Couponing in 2011

With the growth of Smart Phones and Texting, it's not surprising this is happening:

Online Coupons Reach Nearly Half of Web Users

88.2 Million U.S. Adults Will Redeem an Online Coupon This Year

A digital revolution in couponing coupled with the belt-tightening of the recession have combined to make coupons cool among more than just those clipping the Sunday circular. Digital coupon usage is now firmly a part of the online shopping experience of millions of US consumers.

eMarketer estimates that by the end of 2011, nearly half of US adult Internet users, or 88.2 million people, will have redeemed an online coupon or code for use either online or offline in the past year. By 2013, 96.8 million adults will redeem an online coupon.

"Consumer brands are accustomed to promoting their products in stores and in newspaper inserts," said Jeffrey Grau, eMarketer principal analyst and author of a forthcoming report on online couponing. "But as more shoppers make purchase decisions online before taking a shopping trip, brands are following them onto the Internet."

The growth rate for online coupon users is expected to gradually decline through 2013, as most online consumers predisposed to using digital coupons already do so.

Already, household usage of digital coupons has nearly doubled since 2005. Experian Simmons reported that 12% of households redeemed coupons from email or the web that year; it expects that figure to reach 22% in 2011.

"Today's online coupon users tend to be affluent, highly educated and over the age of 55," said Grau. "This is valuable input for marketers shaping the different elements of a promotional campaign, such as what products to promote with coupons, where to place the offers and what marketing messages to use."

(Source: eMarketer, 06/01/11)

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Are You Smartphone Friendly?

I'm an early adopter in some area's and more cautious in others.

When the iPhone came out, I watched others with theirs, but waited.

And waited, and waited some more.

It was a combination of events that led me to buy my first smartphone last summer, and I hope you are prepared for the smartphone revolution that we are in the midst of...

Mobile Users Are Ad Clickers

According to the Mojiva Mobile Audience Guide, 60% of mobile users click on mobile ads at least once a week. When seeing an ad, half of users indicated that they would play a game, download an application, or visit a Web site after seeing an ad, but only 22% said they would make a purchase, and only 40% would download a coupon.

Tony Nethercutt, General Manager of Mojiva, notes that "... mobile marketing performs well when it lines up the services and products that affect people on an everyday basis ... mobile advertising is part of the conversation for major national brand advertising..."

Some additional findings from Mojiva and InsightExpress in the Mojiva Mobile Audience Guide include:

• Over 84% of users deemed 'normal banner ads,' 'video ads,' 'ads that let me interact with them,' or 'animated banner ads' as the forms of marketing they would likely pay attention to.
• Text ads perform modestly with 13% of users most likely to pay attention; however, only 2% pay attention to expanding screen takeover ads.
• Marketing offers related to magazines, social/dating, airlines, traffic and banking had the least effective performance.

With user statistics from InsightExpress, the MAG offers a look into what resonates with users through mobile devices like smartphones and tablets. This month's research shows that marketers need to focus on engaging creative executions that encourage user interaction.

Joy Liuzzo, Senior Director from InsightExpress says "... InsightExpress research continues to demonstrate that mobile consumers are evolving, with new behaviors, attitudes, and demographic segments emerging almost monthly..."

There are opportunities to advertise with mobile ads, says the report, as respondents are frequently clicking on mobile ads. Graphic ads as a whole appear to be successful in grabbing attention. Content and type of ad will impact overall reach:

• More than half indicated they would "play a game," "download a mobile application" or "browse a website" after seeing an ad on their mobile phones.
• Fewer than one-fourth of respondents would "purchase a product" after viewing an ad on their mobile phones.

For the most part, graphic ads as a whole were successful in capturing the attention of respondents:

• Over 20% of respondents said that normal banner ads, video ads and ads that let me interact with them are most likely to be paid attention to.
• Respondents were least likely to pay attention to expanding screen take-over ads, which may be too aggressive.

Ads pertaining to retail stores, weather, restaurants or bars and sports are most likely to be clicked on by someone using their mobile phone:

-- Respondents tended to gravitate more towards mobile ads that focus on providing information pertaining to everyday life, rather than more specific and direct ads.

-- 60% of respondents click on a mobile ad for more information at least once a week. Of those, 19% click on a mobile ad for more information several times a day.

(Source: The Center For Media Research, 05/31/11)

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