Writing to companies is a great way to get coupons. And the more coupons you get, the more you save off your grocery bill and the more extra you have to put towards other areas of your budget (like a Disney fund).
Each day (Monday – Friday) I will feature 5 companies for you to write a letter to in my 5 A Day category. These letters can be compliments, complaints or questions. 9 times out of 10, if you take the time to write a company, they will take the time to send you some coupons. Sometimes they even send coupons for free products!
So what should you write?
I always write about something personal. Earlier this month, I wrote to Raid. A wasp had gotten into my house. I am so terrified of wasps that I used a 1/3rd of a can of Ant and Roach spray on the wasp before killing it with the fly swatter. So when I wrote Raid, I shared the details in the incident with them. Then I told them how much I love their product and how it improves my quality of life. They sent me a coupon for a free can of wasp spray.
Here’s some basics to remember when writing a company.
1. Be specific. Don’t just write Huggies for example and say you love their diapers. Tell them that you love their Snug and Dry line of diapers. That your son has to point to Mickey every time he gets changed.
2. Make it personal. Tell them how much you, your kids, your dog, etc love their specific product.
3. Talk about a specific time you used the product. Let them know if the packaging was easy to get into, if you liked the design, how fresh the product was, etc.
4. Thank them for making the product. Be sure to tell them how much it improves your quality of life. Companies seem to really like the fact that they are making your life better.
5. Always be polite. At the end, thank them for taking the time to read your letter.
6. Be honest! Don’t make a complaint if you don’t have a legitimate complaint. They usually launch an internal investigation so it’s important to give them accurate information.
If you have a complaint, make sure you have the product package available. They will want codes off of it so they can alert their quality control department.
Here are 2 sample letters:
Complimenting Minnie’s Magical Muffin Mix
I wanted to just take a moment of my time to write to you today and tell you how much my family loves your Minnie’s Magical Muffin Mix especially the Pluto Pineapple flavor. When I serve your muffins at my breakfast table, my whole family raves about how sweet and delicious they are. Thank you so much for making a great product that enables my family and I to make great memories around the breakfast table every Saturday. Thank you for your time.
(Ok I know it’s a little sappy, but that’s what works. Get as personal as you can about the product and tell them how much their product means to you.)
Complaint about Daisy’s Danishes
I recently noticed your product on the shelf and decided I would give it a try. I was so disappointed when I served your product during my weekly tea with my Disney World Lover’s Club and realized that the product was stale! Somehow the packaging had become unsealed before I went to open it myself. I was so disappointed and embarrassed. I’m not sure if I will try your product again in the future after this incident. Thank you for your time.
(See how I provided the information concerning the incident and my hesitation to try the product again? I never flat out asked for coupons. I just give them honest feedback and let the chips fall where they may. Also if you have an issue with a product, save the packaging so you can provide the company with the batch numbers off the packaging so they can investigate the incident.)
Be sure to check out my spreadsheet to see what I have received so far!
{ 77 comments… read them below or add one }
Do you handwrite a letter to send through snail mail or do you typically e-mail them? I wonder if it's easier to get a response one way or the other.
I always email them. No sense in wasting a stamp. :) Just tell them whatever is on your mind, good or bad. Kristin
I have emailed a few companies and recieved coupons back every time! I didn't keep track of how long it took but it seemed to me it was pretty fast.Karla
Do you include your physical address or do they email printable coupons?
Yes you need to include your physical address. 90% of the companies have a form you fill out and have spots for your address.If they don't, I include my address under my name when I sign the email.
Do you ask for coupons? If you don't do they just send you coupons anyway? wyncharlys@msn.com
I would also like to know if you ask for coupons? I have emailed a few any have only received emails saying thanks for letting us know you like our product. hartofmine39@yahoo.com
No, I don't ask for coupons. Sometimes they will email and say thank you and follow up by postal mail with coupons and sometimes they just won't send anything at all.
When you e-mail these companies, who do you address the e-mail to? Is "To Whom it May Concern" appropriate? Or is there something better I can use?
How do you address the e-mails? In other words, would "To Whom it May Concern" be appropriate? Is there something better? Thanks.
I just launch right into what I have to say. For example, if I was writing Tide i'd say:I just wanted to let you know how much I love your Tide detergent…. and then tell them what else I think.
I MUST be PMSing but, I almost cried when you talked about an example of: "That your son has to point to Mickey every time he gets changed."?!I guess these products really are a part of our lives. This is a wonderful idea and I will say that I had such a great expirence with a company wetsuits.com and they asked for permission to use my quote and I got a FREE $200 wetsuit for my triathlons!!
Thanks for doing this. I started last night and played catch up with all the ones you have posted. I didn't do them all since we don't use every one of these products though. I got a reply back from most of them already. I was pretty disappointed after emailing about febreeze and how I loved their product they just told me to join vocalpoint (which I already belong to). Oh well, maybe they will send some coupons in the mail.One question though, do you comment about multiple products in one email to them or just pick one? We love Johnson's Baby products but didn't know if it was appropriate to thank them for more than one item.Thank you for this wondeful list of companies!
Here is the recipe for Febreeze
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 table spoon of fabric softener
then fill the bottle with hot water & shake well
Use your old Febreeze bottle
Thanks a lot Susie!
Hi I was wondering when you write them (by internet that is) do you think it is wise to write our addresses under our signature or only share our address if they reply and ask for it?Thanks!
Hi I was wondering when you write them (by internet that is) do you think it is wise to write our addresses under our signature or only share our address if they reply and ask for it?Thanks!
never mind, lol, I just saw where you wrote about 'addresses'.Thanks
never mind, lol, I just saw where you wrote about 'addresses'.Thanks
Love your site!
Just a comment that this works! I am brand new to saving money w. coupons. I tried this with Welchs and they sent me a letter with 4 coupons. My email was brief and to the point and I did not ask or expect a response…but ya never know what a company will do. We drink at least 4 bottles of Welch’s juice a week so I think they can give me a few coupons. :)
I also used your Wal-mart list today and got lots of stuff for under a dollar.
THANKS FOR ALL THE INFORMATION YOU PROVIDE!
Great info!! Thanks for the idea!!
I have actually been doing this for a while. I have gotten a TON of GREAT coupons. I have only had one bad experience. Maxwell House Coffee was my bad experience. They said they didn’t give out coupons because they felt their product was already correctly priced. Needless to say we have stopped using their product… other than that this is the BEST way of getting GREAT coupons!
I just wanted to say what a good idea this was. I recently wrote The Village Company, the makers of Mr. Bubbles. The president of the company actually responded, and mailed me 3 $1/1 any The Village Company product. It was cool. I might just try to keep up with your 5 email things.
Just getting started with this. Could you post a sample of what you’d write to a company you did not use products but you would like to try– thanks
Has anyone tried this with any pet product companies??
I wrote to the company that makes Dogsters frozen treats and received 3-4 coupons for free product and a more for .50 off. I wrote Tidy Cats (Purina) today so we’ll see what happens. I do have some peelies but would love some free product!
You can also call the pet product companies and compliment (or complain) to them about their products. I’ve done this with Purina in the past and they’ve sent me a bunch of coupons for treats and even for $ off food coupons and a free bag coupon also!
i have never bought frozen treats for my pet and do not plan to but a good way to approach this might be to ask the company if its possible for your pet to get brain freeze like we do when we drink an icee too fast. lol but is a good question
I am really enjoying all of your unique ideas for saving for Disney. I am especially enjoying the 4 per day and have sent for Secret and Okld Spice. Thanks so much for akll of yourHARD WORK ON THE SITE.
When my daughter was a (chunky) baby, a Gerber phone shaped rattle got stuck on her little wrist. I emailed them and got several free coupons, for both food and toys, and for formula (which I don’t use but donated :)) Great experience with that company!
Thanks for the 5 a day posts! This really is a GREAT way to get coupons/free stuff, and be able to use what you save for something special! I thought taking my family to Disneyland was WAY out of reach for us, but your blog and your advice has inspired me that this is something I CAN DO!!! Thanks again!
Kristin, I want to take the time to thank you for responding to my inquiry the other day about Medco and their $10 off of $25 promo. I was never able to register with them so I just gave up. I know things like this sometimes doesn’t work out. Thanks for posting such great bargains.
I have a few questions for you. On your five a day campaign how did you compile your list of companies to write to? Do you keep a record of the letters sent and responses you get? Also I have read a lot about how you saved money for Disney but I don’t understand a few things. When you used coupons how did you get the money that you saved from using the coupons? A long time ago you could use coupons and the store would give you that much money back. But now they take the coupons off your total and you just pay less for what ever you are buying. Do you do the same thing for shopping at places like Publix and you get buy one get one free? And finally…Swagbucks. Did you get the Paypal gift certificate or just what? I can figure out if you got the Paypal card that you had X amount of money in your Paypal account. But what I don’t understand is if you got other gift cards how did you account for the money in your savings for Disney? I am anxious to see your answers. I want to try to save some money for much needed home repairs or a trip to Hawaii. Thank you so much for using your valuable time to read this note and then answer it.
Thanks, Ann Vance
Oh yeah…where are you located?
do they not catch on to this if everyone contacts them at the same time?
You have to think of your coupons as cash. There are tons of different ways to use them in your daily life. You can use them to cut down on your monthly grocery and toiletry budgets to have extra emergency cash or to take a dream vacation. Every time you buy an item “budget” paying full price for it. Once you have used your coupon on the purchases take the money you saved (money you normally would have spent paying full price for the item), and transfer it to a savings account. (Lots of stores print at the bottom of the receipt how much you saved even without coupons. Generally this is with store sales and you see it for items that you had no intention of buying if you had to pay full price. It is up to you to decide how to distribute these “savings”). With 350,000 people in the US alone these major companies have complete departments set up that are devoted to customer satisfaction and field thousands of comments/praises/complaints a day. They are in business to hear from their consumers and provide products we want and demand. Sending coupons out to people who take the time to contact the company is good marketing and they have big enough marketing budgets to fulfill the need.
Wow, I’ve done this FOREVER and never knew your section was all about this! I typically write when I have a problem or suggestion. My marketing background always makes me want to show companies how to improve! I LOVE doing this and have told many friends to do the same.
I love this. I always write when I have a problem with a company. My husband makes fun of me saying I just do it for the free stuff, but I let him know that I would like to know how to improve. It’s just a benefit to get something out of it. Never thought of doing it for loving the product! Thanks!
I have to say I was skeptical that emailing companies would get results, but after emailing several companies complaints (legitimate, of course) I have gotten several “frees” coupons. For example, we used playtex drop in liners that would sometimes burst and formula would explode all over the place. Pampers sent a “free” coupon after a complaint their diapers were leaky. We’ve had issues with coke packaging and they offered to send “frees” if we send them the packaging. I have to check to see if we’ve thrown it out or not yet… Hefty was very kind after complaints that their odor shield trash bags that are supposedly unscented cause me to vomit every time I smell their super strong smell (I’m pregnant and vomit-prone, but my husband hates the smell too). However, the one I was most suprised about was Olive Garden. My husband and I ate there on our anniversary a few months back and the waitress forgot about us for about 25 minutes, and we had to go to the bar and get our own drinks and practically beg another server to get us refills on salad and breadsticks. They had a form on the receipt for an online survey and I filled it out ( a really bad eval!!) and heard nothing. A few months later, we stupidly went back to the same restaurant and had a similar problem. I emailed the company saying how disappointed I was in the service and how I wasn’t sure I could go back despite the fact it’s one of my husband’s favorite restaurants. I was very suprised to get a very kind email from corporate, as well as a personal phone call from the district manager of the local restaurant I went to….and a $50 gift card!!! I couldn’t believe it. While I certainly don’t advocate making up fake complaints to get free stuff, when you have a legitimate complaint or concern you can certainly score some great responses from companies who really do care what consumers think.
I have also had success with compliments as well, but that is a little more YMMV.
I used to work for a travel company in customer relations – typically speaking – at least 15 years ago when I worked there – we compensated just about any one who wrote in with a legitimate-seeming concern with certificates good for an amount off on a future trip. It’s worth writing ….
love this website!
If you go to their website and see a spot where you can simply request coupons or print a coupon, do you still take the time to e-mail them?
i would still take the time to email them. i’ve received numerous free coupons (get that product for free). i work at a restaurant, where you will hear a complaint so much more often than a compliment. when a compliment comes in – it’s so nice! people don’t take the time to compliment like they should. companies love to hear what you love about their product – i would take a moment out of your day to send a quick email. i’ve had fun doing this! even if i don’t receive anything in return, i know that companies need positive feedback, but to be honest – i’ve only had like 5% of the companies i email not send me something! it’s worth it!
If I hadn’t been doing a few of the 5 a days, I never would have thought to email Pur to complain about the two faucet water filter units that broke within a month of buying them. They refunded my money for one of the units within 2 weeks. I will be using the funds to buy pitcher filter this time. :) Thank you!
I once emailed Pampers because I bought a box of diapers.I normally bought bags and not boxes. As I used them I got to about 20 that were missing the tabs on one side.I felt cheated to be out of 20 diapers.I emailed them and I got these silver coupons for the amount of two boxes.That worked for me.
Thanks for the awesome list!!
do you guys put in a upc code or anything like that?
I started doing this and I’m amazed at how fast they get stuff out to you. This really does work!
Hi, Kristin! I recently found your blog and this post and I have to say, I absolutely LOVE your blog! And this particular post really inspired me to test the letter and compliment-writing thing! I have a couple of products that I am very loyal to buy but there are never coupons for them so I think I’ll start with those companies first to see what kind of luck I have. Your post was so inspiring that I linked a little post of my own back to you here: http://thriftyideals.blogspot.com/2010/10/where-to-find-great-coupons.html. Keep up the great work with couponing!
Blessings,
Stephanie
I like this idea I have been trying to figure out how to get coupons for the products I use everyday this is a really good idea but after you use all the coupons you get do you just try other products and get coupons for them or e-mail them again?
Brittni,
Most companies will include a letter with the coupons. Some will say they offer coupons every 3 or 6 months. I keep track of this info in my spreadsheet. If it doesn’t say, I contact them again in 6 months.
I rotate through similar products and utilize the online & newspaper coupons so I almost always can pick up a product type that I want.
Savanah
I’ve just emailed about six or seven of the companies on the spreadsheet. 2 have already emailed me back thanking me for the compliments and are sending me some things. Monster energy drinks doesn’t do coupons, but they love when they get compliments so I’m being sent something by ‘Monster Maven’. I seriously love that spreadsheet.
I’m glad you are liking it! Sounds like you are getting good results. :)
Hi, Kristin,
I am just curious as to why you don’t flat out ask for coupons. Is it considered rude, or do you think you get more by not asking? Thanks so much!
I think I will get more by not asking. :)
Thanks for the response. I have tried to stop asking. Sometimes it is difficult, though, when I haven’t used the product before. What would you say in that instance? Thanks again for your site (I thank you each time I post because our family is Disney-crazed!!!)
I had some gain coupons a couple of months ago that walmart said I couldn’t use for a certain product so i emailed gain and asked to make sure I used the coupon properly. I also told them that if they had any type of coupon mailing list or rewards program that I would love to be added to it because I really love their products.They responded quickly answering my questions and they also sent me coupons.. I thought that would be a nice way of asking and also let them know I really loved their products too.
How often do you write to the same company & do you receive coupons of the same value the second time you write to the company? I just started doing this last week and already received a coupon in the mail for a free Shout product! I would like to write to some of the same companies more than once if it is a product I use a lot, but I don’t want to overdo it, so I was just wondering how often you have written to the same company and what difference you have seen in the coupons on the second attempt.
I am wondering the same thing Shanda. I received three coupons for free cereal from Cascadian Farm and I would love to write them again. I don’t want to pester them though. I know some companies even tell you that you can write every quarter or once a month but, I don’t know for companies that don’t specify.
Some of the companies I’m going to e-mail won’t let me submit without a phone number. How do you feel about giving them your phone number? Have you had anyone call you? Have you had an increase in unwanted calls?
You know, I just wanted to say I started emailing companies a few days ago. It actually started with a complaint to a pizza place- which promptly got me two large free pizzas. So then I thought.. I’m going to write to a few companies- Things I like, and things I have been unhappy with. In doing so I found that I get faster responses if I complain. And when I asked for coupons? Every company said they did not mail coupons and coke even told me to watch for sales! My husband has cystic fibrosis, and even though it’s something I normally dont mention, coke is by far, his favorite thing. I told them this, and told them I am out of work currently to take care of him, so any coupons would be greatly appreciated. I have to say the lady was downright rude, plus it was really disapointing.
I am just so glad I found this site! SO nmany great ideas. Thanks so much.
When you submit an email to one of these 5 a day companies, and at the bottom of the page it says to click here if you do want to be contacted in the future, what does that specifically mean? I hate getting junk emails in my inbox. If I don’t click on the box, does that mean I wouldn’t get coupons in the mail?
I created an email specifically for couponing. That little tick box has gotten me additional coupons without writing.
I am wondering if I have done anything wrong? I have emailed 5 companies a day for the past 3 days and the only responses that I have received is from 3 companies basically thanking me for my kind words (which was definitely very nice) but no mention of receiving anything in the mail :(
I pretty much followed what you suggested, I was specific, made it personal, was polite, didnt ask for anything, and thanked them for making the product. Does anyone have any suggestions or can tell me if I have done anything wrong? Thank you :)
Dawn – I emailed dozens of companies over the course of a few days and I received the same responses. However, 7-14 days later I’d receive coupons in the mail. Keep doing what you are doing. Just because they don’t mention sending coupons doesn’t mean that they won’t! Keep emailing every day for 7-14 days and you’ll get bombarded with coupons :D I also found that Kraft doesn’t send coupons, I have yet to receive any from them or even emails. Sweet Baby Rays BBQ Sauce is a good one about sending you coupons, same for Sunny D, and Kemps if you want to try them :D I know just because they sent me free product coupons doesn’t mean they will do the same to you, but it’s worth a shot!
Thank you for your encouragement Carrie, I just wanted to make sure that I was on the right track. I am new to the aspect of contacting companies to tell them how much I like them, I used to just contact a company every rare now and then when I had an issue with their product. Thank you for your response :)
So I have been writing to several companies over the past few weeks, trying my best to follow the model that you have provided. I make sure to include my address if the site does not prompt me for it. I have received follow up e-mails from these companies thanking me for my time, but no mention of any type of coupons. Any suggestions?
What a Great Idea!
I just emailed to of my favorite products. I hope that they respond!! :) Thanks for the Tip! Look forward to couponing all the way to Disney! lol
Glad I took the time to finally read this post, as I’ve seen your 5 a day posts, but never really paid any attention to them, but now that I’m genuinely dedicated to trying to coupon my way to Disney next November, I’m trying anything! THanks a ton!
Not sure if you still comment on these but I love doing the 5 a day and have received a good amount of coupons because of it. I’ve had one issue though where the super pretzels sent me coupons they sent me like three or four and they were alright like 50 cents off of two pretzel products but two of the coupons they sent me expired in 2009! that kind of surprised me so just a warning to check the expiration dates, there have been some coupons like Adam and Eve juices they sent where it doesn’t have an expiration date on them cause it says “No Expiration” I am weary to use it and be embarrassed when I get told they won’t take them because of no expiration date, so I have just been holding onto them.
“No expiration” coupons are the best ones, that just means you can use them any time and they don’t expire. Go ahead and use them they are good.
My husband laughs at me too. But i feel if you dont say anything how are they going to know that they need to improve, i did this just the other day with Yoplait Go-Gurt, we got a 16ct box and i opened it and the packages had gone thru the machine wrong and there were several already opened packages. you could tell it was the same jagged cuts.. so i called polietly and explained my problem, they took down the packaging info, asked for my address and told me to expect some coupons for my trouble, and thanked me. 2 weeks later i got coupons for 2 free boxes and (2) .75 off coupons. way more than i expected! so it really does work, and i can only imagine what they would do for some one who told them everything was fantastic! this is such a good idea and im so glad i stumbled upon it! will begin right away!
WHAT A GREAT IDEA!! just did about a dozen or so tonight. it took me a while, I wrote pretty personal, lenghty emails. some may not agree with me, but I included the fact that I am a single mom of 2 small children who recently lost her job and recieve food stamps., and your product is healthy and affordable for me. thank you for making a great product. I would share a few lines about how my kids enjoy their product, or for Starkist Tuna for example, I have been eating it since I was 5 years old as my lunch (I really did eat a can of straight tuna, no mayo everyday for lunch for YEARS. I think this personal touch will help, as well as the fact that I am recieving assistance and hit hard times so hint hint, send coupons! I didnt ask for any, just praised the shit out of thier product. Its fun, and lets me be creative!
I am new to this site and very excited I found it. My husband and I are renewing our vows June of 2013. We actually are planning on going to Disneyworld for our second honeymoon. After a couple of weeks of reading the posts here and reading about your experiences at Disneyworld, just gets me more excited about our trip.
Thankyou for sharing!! Looking forward to hearing more and more ideas that we can use to save for our trip. We currently live in California. Thanks a bunch!!!
My daughter has to write to a business letter for a school project. The kids all have high hopes that by sending a letter they will get some free stuff. Any advice on which company would be most likely to generously respond to a child’s letter? She is thinking a candy company. Thanks!!
Do you thank them for the coupons?
Hi, This 5 A Day Mail Campaign article is good, totally like your
Hi, I’m writing because I’ve been going on your website for quite awhile now & I go to the 5 a day & write to the companies you have posted but now that you have changed your website I don’t see those listings anymore. Am I blind or did you stop posting them?
Sincerely,
Tara Adkins
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