Print, Online, Digital Coupons All Relevant: Valassis

Although they’re more digital-savvy than ever, savings-oriented consumers today are driven by and use deals across all channels: print, online and mobile, with the heaviest behavior in print.

The findings, revealed in the 2016 Purse String Survey from Livonia, Mich.-based media and marketing firm Valassis, showed that 58 percent of respondents reported using print coupons more frequently, while 38 percent and 32 percent said the same about mobile and online coupons. Nearly half of the 9,000 value-seeking respondents said that they use six or more coupons per shopping trip, with 27 percent using 10 or more coupons. By using coupons, 42 percent of those surveyed said that they save $30 or more each week, and 21 percent save $50 or more.

Also showcasing the relevance of all three channels, particularly print, was the finding that 35 percent of shoppers use print and digital coupons equally, while 51 percent print digital coupons for in-store use.

Additional key findings regard the importance of:

• Groceries and coupons: By far, shoppers are more interested in finding coupons for groceries (94 percent) compared with the other top-five categories of cosmetics/beauty products (60 percent), dining out/restaurants (60 percent) clothing (54 percent) and household items (46 percent).
• 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: Some 72 percent of consumers have looked for coupons or offers while in-store via their mobile device; Millennials (90 percent) and affluent shoppers with annual household incomes of $100,000 or more (81 percent) are much more likely to do so.
• 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: Some 58 percent would be more likely to shop for groceries online if they could use more coupons, with 66 percent of Millennials agreeing.

“Our research indicates that consumers will continue to adopt new methods to shop and find deals,” said Curtis Tingle, Valassis CMO. “For this reason, brands must cater to the evolving multitasking shopper, providing an integrated couponing strategy that crosses print, digital and mobile channels.”