I know couponing has become all the rage, what with shows like Extreme Couponing and the never-ending stores asking you to sign up for their mailing lists for discounts. A lot of people see coupons and mailing lists as clutter and junk mail. But the reality of it is there are some pretty good deals out there.

With our up and coming move, we have been looking for ways to save money by whatever means possible and while we haven't seen any paper coupons to help us out, there have been many online bargains. So while this isn't a craft project, it is a way to become more creative in your shopping.

There's two things to consider when buying things online. First, you need to know if the price you get it for online is cheaper than what you can get it for in a store. Sometimes, you might find a deal online, but by the time you pay for shipping, it comes out to the same amount, or more. So you need to know what the value is of something. Maybe it's worth it to you to pay the same amount for something if it gets delivered to your home to save you the trip of going out and that's fine.

Once you've decided if you are going to buy something online, you need to shop around. Treat everything like used car shopping. Don't just settle on the first thing. Know what you're looking for and who has the best rates, shipping, return policies, etc. Once you settle on a vendor, find out if there are coupon codes you can use. Often, you can go to websites like www.retailmenot.com and look up a website and see if there is a coupon code floating around the internet. You'd be surprised how many sites have options you can add on top of their already low prices and for things from 10% off to set dollar amounts to free items and free shipping. The values are endless if you're willing to do a few minutes of online research.

Perfect case in point, we needed a rental truck to haul all our items and tow a car across country. We could settle with U-haul, which everyone knows the name, but after shopping around, Budget Rentals came out to $700 cheaper. That's pretty much our gas money right there! Now, I know $5 may not be a big discount when ordering something small, but $700 is a lot when we're talking moving truck rental rates. Lesson learned: it is important to shop around for things online and in person. But always keep your eyes open for coupon codes, deals, promos, and don't be afraid to sign up for email mailing lists, even if you have to create a separate email account to sort through the deals, because the are out there.