When the history of coupons finally gets written, 1992 will go downas the Year of the Coupon, a time when consumers redeemed about 7.9billion of them. But every year since, that figure has shrunk, whittleddown by years of relative prosperity, changing demographic trends andmanufacturer policies that shortened each coupon’s redemption period,among other changes.
But in the fourth quarter of 2008, the slump bottomed out. Coupon use has risen every quarter since then, making 2009 the first year of rising coupon use since 1992. Last year, 3.5 billion coupons were redeemed, according to Inmar, a coupon processor that handles about half of the market and publishes figures extrapolated from its own volume.
Matthew Tilley, Inmar’s director for marketing, said companies last year pumped out an unprecedented number of coupons, hoping to prevent financially struggling consumers from drifting to private-label brands.
“Ina down economy,” Mr. Tilley said, “coupons might make the differencebetween turning your loyal consumer over to a private-label brand, andkeeping them in the fold. In essence, you’ve lowered your price forthem in a short period when they needed the help.
|
