walmart and saw a display of them, so grabbed a box.

    I live 30 minutes from the nearest walmart, so if I hadn’t been there already I would not have bothered going just for them.

    I have found in the past that most stores near me never have the specified item.
    The No Frills near me for example would have the Special K chips, but they would not have the 2 flavours specified on the coupon. This has happened almost everytime there is a free product coupon. The only store I find will have the flavour in stock is Walmart.

  52. Mar Ilk says:

    I am agree with all previous posts I am working usual all the days this offers came out and I usually don’t have even chains to luck for this products. It does upset me I give up with this 1-2 days offers coupons.

  53. Dm says:

    Was this a print and mail coupon . If it was print that has to be how they are getting them that is one of the reasons I am against the print at home yes it is faster but this could be the reason why we have coupon hogs .

  54. Josh says:

    i had 6 of them, had 3 acounts one for each address i have, parents and in laws. and the other 3 i traded for. yes i did dig myself out of the driveway to go and get them but i had checked the store on friday to see if they had it , store is only 1 mile away from house. i enjoy how people like to complain about everything they are free items your not entitled to them the company gives them out. if they want to put a 1 day limit on them so be it.

  55. jld87 says:

    I had the coupon and couldn’t find the cracker chips. I wasn’t about to drive around town trying other stores as I have a baby who I left with hubs to do groceries, I only have so much time. Why get people excited about a free product if they can’t even get it? Same with the Dempsters farmhouse bread coupon, it didn’t expire quickly but after a couple weeks and about 8 different stores, I gave up and I sill haven’t seen it out there!

  56. CJ says:

    I don’t like them…every grocery store in the province was closed because of the storm…
    I live 15 minutes from the store and so for me it is crazy to make a trip just for a free product anyway!
    If they’re trying to get us to try new products I don’t think this is the best way.

  57. Cecile says:

    I really think these coupons are frustrating and a waste of time. It is very stressful when you’re limited to when you can get them. These coupons are useless.

  58. Marlene says:

    We live out in the country so to drive into the city to claim my free product just doesn’t make sense. If the coupon was good for whenever it would be much handier for people not living right in cities or towns. thank you.

  59. HappyCouponSaver78 says:

    My brother disliked me yesterday because of the one day coupon. Safeway has one left so I grabbed but realized I have to pay 20 cents and my mom bought another item (ice cream bars) 5.00 + tx. It’s a PITA I looked at Superstore and they have none!

  60. A L says:

    It sucks…and very often the particular product is sold out….and then u have to go to another store just to find out that store doesn’t carry that item…. >_<

  61. Louise says:

    Or they might really like the product enough to trade for a bunch.

  62. crystal says:

    Seriously people. It’s a free box of crackers. First of all, according to Canada’s food guide we should be limiting these snacks anyways. But not my point, it’s an offer that even I wasn’t able to redeem I said, oh darn, threw it out and got on with life…as should you…not a big deal…and yes I am in debt so I could do with free food but there’s really no stress from it like others…it’s an offer we should say thanks for rather than complain about!

  63. olivercat says:

    I really dislike one day coupons–it assumes that I can shop on the day specified –no storms, that the stores have stock- that I am not working a 16 hr shift–basically that I can JUMP when they say shop. Personally, I think if you didslike the ‘one day’ coupons, you need to give feedback to the company –by email or phone. I plan to!

  64. Bargain Seeker says:

    I personally find them very frustrating. I had 4 of these coupons. Because of the storm I sent my husband to get them Saturday evening. He went to Walmart, the Superstore and Sobeys and did not find the flavours that were mentioned on the coupons. We ended throwing away the 4 FPCs.

  65. Barcoll says:

    I dislike them. Years ago, very few coupons had expiry dates. My friend was able to get then at Safeway and was compensated the full purchase price of $4.19. I think the companies should give you, at least, a week to redeem them.

  66. Scubabare says:

    I wasn’t about to drive my Ram 1500 15km each way for a free box of cereal. I would have wasted more money in gas then the box would have cost. Although I hate wasting a FPC, I hate spending more money to get the item then it’s worth 🙁

  67. idubyan says:

    a lot of those one day only coupons are for new products – which are not available everywhere in Canada.

    Moreover, some grocery chains (with very rude employees) like Canada Safeway refuse to honor coupons such as these.

    A huge waste of time and effort

    🙁

  68. cdngal75 says:

    Crystal….the whole point of the post was to comment on what we thought of the coupons.

  69. amandabananda says:

    I had no problem finding them at my local Zehrs. I don’t mind the 2 day FPC’s, Wal-Mart, No Frills NEVER have the product, but I find Zehrs and Sobeys (at least in my area) normally does. Picked up the Zesty Southwest, have yet to try them tho

  70. Stephanie says:

    Last time i was smart. Hid a box the day before, then went back and took it out of the hiding spot. The store took them all off the shelf … As shocked that i showed up to the cashier with one!

  71. Irene says:

    Very frustrating; went to 3 stores and not one of them stocked them yet; they only had the prior ones. Perhaps Web Saver shouldn’t promot one or two day coupons

  72. Cheryl Aucoin says:

    it’s crap! every coupon i’ve ever had for the past 2 years that was “one day only” i’ve gone to several stores that day – stores that had the product the day before, AND the day after, and mysteriously…. nothing in stock that day. Why do companies even bother with these coupons?


















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