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Posts Tagged ‘coupons’

Mother Knows Best: Moms Stay Optimistic, Shop Smart

Wednesday, May 2nd, 2012

After a tumultuous 2011, consumers are starting to regain confidence in their personal finances. This week, we released the SymphonyIRI Group Q1 2012 MarketPulse™ survey and found that 19 percent of consumers feel their financial position has improved over the past year. Forty percent feel it has remained unchanged, and 41 percent feel it has deteriorated. Though, less than inspiring, this is the most optimistic outlook since Q1 2011.

Despite the overriding doom and gloom, one group has managed to remain optimistic: the nation’s 85 million moms have a brighter outlook on the future than the general population—and trillions of dollars in spending power. The MarketPulse results offer valuable insights about this smart and influential group, including:

23 percent of moms feeling their financial position today is better than a year ago
28 percent are struggling to afford needed groceries
More than half will shop multiple stores to find the lowest price, versus 43 percent of the general population

Delving more into this trend, we also released a Point of View on this very important consumer demographic, “Valuable Assets: Today’s Moms Represent Savvy, Smart Shoppers.” In this Point of View, we discuss how often the primary shoppers for their households, moms are tasked with saving money on groceries and household needs. They adopted new shopping behaviors after the downturn and will likely continue those saving strategies even as the economy improves. Among their penny-pinching measures, moms have embraced new media as they are 2.5 times more likely than the general population to take recommendations from social networking sites or blogs.

Social media is integral for CPG marketers and retailers looking to target tech-savvy moms, but traditional marketing still goes a long way. Given their hectic schedules and mile-long, to-do lists, moms are very strategic shoppers. Nearly three-quarters make shopping lists, and moms are 24 percent more likely to use coupons to help make their lists than the general population. Once at the store, moms’ brand decisions are influenced by in-store circulars, advertisements and promotions. But, bottom line, price remains the primary deciding factor: 61 percent of moms say the price of an item heavily sways their brand decisions, versus 49 percent of the total population.

Tags: coupons, cpg, economy, grocery, manufacturers, Marketing, MarketPulse, moms, new media, Retailers, shopper attitudes, shopper behavior, Social Media, SymphonyIRI, Women Shoppers
Posted in Moms | No Comments »

The New Shopping Standard: Deliberate Spending

Wednesday, October 19th, 2011

The past 18 months has been a whirlwind of economic uncertainties…we’ve all heard it before. But, take a closer look and despite some of the upticks in spending during holiday periods, like Easter and Christmas, and you’ll see that the general consumer purchasing patterns has not changed. We don’t predict any change happening in the near future and, surprisingly, today’s savvy consumers aren’t too fazed by it.

There are four things driving this spending stagnation. The first is fairly obvious. Consumer angst with the current economy and its stability is driving consumers to spend more deliberately and less frivolously. Making matters worse is the continued negative news on lack of available jobs. This has led to shoppers pausing before they purchase. These shoppers have learned a new series of shopping rituals and regimens to achieve better value for the dollar their spending. Most have learned to live with less and are happy about it.

This new behavior suggests that a new shopper norm has arrived. What this means for retailers over the next 18 months is that there will need to be a refocus on redesigning the shopper experience given this slower pace of shopping. It will be critical to demonstrate better value and put in place better programs to show consumers that retailers understand their plight. Retailers like HEB, Publix and Redmans provide examples of how to better service shoppers by bundling cost-efficient meal solutions, for instance.

For manufacturers, the new shopper value equation where quality is received for every dollar spent, means the need to reposition products around value. As such, private label is developing in the shoppers’ minds as a “better value” equation. Manufacturers must consider details, such as the type of information highlighted on labels, and make the case for the quality benefits of products. Platforms like “better for you” will help justify value for today’s choosy consumer. Some manufacturers have already begun to address this, such as Clorox who highlights the importance of home essentials and how shoppers can use their products to easily keep their home healthy and clean. Sara Lee provides options to simplify breakfasts and Campbell Soup offers meal options such as their Quick & Easy $4 Dinner Ideas.

Despite this new shopping standard, there is still room for success in CPG. It’s just a matter of flexibility in strategy and understanding of the shopper’s plight.

Tags: Clorox, coupons, cpg, economy, Frugal, HEB, Private Label, Publix, Quick & Easy, Redmans, Sara Lee, shopper experience, shopping
Posted in Deliberate Spending | 1 Comment »

The Facebook Obsession

Wednesday, September 14th, 2011

In last 6 years since its inception, Facebook has transformed from a fad to a global phenomenon. With more than half a billion users around the world, Facebook has altered our everyday lives drastically. Statistics reveal that 3 out of every 4 Americans (i.e. 75% of the entire population) use Facebook. Today Facebook is used by police to locate criminals, by individuals to find long-lost family members, by universities to attract students and by politicians to gain support in election campaigns. Even the White House has its own Facebook page, supported by a dedicated social media team. While people from all walks of life are is rapidly being won over by the potency of Facebook, the CPG industry is making its own strides in social networking.

Although it began as a way for college kids to stay in touch, Facebook has since evolved into a highly effective business tool. This global phenomenon has compelled all businesses–small and large, manufacturers as well as retailers–to ask the billion dollar question: “Does my company need a presence on Facebook? Do I need a Facebook strategy? “

Facebook can allow businesses to directly communicate with their target market to exchange product information, offer exclusive coupons and discounts, as well as enhance the overall consumer experience. Facebook can be leveraged by companies to build better relationships and to show consumers that they care about their opinions. The social network also has a major influence on shoppers’ purchasing decisions. According to a Morpace Omnibus Report, consumers are 51% more likely to buy from a brand they follow on Facebook. They’re also 60% more likely to recommend that their friends also follow the brands they do. Nearly 70% of consumers said a positive referral from a friend on Facebook would positively influence their purchase decision.

88% of all Facebook users are a fan of at least one retailer page and the average consumer is fan of 9 retailers. Receiving coupons and discount offers is one of the primary motivators for consumers to join retailer pages. Pizza Hut, Atlantis Resort and Pepsi are all examples of major companies that have parlayed their Facebook page into a genuine community for fans of their brand.

Social media is becoming a competitive advantage for the retailers that are participating, and an increasingly major weakness for those that aren’t. If a customer is Facebook savvy and can’t find one of his or her favorite brands online, that customer will perceive that brand as old fashioned, backward, or ill-adjusted to the emerging marketing trends.

There are many advantages of using Facebook to promote a company’s business and brand, but if it is not handled with a sound strategy, the pitfalls can be perilous. Facebook can be a powerful promotional marketing tool to reach millions of consumers worldwide, enhance brand visibility and exposure, engage with customers in real time conversations, aid targeted advertising and increase online traffic to the company website. However, any bad review or customers’ bad experience can also become viral, tainting the brand image incorrigibly. Also, using Facebook as an alternative sales channel has proven to be tougher to implement and as a result is still being explored by the industry.

While the tangible results from a Facebook initiative can take a longer time to become apparent, as followers trickle in, a Facebook presence is nonetheless critical for CPG brands that wish to appear forward-thinking and innovative and want to leverage multi-channel marketing media for a powerful impact. When used in conjunction with a strategy that matches the company’s long term objectives and brand image, Facebook can help CPG companies acquire new customers, retain and actively engage the existing clientele and build a loyal community of fans, helping them reap rich benefits in the long run.

Tags: coupons, cpg, customer relationship management, Facebook, Social Media
Posted in Facebook | 4 Comments »

Clipping coupons rises as budgets fall

Tuesday, July 26th, 2011

For years, clipping coupons has been one of the first things people think of when it is time to start trimming the fat in household budgets. As the economic tide has fluctuated, couponing has come in and out of style. But in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, people seem to be clipping more coupons than ever. In SymphonyIRI’s Q2 2011 MarketPulse Survey, we found that 48% of shoppers reported that they were using more coupons than ever.

However, clipping coupons today doesn’t just mean sitting around with the newspaper circulars and a pair of scissors. As our society goes digital, coupons are increasingly available in digital formats.

So far, 116 CPG companies have caught onto the digital coupon trend. Manufacturer websites, Twitter, Facebook, smart phones, and even group deal sites like Groupon all help disseminate the best deals on CPG items to tech-savvy shoppers, and each represents a new way to keep their 21st century customers loyally coming back.

So what is driving this uptick in couponing? Certainly the economic outlook right now is driving people to save more and spend less. But also, as the recent TLC show suggests, couponing is fun. Shoppers feel better by saving a little extra, and finding that an amazing deal can be exciting. Likewise, couponing allows stores to see customers getting into the deals, making them loyal customers if those deals are store-based, and purchasing items with pride.

While digital couponing is certainly the new trend in an old phenomenon, I don’t believe digital coupons will ever completely eclipse traditional ones. Paging through different websites and apps will be yet another arrow in the deal-hunter’s quiver.

Tags: Coupon, coupons, Digital Media, MarketPulse, SymphonyIRI
Posted in Coupons | 6 Comments »

Posts Tagged ‘coupons’

Mother Knows Best: Moms Stay Optimistic, Shop Smart

The New Shopping Standard: Deliberate Spending

The Facebook Obsession

Clipping coupons rises as budgets fall

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