By Nicole Long

Nicole Long is a freelance writer with expertise in economics, business and personal finance. Nicole blogs via Contently.com.

Any which way you cut it, coupons can be a real budget saver for families, and even individuals. You’ve seen it on television, possibly read about local coupon legends in your newspaper and certainly stumbled across a blog or two about the coupon craze. How do you know what is what in the world of coupons? Just where do you start?

Take a slow, deep breath and tackle the world of couponing one step at a time. Let’s start by taking a look at the various types of grocery coupons. Armed with this knowledge, you will have a better idea of where to look for coupons and how the various types of coupons work.

Manufacturer Magic

One of the most coveted of all coupons – the manufacturer coupon. You can find manufacturer coupons in several places. The most common place to find manufacturer coupons is your local Sunday newspaper. Coupon inserts in Sunday papers provide an abundance of manufacturer coupons.

Companies also send manufacturer coupons along with samples or mailers. These coupons are often targeted to your demographic and help introduce new or “improved” products.

You can also contact the company directly and beg them to send you coupons for specific products. Well, you don’t usually have to beg. Many companies will send you coupons for simple acts, like registering with their websites, subscribing to their email lists or liking their Facebook pages.

Printable Savings

Savings don’t stop with the delivery of your Sunday newspaper or product samples. Perhaps one of the most convenient ways to rake in additional savings is to take advantage of printable coupons.

Printable coupons can be found online from a number of sources, including manufacturer websites and coupon group sites, like CouponMom.com. With the sheer volume of coupons available online, you can certainly find plenty of coupons that will fit the specific needs of your household. Unlike the coupon inserts you receive in the paper, printable coupons are as customizable as you can get.

Follow some tips from MSN Money’s Stacy Johnson to make printable coupons work for you. Since manufacturers can place limits on the number of coupons that can be printed, she recommends printing coupons as soon as you see them – otherwise you may find yourself out of luck when the coupons run out or are removed. Another tip: Use scrap paper – minus any personal or private information of course – to print coupons to help reduce printing expenses.

Store Savings

Last, but certainly not least, is the store coupon. These are typically offered in store circulars, on store websites and through targeted customer mailings. Supermarkets and large retailers offer store coupon savings. Take a look through the Sunday paper, and you can find discount coupons for restaurants, electronics stores and clothing retailers.

Stores also attract customers with store loyalty programs. With these programs, you earn discounts on products just for using your loyalty card at checkout. Often these savings can add up to a substantial savings, especially if combined with manufacturer coupons.

In subsequent posts we will cover topics ranging from the best types of product coupons to maximizing savings with seasonal sales cycles. In the meantime, take some time to get comfortable with each coupon type so you can start slashing your grocery bill and resurrecting your budget.