E-coupons could be used for different reasons:
- Driving consumer traffic: This is even more true when coupons are advvertised on specific websites with coupons, and adwords campaign promoting coupons on strategic keywords.
- Building loyalty: Mainly through emailing campaigns. Also, Carrefour provided e-coupons on its websites, as they were asking people to download it thanks to a radio campaign.
- Increasing sales and attracting new customers
Now coupons campaigns must be taken seriously. The ultimate goal is to get a high return on investment and hence, a profit. Therefore, it is important to measure your generosity rate, the difference between what you offer, and how much the customer will pay in the end. Of course, it depends of your mergin rate.
Marsh Supermarkets had to halt a recent Facebook deal offering $10 off a $10 or more purchase as the coupon spread much further and faster through the social networking site than the Midwest grocer had intended.
Therefore, e-coupons could be a very powerful tool to boost sales, and hence be a link between your sales strategy, online marketing effort, and your retail experience and sales.