Add On the Value of Coupons As Ads

Last week, RetailMeNot.com in Austin, Texas released results from a survey it sponsored of retail discount coupon use among consumers in eleven countries. The survey itself was conducted by Ipsos Public Affairs.
     Among the findings:

• Over half of the U.S. respondents said they value brands more which offer coupons. This 53% agreement rate was the highest across the countries surveyed. Canada did come in at 52%, and Great Britain at 50%. 
• Overall, Americans were also the most likely to say they take pride in using coupons because the use shows savvy shopping skills. This appears to be especially true among American women. 

     RetailMeNot.com brags they’re “the largest digital coupon website in the United States,” and digital coupons—downloadable to an online device—are more powerful than the traditional free-standing insert (FSI) coupons. About 34% of coupons delivered via free-standing insert attract new purchasers, while about 46% of digital coupons accomplish this. About 68% of FSI coupons result in a larger sale total, while this occurs with about 77% of digital coupons.
     Whether or not you issue digital coupons, recognize that both digital and FSI coupons which are never redeemed serve a function for a retailer. They advertise the positioning of the store as offering pricing benefits for shoppers.
     Researchers at University of Virginia found that consumers who received, but didn’t redeem, coupons spent more in the stores issuing the coupons than did consumers not receiving coupons. Because the large majority of people who receive coupons don’t redeem them, the sales lift caused by a coupon campaign comes mostly from the non-redeemers. There are many more of them, even if each spends only a little more.
     Another little secret about retail discount coupons is that asking the consumer to work a bit to use the coupon will add to its value. The right level of work depends on the amount of discount you’re offering, the scarcity of the advertised item, the customer’s enjoyment of games, and more.

• Digital discount coupons call for an effort which is both straightforward and noticeable. The consumer needs to either print out the coupon or bring a mobile device to the store to show the screen. 
• With FSI, the consumer needs to extract the coupon from the insert and take it to the store. Not as much of an effort as with the digital, and that might account for some of the difference in effectiveness. 

Click below for more: 
Engage Customers Via Digital Coupons 
Clip Mistaken Notions About Coupon Users