Coupon Statistics 2022: Here’s What the Numbers Say

From newspapers to our email inboxes, there isn’t a single place we don’t search for deals and coupons. Coupons, the concept of which originated in the 20th century thanks to Coca-Cola, still reign as a powerful marketing tactic to drive more sales and profits. A look at the history and current status of coupons proves that these deals also increase brand awareness and ensure customer loyalty. From Uber to Myers, almost all companies employ coupon strategies.

Some of the recent coupon stats also confirm that shoppers love these saving tools. About 16 billion people redeemed e-coupons in 2014 and the numbers swelled to 31 billion in 2019. According to coupon statistics of 2021 by Inmar, 29.3% of all coupons redeemed were digital. About 16 billion people redeemed e-coupons in 2014 and the numbers are expected to swell this year to 31 billion. Talking about the popularity of digital coupon marketing, Valassis CMO, Curtis Tingle called millennials a generation that actively looks for deals. He said that keeping this in view “marketers can deliver relevant offers.”

Valassis’ March 2019 report shows almost the entire population of internet users in the United States uses coupons of which 45% do so actively. According to a coupon usage statistics report by Statista, the number of coupons users reached 145.3 million last year. The popularity of e-coupons has increased because of their convenience of availability for consumers and ease of marketing for businesses in these digital times. Apart from computer screens, mobile coupon redemption rate has also increased with there being 560 million mobile users in 2014 and 1.05 billion in 2019.

Coupons and Consumers - What Do the Buyers Think

Coupons make shopping more worthwhile for buyers as they cut down prices. Coupons make people feel good too, as research by Dr. Paul J. Zak reveals that coupons encourage the release of oxytocin. Moreover, Kelton says that 47% of consumers feel excited to receive coupons and 36% feel special.

In 2015, 57.5% of people redeemed digital coupons and the number was expected to grow to 59% in 2016. Clearly, marketers have taken note of the trends in coupon marketing too. People redeemed from many brands on which they trust, and brands also try to attract more customers through their offers.

Promo code marketing through mobile phones is on the rise, in 2017, 48% of companies used the tactic which is higher than the 44.5% in 2016, 40.5% in 2015, and 36.5% in 2014. In 2020, a survey found 50% of customers prefer getting coupons on their mobile.

The latest digital coupon statistics reveal customers have taken a liking to discount codes. 60% of people love receiving coupons and 50% are more likely to go to a store if they have a coupon. Consumers’ stats give some insight to marketers too about how coupons are more than just tickets for fetching discounts with 68% of consumers saying that coupons build brand awareness and generate loyalty.

Which Channels Do Consumers Prefer for Receiving Coupons?

Though both papers and digital coupons are used, the latter is being increasingly used with 59% of consumers saying that digital coupons affect their purchase decisions the most from all the coupon offering tactics that retailers employ. In 2020, digital coupons overtook paper clippings for the first time in history. Mobile coupons statistics suggest that this sub-category of online couponing also a favorite of the masses. 77% of customers spend from $10 to $50 more than expected when they have mobile coupons to redeem.

In 2021, the average coupon redemption rates of emails were 2.7%. Coupons that are delivered through smartphones have higher redemption rates ranging from 8% to 16%. Interestingly, a combination of both of these channels sees a redemption rate of between 15% and 25%.

Furthermore, 17% spend above $50 in the presence of phone delivered coupons. The thing about receiving coupons on your smartphone device is that it is convenient. Marketing coupons via this route meet both short-term and long-term sales goals as per research by Binghamton University, State University, New York. This study emphasizes that ignoring coupons sent via SMS services is hard and there’s no point for a consumer to not use a coupon so easily available to him.

Over and above that, when this consumer redeems the coupon, it is likely that he would like the product and purchase again from the shop. Think that there are still people out there who do not use mobile coupons? Stats show further than 62% of people who own smartphones are highly likely to make use of digital coupons in the future.

In fact, it was predicted that by 2015, 83% of digital coupon redeemers will be making the most of mobile coupons. Text messages are not the only way smartphone owners receive coupons. People also use the internet on their phones. From more than half of the people who have a smartphone in use, about 55%, look out for coupons when shopping in-store. The best part for marketers is that with coupons shoppers purchase more; 39% of those who receive coupon or promo codes spend more bucks.

This makes it clear that digital couponing has revolutionized - we’ve moved from paper coupons to computer coupons and then also mobile coupons. Internet coupons can be received by customers through various channels from social media to email. Emails with promotional codes are actually pretty successful with a 14% open rate. In fact, they typically get a 34% rise in unique clicks, a 27% bump up in transaction completion rate, and bring about a 48% increment in revenue per email.

The popularity and preference for receiving digital coupons through cell phones can be further looked at by this - 18% of online shoppers use mobile coupons and 65% are willing to do so. Couponers typically use smartphones; 49% of them have made use of mobile coupons on their mobile device while only 10% of tablet owners have used coupons via tablets.

However, not all smartphone users get coupons directly from the brands offering them. Though 54% of people find coupons directly through a business, 31% find coupons by using couponing sites. Using a coupon website is preferable as it compiles coupons from several businesses in one place which makes it easier for shoppers to decide from where they want to buy.

Conclusion

To sum up, digital coupon redemption rates are only rising which is why marketers need to keep tapping in the latest coupon marketing tactics. The coupon industry statistics are extremely telling of how this method of promotion is getting popular by the day.

Currently, searching and using coupons on mobile devices is seeing an upward trend because of the convenience it offers to consumers and the goal-smashing approach that it is for marketers. While social media coupon marketing has also grown considerably.

Businesses that are looking to make the best of promo codes, vouchers, and coupons should create a dedicated strategy. Because they are able to master this art of selling, the possibilities of future growth are limitless.

Published on: February 11, 2022