Qmania Blog

If you haven't been using mobile coupons, you may be behind the times -- and spending $2,400/year more than you need to.

According to our research and a recent survey released from ICOM Information & Communications (ICOM), mobile coupon usage is becoming increasingly popular as the recession continues.

ICOM Information & Communications (ICOM) surveyed shoppers on their coupon-usage habits and found the 67% of those surveyed say they are more likely to use coupons during a recession. Of the 1,529 US consumers surveyed, 45% said they were "much more likely to use coupons" and 22% said they were "somewhat more likely."

Peter Meyers, VP of Marketing for ICOM clearly sums up why coupon redemption becomes popular during recessionary periods:

“Look at it this way: Households of two adults and two children who use coupons wisely can save 25% on their grocery bill annually, without cutting purchases. That saves $2,400 a year based on a typical $800 a month grocery spend, which outstrips the $1,800 economic stimulus check this family has coming in May from Washington.”

Meyers goes on to address this era's marketing heads:

“Marketers have the opportunity to discard the old-school thinking about coupons and be smarter this time around. There’s no need to send out more mass coupons, such as dog food coupons to households that don’t have pets. Brands should do their homework and send offers relevant to the needs of individual consumers.”

Some key findings about coupon usage nowadays:

• 71% of consumers in the 18-34 year-old age bracket said they are much more likely or somewhat more likely to use coupons in a recession. [68% for the 35-54 year-old bracket; 63% for those 55 years and above]
• 70% of Midwesterners said they are much more likely or somewhat more likely to use coupons in a recession, versus 69% of Westerners, 64% of Northeasterners and 62% of Southerners.
• Income didn’t make a significant difference, with 68% of those earning less than $50,000 a year saying they are much more likely or somewhat more likely to use coupons in a recession, compared with 67% for those earning more than $50,000.

Among the findings on paperless coupon technology:

• Some 58% of consumers responding to the ICOM survey said their coupon use would increase if they could download a coupon from the internet and have it automatically connected to an electronically swiped frequent shopper card.
• Of that 58%, 35% said they are much more likely to use such a card and 23% said are somewhat more likely.
• 77% of consumers in the 18-34 age group said they are much more likely or somewhat more likely to use coupons if given access to paperless coupon technology. In the 35-54 age group, 63% said they are much more likely or somewhat more likely. In the 55 and over bracket, 47% said they are much more likely or somewhat more likely.

Pretty interesting, huh? To be honest, though there's something more important that we'd like to find out.

How are you saving money during this economic climate? Have you searched for coupons online in 2009? Any war stories from the redemption front?