Coupon usage — print and digital — rises

Consumers aren’t ready to let go of print coupons.



A majority (58%) of respondents reported using more print coupons over the past year, according to the 2016 Purse String Survey by Valassis. Thirty-eight percent of respondents said the same about mobile coupons and 32% are using online coupons or coupon codes more often.



Nearly half of the respondents indicated they use six or more coupons per shopping trip with 27% using 10 or more coupons. By using coupons, 42% of those surveyed save $30 or more each week and 21% save $50 or more.



In other key findings:



• Proximity: More than half of shoppers say they have visited a store, restaurant or other business after receiving an offer on their mobile device when they were near the business location.



• In-store mobile: 72% of consumers say they have looked for coupons or offers while in-store via their mobile device; millennials (90%) and affluent shoppers with $100K+ household incomes (81%) are much more likely to do so.



• Print relevance: 35% of shoppers use print and digital coupons equally while 51% say they print out digital coupons for use in-store.



• Digital engagement: More than one-third report feeling “rewarded” by the number of deals/savings received in a given day via email, text, social and app notification.



• E-commerce gaps: Over half would be more likely to shop for groceries online if they could use more coupons, with 66% of millennials agreeing.



“Shoppers today are savvier than ever before, using all available resources to research products and find the best price,” said Curtis Tingle, chief marketing officer, Valassis. “Our research indicates that consumers will continue to adopt new methods to shop and find deals. For this reason, brands must cater to the evolving, multi-tasking shopper, providing an integrated couponing strategy that crosses print, digital and mobile channels.”