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Groceries - Name Your Own Price!
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Priceline.com
recently launched "Name Your Own Price" for
groceries. I decided to put this service to the
test. After all, who better to test a money saving
theory than a mother of four! What I found is that
there are plenty of pros and cons to this service.
In my particular case, the pros far outweighed the
cons. Let's see if it's worth it for you.
Getting Started
First you'll need to point your web browser to
Priceline's website. Once at the site, click the
blue tab that says Groceries. To get started, click
on the area that asks if you need a card.
You will be guided through the process where you'll
enter your address information, select a grocery
store in your area, and finally, begin your
shopping.
The Online Shopping Experience
It's all pretty painless, and actually a little
fun. I'll admit, I was not a believer when I
started. I began clicking through the groceries,
choosing a few here and there, while completely
skipping others. I decided to start with 25
different items, including produce, dairy, meats,
dry goods, and freezer items. I chose half price on
some items, medium-low price on others, and very
low on some more. Remember, the whole idea behind
this concept is that you name the price that you
want to pay!
From the time I signed up to the time I finished I
had spent approximately 45 minutes at the Priceline
website. Assuming you will feel more comfortable
with the ins and outs of the shopping site when you
return (I assure you, you will return!), the time
spent online for future shopping trips should be
significantly less.
Before you can go and physically pick up your
selected items, you will have to either wait for
your club card to arrive in the mail, or you can
pick one up at your participating grocer. I picked
mine up, came back to the site, activated it and
found that all of my price selections had been
accepted and my credit card charged. All I had to
do now was go to the store and get my groceries. I
printed my Prepaid Grocery List and headed out the
door.
At The Store
This service does not bag and deliver the groceries
for you. You will still need to go to the grocery
store, grab a shopping cart, and fill that cart
with your selected items. Use your printout to find
the items you selected. Be sure to watch your
quantities, remember you paid for these items
already on your credit card, so make sure you get
what you paid for!
While shopping, I kept track of the prices on my
printout and the prices at the store. I was
pleasantly surprised to find that only one item out
of the twenty-five that I selected was higher than
the store sale price! While comparing the store
prices to my prices, I also watched for generic
brands that were comparable to the items I had
selected. Of the items that had a generic
equivalent, 90% of my prices were equal to or lower
than the generic. On the flipside of this, there
are just some items that I refuse to buy generic of
(i.e., sliced American cheese), so the generic
equivalent was irrelevant in these instances.
At The Checkout
All of your Priceline groceries must be rung up
first, and separately. Some people will groan at
the thought of separating their Priceline groceries
from their other items, but frankly, it was quite
simple. Alert the register clerk that these are
your Priceline items. When he/she is finished
scanning all of the items, they will give you a
total and then ask you to scan your Priceline club
card as if it were a debit card. Once this is done,
the total on the register will clear and the clerk
can continue with your other groceries. My total
Priceline groceries on my first trip were $106, my
prepaid amount generated at the website was $62, a
total savings of $44. That's
42%!
Some Examples
Here are a few items that are on my grocery list,
as well as their regular store price, the sale
price if applicable, and generic equivalent price.
This will give you an idea of why I was able to see
this as such a valuable money saver.
|
ITEM
|
PRICELINE
|
STORE
$
|
SALE
$
|
GENERIC
$
|
COMMENTS
|
|
Ground
Beef
85% lean
|
$1.42/pkg
(up to 1.5 lbs)
|
2.99/lb
($3.29/pkg)
|
Not on
sale
|
N/A
|
Priceline
calculates out to .95/lb
|
|
Land
O' Lakes Margarine
(1 8 oz or 2 16 oz tubs)
|
$0.82
|
$1.39
|
Not on
sale
|
$0.99
|
Only one
size was available, not of much
consequence, but worth mentioning.
|
|
Oranges
- Loose
Navel or Valencia
|
$0.15
per orange
|
$0.99/lb
|
$0.59/lb
|
N/A
|
10
oranges weighed 7.5 lbs
7.5 lbs @ 0.59/lb = $4.43
Priceline price = $1.50
|
|
Milk
(1 gallon)
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$1.50
|
$2.99
|
Not on
sale
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N/A
|
This is
a huge savings in this area of the country
as milk is very high!
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Large
Eggs
Grade A or AA
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$0.55
per dozen
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$1.69
per dozen
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Not on
sale
|
N/A
|
Same
goes for eggs, the southwest states pay
dearly for dairy and eggs.
|
|
Kraft
American Singles
16 slices
|
$1.63
|
$3.69
|
$3.29
|
$1.29
|
In this
case, the generic won the price war, but I
won't buy generic American cheese anyway,
so in my case it was not of
consequence.
|
|
Wonder
Bread
1 lb 8 oz
|
$1.24
|
$2.79
|
Not on
sale
|
$1.29
|
I was
very pleased to see the generic was even
beaten out!
|
Pros and Cons
While shopping, I was muttering prices aloud. While
stating that my eggs were 55 cents instead of the
full price of $1.69, a couple standing nearby asked
me if I was using the Priceline service. This
sparked a conversation between us that allowed me
(and them) to see things in a different light. Is
it worth it to YOU? Is the time involved really
worth it? This couple worked full time, ate late
each night, and had no children. She commented that
she didn't know if it was worth "the hassle", yet
as I showed her the prices I had locked in, she
seemed persuaded to at least give it a try.
So how do you know if it's worth your time?
Consider these pros and cons while weighing your
decision. If nothing else, try it for a handful of
items, do your own comparison, and see if it's
worth it to you.
Pros
--------
Up to 50% savings on your grocery bills
Easy to use website, easy to follow
instructions
Print out your own personal sale paper (Prepaid
Grocery List)
Items are already charged on your credit card,
prepaid
Allows for a large variety of items from every
section of the store
Convenient, select your groceries before you leave
the house
Cons
--------
Must spend time at the website selecting your
groceries
May find that there are a few items on your list
that cost less in generic form
Must separate Priceline groceries from your other
items at checkout
Once your prices are accepted, your credit card is
charged
Final Notes
If an item is out of stock or they simply don't
carry a brand that is on your shopping list, check
with the store manager. The manager I spoke with
had absolutely no problem substituting one brand
for another at no additional cost. Your grocery
list is valid for 90 days. use this to your
advantage by shopping for the special occasions
ahead of time. Enjoy, I hope that you are able to
save as much as I did!
Have you had any experience with Priceline's
Grocery service? Or do you just have a comment or
question? Feel free to talk to Amanda and share
your story or comments here! We realize that an
experience that is good for one, may not have been
good for another. Please fill us in by stopping by
here: http://208.185.149.85/WebX?13@57.gaAOa6LXa2V^1@.ee6fee8
About
the Author:
Amanda
Formaro is the entrepreneurial mother of four
children, wife to her loving husband, Tracy, and
webmom to familycorner.com magazine at
http://familycorner.com
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