Publix Launching e-Coupon Program

Publix Super Markets is introducing a digital coupon program that allows customers to browse hundreds of coupons online, select the ones they want and redeem them at checkout. While only a select few stores currently offer the program, it will roll out to all 1,068 Publix locations by mid-March.

Consumers can enroll online at the grocer’s website. When a customer signs up, his or her telephone number will be used to associate the customer with his or her account, as Publix doesn't have a loyalty card. To redeem the coupons, customers enter their phone numbers on the PIN pad at checkout, and the digital coupons they’ve selected that match items they’re purchasing are automatically applied at checkout.

“This eliminates the need to clip or keep track of a physical coupon,” Kimberly Reynolds, media and community relations manager for the Miami division of Lakeland, Fla.-based chain, told Progressive Grocer, adding that at checkout, the PIN pad will prompt a customer to enter his or her phone number.

Manufacturers can add coupons to the website at any time, and are also responsible for setting such guidelines as expiration dates and limits on the number of times a coupon can be selected. “We encourage customers to check the digital coupon website often,” said Reynolds.

Calling the program “a convenient way to save even more at Publix,” Reynolds observed: We are always striving to enhance our customers’ shopping experience with new technology … Digital coupons are instant savings that are just a click away and eliminate the need to keep track of a physical coupon.”

Earlier this month, Jacksonville, Fla.-based Winn-Dixie, a subsidiary of Bi-Lo Holding in Mauldin, S.C., bowed an e-coupon program tied to its Reward Card.