Coupons are making a comeback as more Canadians look to save money
Coupons are making a comeback as more Canadians look to save money in the face of rising food and gas prices. According to consumer research companies that track coupon use in Canada, more people are using the savings to minimize their household costs.
An increase in coupon use is coinciding with a migration to big box and discount stores such as Wal-Mart, and with consumers becoming more value-conscious in general.
But the turn to coupon use is notable because it appears to be a new habit for many families.
“The people who already use coupons probably look a little bit more diligently, but our trend research shows that it’s additional people using coupons more frequently as well,” said Peter Meyers, vice-president of marketing at ICOM, which does research for the packaged-goods industry.
The most popular coupons tend to be for home staples such as detergents, fabric softeners, cleaning products and toilet paper, he said.
“The demographic that’s more impacted by a recession are the ones that are thinking about using coupons even more,” Meyers said. “It’s the mid to lower incomes, the demographics that I think are first impacted by a recession in terms of the average working person and working family.”
But a survey on coupon use performed by his company found that 68.8 per cent of Canadians said they would be much or somewhat more likely to use coupons during an economic downturn.
In Canada, Ontario and the eastern provinces have the most pronounced interest in coupon use, while Quebec residents are the least likely to clip a deal.
Coupons save Canadians about $120-million each year. Recent studies south of the border have found a similar spike in coupon use. In the United States, more than 325 billion coupons are distributed each year, about 100 times the number sent out in Canada.
According to NCH Marketing Services, coupon redemption stayed steady in the U.S. for the first time in 16 years in 2007, and is expected to increase this year. Grocery coupons climbed 6 per cent in 2007, when food prices first started increasing.
The number of people who use coupons is closely tied to economic prosperity. In 2001, during the last recession, coupon redemption in Canada jumped by 10 million to 122 million. But the reaction appears to be knee-jerk and not a sustained pattern of behaviour. In 2002, the number of redeemed coupons dropped by 12 million.
But since then, the way people receive coupons has changed. Now, there are many Internet-based coupon providers that allow consumers to seek out discounts on the specific products they want to buy.
But coupons are not for everyone. Cutting them out, ordering them online, or sorting them from the mail is time-consuming, and having to carry them to the store is too much of a hassle for many shoppers, deal or no deal.
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