Digital CPG Blog

Should retailers offer coupons on their website?

“I think it has a future [because] retailers continue to drive consumers to their websites. I think a brand manager will want to keep in front of their consumers as they plan shopping trips. It really is in early stages,” said Bob Cristofono, vice president-sales at Marx, a Kantar Media solution.

CPG coupons on retailer websites take several forms:

• Links to national coupon sites; consumers can redeem these coupons at any store
• Coupon offers downloadable to loyalty cards, specific to the retailer
• Direct-to-mobile coupon offers, which are also specific to the retailer.

The latter two kinds of digital coupons turn websites into destinations, noted Cristofono, adding CPG marketers that do this “can be key drivers in aligning with key retailers and securing merchandising support. Destination websites provide direct exposure to shoppers when they’re planning trips and making purchase decisions.”

Besides leading consumers to the stores, manufacturers could also use digital offers and coupons to form a direct relationship and hold onto all of the data.

“More than three of four coupon users (77.3%) report that they ‘search the Internet for CPG coupons ahead of their next shopping trip, with7.4% doing so always and 50.6% with regularity,’ details the NCH 2010 Consumer Survey.”

Making those coupons available at the point of sale online would also be a powerful way to build loyalty and more and more manufacturers are going in this direction.