BBT Webmasters

by Jack Loechner, Yesterday April 10, 8:15 AM on Research Brief for the full article

The results of a new study by Platform-A and IRI (Information Resources Inc.) from 36,000 panelists on trends in consumer coupons, shows that more than 90 million consumers (78% of retail shoppers) currently use newspaper coupons, with nearly one out of every four of the newspaper coupon clippers likely to be at least 65 years old. It also revealed that nearly four out of every 10 shoppers, a total of 40 million consumers, would be very likely to use coupons accessed online.

A study earlier in the month also showed that when buying on line that the customer who did not have a coupon or voucher to obtain the discount would more often than not abandon the shopping cart to locate a discount. The best way to secure the transaction when offering discounts is to show the voucher code at checkout. A customer is a customer and a small discount for the sale is better than no sale at all. We are at a time when it is important for online retails to convert shoppers into purchasers. This is a very neat way of delighting the customer, especially if they were not expecting the offer, or making it very easy for those that already have the voucher.

An alternative way of dealing with the discount voucher or coupon, is you apply it automatically at checkout. Now that can make good business sense and encourages the shopper to purchase. They don’t know when that offer expires. Remember though you have to back this up with excellent customer service.