You might consider it the coupon equivalent of the chicken and the egg – which came first, coupons going digital because that’s what shoppers want, or shoppers choosing digital because that’s where the offers are?
Whichever it is, there’s no denying that digital coupons are gaining in popularity as paper coupon use declines. And a new survey reinforces that conclusion.
To help promote the recent launch of its retail media network, which uses digital platforms to provide personalized ads and offers, United Natural Foods, Inc. found that shoppers really like when digital platforms provide them with personalized ads and offers.
43% of respondents in UNFI’s survey said they use digital coupons in their local grocery store’s smartphone app, compared to 23% who cut out paper coupons from a printed circular. The vast majority – 92% – know whether their local grocery store offers digital coupons. And 32% wish their local grocery store offered even more digital coupons than they do now.
“The findings point to a growing demand for retail technology solutions that connect consumers to brand offerings at the time and place when they’re ready to buy,” UNFI concluded. Just like UNFI’s retail media network!
UNFI is primarily a natural and organic food wholesaler whose largest client is Whole Foods Market. Through its 2018 acquisition of Supervalu, it also owns a couple of regional grocery chains, Cub and Shoppers. Its retail media network, launched this past spring in conjunction with the retail technology company Swiftly, allows its tens of thousands of independent and regional grocery store clients to offer shoppers personalized digital deals on products from UNFI’s 11,000 brand partners.
And, of course, deals are especially important to shoppers these days. UNFI’s survey found that 45% of shoppers rely on deals and promotions as part of their everyday grocery shopping experience. 49% want more deals on things they typically buy.
In contrast, only 12% of shoppers said they don’t consider price when making purchasing decisions, and 8% said they “don’t care about finding ways to save money” at their local grocery stores.
Clearly, the vast majority of shoppers want to save money on their groceries. And, according to this survey, a clear plurality prefer saving money with digital coupons, which are plentiful these days, versus paper coupons, which are rapidly dwindling in number.
UNFI says its retail media network is “designed to enable retailers to reach their shoppers digitally,” while offering brands the ability to “launch campaigns and promotions across multiple channels, including on-site and in-app banners, push notifications, social, in-store digital displays and email.”
You can’t do that with a paper coupon. We may never know whether shoppers’ desire for digital coupons caused the decline in paper coupons, or whether marketers’ move away from paper coupons fueled consumer demand for digital. But given digital coupons’ benefits, UNFI believes the choice is clear. And shoppers looking for savings – and not finding as many in the Sunday newspaper anymore – may be inclined to agree.
Image source: UNFI
