Should you offer coupons? And what are the most modern methods?
Defining your marketing strategy early on can make a big difference in the success or failure of your business. But knowing how much money to allocate for which marketing efforts can be difficult. Coupons are a tried and true method of marketing, but the type of coupon, as well as the medium through which the coupon is delivered, can make a big difference on just how effective it is on your campaign. A new survey suggests which avenues can help boost your business, and which ones you should avoid.
Coupons can encourage customers to return, promote new products, attract new customers, and provide insight in order to better target marketing efforts. But what is the best way to offer a coupon? According to a survey compiled by Vouchercloud, the most effective form of offering a coupon is digitally.
Fully 66 million digital coupons were redeemed industry-wide in 2013, with 91% of coupon redeemers stating they will visit a retailer again after being offered a coupon. The best coupons will offer discounts on products consumers like and would probably buy anyway, and offer discounts substantial enough to justify the time required to seek them out.
The survey suggests that most coupon users are most interested in deals that offer a specific dollar amount off their purchase, most likely because calculating percentages off deals are too difficult (this is according to the survey. However, I disagree, or would like to add, for bigger purchases, percent off deals often lead to greater savings, so I think it can actually vary item by item, but I am not a researcher).
The most interesting bit of data for you:
Perhaps the most interesting tidbit is that the medium best suited for effective coupon marketing is still email. Even with social media, emailed coupons are far more likely to be used than other mediums. 93% of consumers are “very likely” to use coupons they receive via email; partially due to the fact that 82% of consumers regularly open emails from companies. Also, 7 out of every 10 people say they made use of a coupon or discount from email marketing campaigns within the last week and over 40% of these people shared the deal via email with friends and family.
While the survey found that social media is effective, it is best used along with another medium like email. While 71% of people search online for a coupon on social media, only 54% actually use them. However, if your goal is to bring more customers to your Facebook page, 67% of couponers stated they would “like” a page to obtain a 25% off of more savings from a brand, so used in this manner, social media can be quite effective at helping to build a regular audience with coupons.
Regardless of how or where you offer coupons, one thing is clear: more and more consumers are turning to coupons, discount codes, and special offers in an effort to save money on the things they need or want ; and according to this survey, the number of coupon redeemers is only expected to rise.
