The Dow Jones goes up and it goes down, you just never seem to know where it is going to land from one minute to another.

There are days when it is best to sum up the financial market as baseball great Yogi Berra once said, “A nickel ain’t worth a dime anymore.” In today’s uncertain monetary climate, it just makes good sense to save cents and some serious dollars by shopping smarter. These days, no matter who you are, we all need to save money. One way to maximize your spending capacity is to use coupons.

Some folks just don’t like the idea of using coupons or they leave them in the car and just forget about them until their expiration date is long gone. However, there is a huge portion of our population that uses coupons and saves real money doing so. In 2009, 3.3 billion coupons were redeemed in the U.S. That is a 27-percent increase over 2008 coupon usage. Experts agree that the recession has driven the increase. One of America’s founding fathers, Ben Franklin, had the perfect sentiment uttered nearly three centuries ago and it still rings true today...“a penny saved is a penny earned.” So, think of coupons as creating your own personal sale items.

Just scan your local newspaper or open your mail and coupons seem to be everywhere. However, they are only as good if you want to buy what the manufactures decide to discount. Not everyone needs a buy one get one free for pancakes on a stick. Stephanie Nelson of the New York Times bestseller, Coupon Mom’s Guide to Cutting Your Grocery Bills in Half advises to email companies and ask for coupons. She also says to view coupon use as a game, not a chore. She teaches consumers how to get the most from these little bar-coded scraps of paper.

Just like everything else, coupons have gone high-tech and they are available online from many coupon Web sites. One of the newest and best local coupon sites is Style’s own 2clickstosave.com. There is real money to be saved by buying local for all kinds of items and services. Spa treatments, auto repair, personal health, clothing and tons of food and restaurant coupons are available with two easy clicks of the mouse. You just print them and no personal information is required. They also feature a cool email alert system that puts the newest coupons in your inbox in a flash. The Web site says it all: “No Signups, No Gimmicks, Just Coupons!”

Here at home we have access to saving in a number of ways. The Style Savings Guide, another great resource, is mailed directly to many of the homes in Folsom, El Dorado Hills, Granite Bay and Roseville. But even if you don’t get one in your postal mailbox, you can visit stylesavingsguide.com to access the online version and print coupons redeemable at a slew of great local retailers, including everything from restaurants and pet supplies to dentistry and photography. Take these tips and before you know it, couponing will be your new hobby.

For more information, visit 2clickstosave.com and stylesavingsguide.com.