Retailer Daily

Digital Coupon Growth Outpaces Inserts

During 2009, the growth rate of digital coupons outpaced the typical annual growth rate of free standing insert (FSI) coupons by a factor of more than 10-1, according to Coupons.com. Coupons.com annual data indicates that savings US consumers obtained from digital coupons grew 170% in 2009, compared to a typical annual growth rate of 8-16% for FSI coupons. Printed savings from Coupons.com and the Coupons.com digital coupon network in 2009 exceeded $858 million, a 170% increase from more than $300 million in 2008. According to Coupons.com, key factors influencing the growth included increased consumer adoption of online printable, save to store loyalty card and mobile coupons and increased use of digital coupons by brand marketers, including manufacturers and retailers alike.

More than 20% of US Consumers Use Digital Coupons

A significant increase in the number of Americans using digital coupons drove their growth in savings. More than 45 million US consumers used digital coupons in 2009, an 18.4% increase from 38 million in 2008. Roughly 20% of the US population used digital coupons last year.

Wealthy, Educated Consumers Use Online Coupons

Despite common perceptions of avid coupon users, consumers who printed digital coupons in 2009 had an average household income of $97,000, 23% higher than the average household income of about $79,000. In addition, 34% of digital coupon users in 2009 held a college degree, compared to 30% of newspaper coupon users and 27% of the general population.

Cereal Leads Digital Coupon Categories

The top ten digital coupon categories for 2009 are: 1. Ready-to-Eat Cereal; 2. Yogurt; 3. Sweet Snacks; 4. Refrigerated Dough; 5. Salty Snacks; 6. Quick Serve Restaurant (QSR)/Casual Dining; 7. Nutritional Snacks; 8. Entertainment; 9. Condiments; and 10. Pizza.

Atlanta Consumers Most Frugal

Atlanta topped the list of the Most Frugal U.S. Cities, with the average Coupons.com user in the Georgia capital saving more than $531 with digital coupons from the site in 2009. As measured by the Coupons.com Savings Index, Tampa, FL followed closely in the number two position. The top 10 digital couponing cities are: 1. Atlanta, GA; 2. Tampa, FL; 3. Cincinnati, OH; 4. Saint Louis, MO; 5. Minneapolis, MN; 6. Nashville, TN; 7. Charlotte, NC; 8. Cleveland, OH; 9. Pittsburgh, PA; 10. Kansas City, MO.

Supermarkets Turn to Digital Coupons

Increasingly, supermarket retailers are turning to digital coupons as a means of enticing customers to visit their stores. The Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company (A&P) is partnering with Coupons.com to offer online coupon galleries on several of its banner websites. A&P’s e-commerce sites now feature coupon galleries with hundreds of dollars worth of coupons across all product categories. Customers can enter their ZIP code to obtain coupons specific to their area and print desired coupons with one click. HyVee, Inc. is expanding the multichannel online service capabilities available on its web site. Customers are now able to shop the inventory of local stores, create shopping lists and locate coupons, among other online options. HyVee is partnering with content/software provider Grocery Shopping Network to bring its e-commerce site and brick-and-mortar stores closer together. As mentioned above, customers can use the HyVee e-commerce site to find items at local stores and place them on a printable shopping list with store coupons before leaving home. Customers can also add items from a clickable store circular, link to manufacturer coupons, find recipes on a 64,000-recipe database, and obtain information about unadvertised in-store specials. In addition, Hy-Vee plans to add educational online cooking videos. Other retailers in the supermarket vertical are also providing customers with multichannel service offerings. Safeway supermarket banners including Tom Thumb and Randalls also participate in the Cellfire mobile coupon network, allowing members of the two chains’ loyalty club programs to automatically download coupons on their loyalty cards.

Free-Standing Insert Coupon Activity Increases 8% in 2009

As reported in MarketingCharts, Free Standing Insert (FSI) coupon activity increased 8% during 2009 vs. the previous year to more than 272 billion coupons dropped, according to Marx Promotion Intelligence, a division of TNS Media Intelligence. This activity level is the highest yearly coupons dropped observed during the past decade, surpassing the second highest annual Coupons Dropped of 257 billion realized in 2007. During 2009, more than $385 billion in consumer incentives were delivered via FSI coupons, up 15% from 2008.