Opinion from Andrew Ryan, Director at Halo

When John Pemberton invented Coca-Cola in 1886, not even their catchy positioning of “Delicious! Refreshing! Exhilarating! Invigorating!” could persuade consumers to try it over all the other carbonated wonder tonics and elixirs already on the market.

So, to help increase sales his bookkeeper started giving away tickets for free tastes of Coke, but Pemberton chastised him for extravagance. Fast forward a few years when tycoon Asa Griggs Candler bought the company in 1888, he revisited the bookkeeper’s idea, and distributed thousands of bits of paper like the ones above, and so the coupon as we know it was born.

By 1913, Coca-Cola had redeemed over 8.5 million free drink coupons.

Thankfully the humble coupon itself has made a smooth transition to the 21st century and the new dawn of digital coupons will soon be the norm. If you want to boost your sales and attract more consumers, couponing is still a solid marketing tool to use. Coupons can help you create a sense of urgency, reward loyal consumers and increase brand awareness.

This is especially true in the cost-of-living crisis when consumers are even more value conscious. The tightening of consumer purse strings is placing an even greater demand on the need to deliver value where it matters. This is being born out from our findings across the UK, Europe, Africa and the US that there is a noticeable increase in response and uptake on any promotion that delivers real consumer value. Free and Save messages are currently outperforming all other mechanics.

However, unknown performance can place greater demands on budgets which is where Fixed Fee comes in to provide much needed cost certainty. Fixed Fee is perfect for when costs are variable and the final outcome is unknown. It allows a campaign to be budgeted for regardless of the final performance, protecting the variable costs under a one off completely covered​ Fixed Fee with the backing of re-insurance.

By combining the powerful mechanic of couponing with the cost certainty benefits of Fixed Fee, brands can better navigate these tough trading conditions.​

Why coupons?

1. Couponing creates a sense of urgency. When consumers see that a coupon has an expiration date, they are more likely to act fast and make a purchase before they miss out on a good deal.
2. Couponing appeals to the masses, everyone loves saving money, and couponing allows consumers to feel like they are getting more value for their money.
3. Couponing encourages repeat purchases. By offering coupons that can be redeemed on future purchases, you can increase consumer retention and loyalty. You can also use coupons to cross-sell or upsell other products or services that complement your main offer.
4. Couponing generates word-of-mouth. Social sharing. When consumers are happy with purchases, they’re more likely to share their positive experiences with friends and family. You can also incentivize referrals by offering coupons to both the referrer and the referee.

  Quick couponing checklist                                         

• Set clear goals and objectives for your coupon campaign. What do you want to achieve? Who do you want to target? How will you measure your success?
• Choose the right type of coupon for your offer. There are different types of coupons, such as percentage off, £1 off, buy one get one free, free delivery. Choose the one that best suits your product or service and your target audience.

Tracking, ROI and first party data

• Analyse and optimise your coupon campaign. You can monitor and evaluate the results of your coupon campaign regularly. You can use metrics such as redemption rate, conversion rate, average order value, consumer acquisition cost, consumer lifetime value. You can also collect feedback from your consumers to improve your offer and consumer experience.
• Coupons can help you collect valuable consumer data and feedback. You can use coupons to ask consumers for their email addresses, phone numbers, or opinions. This can help you build your consumer database and improve your marketing strategies.

The humble coupon might not get the recognition it deserves, especially at awards events, but you clients will thank you for the direct impact it can have on driving trade.

Couponing is certainly not broken, far from it, but they might need fixing in which case we’d be delighted to help.

The post Isn’t It Time We Fixed Couponing? appeared first on IPM Bitesize.

Valassis, the UK’s largest coupon and voucher services provider, has launched Cashback & Rewards, a new multi-channel promotional solution that facilitates direct payment between the brand and the promotion’s beneficiary, removing reliance on third parties to fulfil the promotion.

Valassis says cashback has significant and broad-reaching promotional applications – research has found that nearly 20% of shoppers made a purchase or spent more than planned because of a cashback offer. Cashback & Rewards can be implemented for any number of target audiences – shoppers, merchants or even staff, as an employee benefit – the company adds.

The Cashback & Rewards mechanic has been designed to be simple for the shopper, the company says. Once they have bought a product, the shopper inputs their details online along with a picture of the receipt and is then sent a cashback or reward payment.  Payment can be delivered via a number of methods – cash, PayPal, cheque or coupon. Rewards can also be product samples or entry into a prize draw.  This direct fulfilment allows brands to reinforce messages, which often is not possible when fulfilled via a third party.

Valassis has worked with brands across Europe to deliver Cashback & Rewards for products in the pharmaceutical sector, with cashback given to both merchants and shoppers. The service is now being made available in the UK.

Charles D’Oyly, Valassis’ Managing Director, observes: “Our new Cashback & Rewards solution means that brands can deliver benefits directly to intended beneficiaries and without involving point of sale.  It taps into existing interest among consumers for cash back and represents a flexible and compelling promotional tool to engage shoppers via an easy and seamless customer experience.”

Valassis Limited is the UK’s largest coupon and voucher services provider, performing crucial data management and financial clearing services. Responsible for handling most of the UK’s coupons and vouchers, Valassis Limited is uniquely positioned to deliver insights on UK consumer promotions and is regularly quoted as an expert in the media. Valassis is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Harland Clarke Holdings, a US provider of payment solutions, multi-channel marketing campaigns, and secure data-driven lead generation and critical communications.  In addition, Harland Clarke provides promotional products, call centers, and governance, risk and compliance (GRC) solutions.

The post Valassis launches Cashback & Rewards promotion mechanic for brands appeared first on IPM Bitesize.

Confectionery company Mondelez has enlisted the help of basketball superstar Shaquille O’Neal to help it celebrate the ‘birthday’ of its OREO brand on March 6th by giving away one million OREO Chocolate Candy Bars in a US-wide promotion.

O’Neal – who shares March 6th as a birthday – kicked off the celebrations by hosting a one-day-only pop-up “Snack Shaq” at Atlantic Station in his adopted hometown of Atlanta where he handed out free OREO Chocolate Candy Bars.

OREO fans who can’t make it to Atlanta can go online to OREOBirthdayGiveaway.com and enter their details. The first million fans to enter their names and addresses on the website will get a voucher redeemable for a free OREO Chocolate Candy Bar, worth up to 99¢.

The promotion is open to legal residents of the 50 U.S. states (and the District of Columbia) aged 18 or older. The promotion ends at midnight Eastern Standard Time March 12th 2018, or when 1,000,000 participants register for the giveaway, whichever comes first.

Mondelez launched its OREO Chocolate Candy Bars in the US on a limited basis in November 2016, with a full roll-out in January 2017. They combine Oreo cookie pieces in a vanilla crème filling, enrobed in European Milka chocolate. In the recent Kantar TNS US Product of the Year Awards 2018, the new range won Product of the Year 2018 in the Candy Bar category. The product was launched in Europe prior to the US launch, again using Milka chocolate (Milka is the best-selling chocolate brand in Europe) except in the UK, where it uses Cadbury chocolate. However, Mondelez cannot sell Cadbury products in the US as rival confectionery company Hershey has the US rights to the Cadbury name.

The post Mondelez US gives away one million Oreo chocolate bars appeared first on IPM Bitesize.

Easy-to-digest milk brand a2 Milk has just run a digitally-powered “Try Me Free” campaign to increase visibility in store at the point of purchase and drive trial.

a2 Milk is a pure cow’s milk that’s naturally free-from the A1 protein found in regular cows’ milk, which some people have challenges digesting. a2 Milk hand-select cows that naturally produce only the easy to digest A2 protein so that many people can enjoy the benefits of dairy without stomach problems.

To increase awareness of the brand and the promotion, over 200,000 bottles were promoted using a “Try Me Free” neck collar. On purchasing the promotional product in-store, consumers opened the neck collar and were prompted to visit www.trya2milk.co.uk where they could claim their free product.

The promotion and the supporting website were created by Activate by Shopmium through a completely digital redemption process. Consumers registered on the site, provided feedback on their experience with the product, uploaded a picture of their receipt, entered either their PayPal or Bank Account details and then received their cashback.

The campaign was initially trialled across Waitrose over the course of November 2017 and was successfully rolled out across all retailers during January and February 2018.

Sarah Shakespeare, Social & Digital Content Manager at a2 Milk, says: “The Try Me Free campaign has gone very smoothly. The neck collars delivered good stand out on shelf and the redemption process was very easy for our consumers to use.”.

Activate by Shopmium is a Quotient Technology brand, enabling brands to drive measurable sales from their digital, on pack and in-store marketing spend.

Quotient Technology Inc., which was previously known as Coupons.com Incorporated, is a leading digital promotion and media platform that connects brands, retailers and consumers. It distributes digital coupons and media through a variety of products, including: digital printable coupons, digital paperless coupons, coupon codes, and card linked offers.

The post a2 Milk runs ‘Try Me Free’ campaign appeared first on IPM Bitesize.

Essity, the Swedish health and hygiene group, is backing its new Cushelle Quilted toilet paper variant, launched in January, with an integrated below-the-line campaign aimed at helping drive awareness and trial of the new variant – which is claimed to be the brand’s “most cushiony-soft toilet tissue ever”.

Cushelle Quilted was introduced into retail stores in the UK and Republic of Ireland in January 2018. The new campaign, which spans the full shopper journey, aims to increase penetration by reinforcing the product superiority and ‘Quiltiness’ by asking shoppers to test just how ‘Quilty’ the paper is for themselves.

The activity, created for Essity by Manchester-based marketing agency Blue Chip, includes a money back guarantee being promoted across selected shopper media to drive trial at the point of purchase. Additionally, a door drop and Automated Teller Machine (ATM) couponing will deliver the same message and a further incentive to purchase out of store.

The door drop, featuring the Cushelle brand character Kenny the Koala, will hit 4 million doormats across the UK in March, a week after a new Cushelle Quilted TV advertisement hits screens.

Lauren Roberts, Account Manager at Blue Chip, says: “This promotional activity carefully considered how we would convert shoppers to the new Quilted product. The money back guarantee is a proven trial driver, removing the risk of purchase and making it the perfect choice for this NPD. Driving penetration was also a key objective. By adding a door drop with two £1.00 money off coupons, we aim to further incentivise shoppers to try this new product for themselves.”

The money back guarantee will be valid in retailers including Asda UK, Waitrose UK, Co-op UK, Ocado UK, Morrisons UK, Tesco ROI, Dunnes ROI and SuperValu ROI.

Essity was formerly part of SCA, the giant Swedish paper products group. Its brands include a number that were bought from Procter & Gamble in 2007, when SCA acquired P&G’s European paper operations, including Charmin. While Charmin is still sold by P&G under that brand name in the US, SCA rebranded Charmin as Zewa in Germany and Cushelle in the UK.

The post Cushelle runs ‘Quiltiest’ integrated campaign appeared first on IPM Bitesize.

Independent shopper insights consultancy Shoppercentric has published its Shopper Stock Take Index for a third year, which reveals that 41% of consumers use store loyalty cards ‘a lot’ and 47% use them ‘occasionally’. Only 1% of survey respondents said they had never heard of loyalty cards.

However, Danielle Pinnington, Managing Director at Shoppercentric, warns: “Retailers and brands must keep a finger on the shopper pulse and appreciate that each customer is now using a range of strategies to cope with increasing pressures on household budgets. Which categories or sectors will suffer most this year is likely to depend on how they react to changing shopper needs.”

Pinnington adds: “With shoppers picking and choosing between stores for particular items based on their own experience of how well different retailers deliver, there is even greater pressure to differentiate and create memorable in-store experiences. Equally, avoiding or challenging misconceptions based on bad experiences has become more important. If, as our report shows, shoppers are actively widening their repertoires, loyalty as we used to know it is an outdated term.”

Shoppercentric collected more than a thousand online survey responses from shoppers, covering how they felt about the stability of their household budgets, how their shopping habits are changing, and what brands and retailers need to do as a result.

The 2018 Shopper Stock Take index reveals that while shoppers aren’t yet feeling the same pinch as in the worst of the recession, they are certainly starting to feel more pressure. Only one in four claims to be unaffected by the current economic situation, with a considerable proportion of UK shoppers having to make minor changes to spending.

The speed of change is rapid – just 12 months ago, the proportion of those making minor changes was just 16%, but today it stands at 44%. 26% of shoppers have noticed prices increasing a lot, and 56% have noticed small increases.

Shoppers primarily put these increases down to the state of the economy (54%) and Brexit (50%), although the exchange rate, cost of ingredients and greedy companies are also ‘blamed’ by a fair proportion of shoppers.

80% of shoppers are now “being careful to avoid waste”, while 75% are “avoiding being tempted to buy things I don’t need”. 50% are “going out of their way to find the best prices” and will “split shopping across different stores to get the best deals.” 60% are now buying “own label where I can to keep costs down” and 33% are now using “online shopping to check spending as I go.”

2017 saw a continued increase in the proportion of shoppers who had abandoned weekly main shops in favour of shopping little & often – rising from 11% to 16%. This year, however, there has been no change in that figure, suggesting this trend may have reached its ceiling.

Instead, shoppers are becoming more active as they make the most of the choice available. Shoppers’ average repertoire has changed to five stores or websites in the last fortnight, up from four in 2017. 26% of UK shoppers say that they fit their grocery shopping in where and when they can. 33% of shoppers switch stores based on what they need – to get the best places for what they want (versus 28% in 2017).

The biggest change in the five channels covered by the report was in the use of discounter stores – up 13% on 2017 figures to 57% of UK shoppers. Use of the Big Four supermarkets rose by four percentage points on 2017 figures to 83%. There was no significant change in convenience store or online grocery usage penetration – 49% and 30% of shoppers using those channels respectively.

With the exception of Smart TVs, all digital devices covered by this report saw increased usage by UK shoppers. Computers/laptops were cited as the most used touchpoint – up six percentage points on 2017 figures to 63%. In second place were smartphones with a huge 18 percentage point increase on last year to 45%.

Interestingly, despite a number of retailers and brands moving away from catalogues, usage by shoppers rose to 22%– up four percentage points on 2017.

There has been a seven percentage point increase to 58% in the number of shoppers that have been triggered to shop by content on their smartphone. Using a smartphone to carry out ‘research’ has remained on a par with last year at 61%. However, using the device to ‘find’ an item has risen from 56% to 60%, while the number of shoppers using smartphones to buy a product has gone up from 37% to 42% of shoppers.

However, despite the considerable shift in shoppers using their smartphones as they shop, particularly in relation to actual purchasing, there has been no increase in the uptake of mobile-based promotions, which remains at 20%.

The post Shoppercentric research: in tough times, consumers favour loyalty cards appeared first on IPM Bitesize.

Breakfast cereal brand Weetabix is running a free fruit on-pack promotion to help people start 2018 in a healthy way.

The ‘£5-off’ fruit promotion runs from the start of January until March 28^th and will be supported with the brand’s “Have You Had Yours” TV commercial, being screened throughout January.

Weetabix has teamed up with Nisa on Weetabix 24-packs and with the Co-op and major supermarkets on 48- and 72-packs. The promotion is not running in Aldi and Lidl.

Customers who buy promotional packs during the campaign period will be able to claim 10 downloadable coupons, worth a total of £5 (€5 in the Republic of Ireland) off fruit, by going to the www.weetabix.co.uk/fruit promotional microsite and submitting the eight-digit alphanumeric Unique Reference Number (URN) printed on the inside of their promotional pack. They will also be asked to answer a multiple-choice survey question and say which retailer they bought the promotional Weetabix pack at.

The offer is open to residents of the United Kingdom (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland), Channel Islands, Isle of Man and Republic of Ireland.

The 10 coupons each have a different validity date, discount value, redeemable fruit type and unique barcode. The first coupon from the 10 received will be valid for redemption within seven days from the date that the participant downloads the discount coupons online. All the other coupons then have a specific seven-day redemption period covering the following nine weeks.

The coupons can be redeemed at participating stores, allowing customers to buy a different pack of fruit each week. Coupons will specify the discount value, the redemption validity date, the type of fruit the discount applies to, and the minimum fruit weight or minimum quantity required to purchase (for example, minimum 600g or 5-pack of bananas). The fruit the coupons can be redeemed against are pears, apples, bananas, strawberries, kiwis, blueberries, clementines, grapes, melons and raspberries, in that order.

Charlotte Hunt, senior brand manager for Weetabix, says: “Health benefits is one of the fastest-growing attributes that customers look for when choosing breakfast cereals. Our new ‘£5 off fruit’ campaign will help to further cement Weetabix as the natural choice for those looking for a healthier way to start the day. Value for money is also very important to customers and we’re really proud to offer added value with the coupons.”

Hunt adds: “Amongst a backdrop of declining sales within the cereal sector, we’ve grown 3% this year and are by a long way the nation’s favourite breakfast cereal. Last year’s ‘Weetabuddies’ campaign delivered a 14% year-on-year increase in Weetabix sales and our latest promotion will continue to inspire a new generation of cereal eaters and encourage a healthy breakfast culture for the whole family.”

Customers who do not redeem the coupons by March 28^th will still be able to enter a prize draw to win £500 towards a healthy year at www.weetabix.co.uk/fruit. The draw will be open to enter from March 29^th  to  June 30^th 2018.

The Weetabix brand is now owned by American company Post Holdings, which bought the company for £1.4 billion in July 2017 from Bright Food, a state-owned Chinese company.

The post Weetabix offers £5 free fruit in on-pack promotion appeared first on IPM Bitesize.

Shoppers are as deal hungry as ever this Christmas, with 42% stating they are on the lookout for promotional offers for the festive supermarket shop, according to a survey by coupon experts Valassis Limited.

This percentage has increased in recent years from 38% in 2015 and 2014. Nearly half (46%) of all shoppers agree that they spend more time at Christmas seeking out promotions to ensure they keep within their budget, up from 42% in 2016.

The survey by Valassis Limited, the UK’s largest coupon and voucher services provider, shows that 2-for- 1 offers are the most popular promotion with 48% of consumers stating these would entice them to shop away from their main supermarket over the festive season, an increase from 43% last year.

Additionally, 16-24 year olds are the most motivated, with over half (57%) citing 2-for-1 offers as a reason to shop away. These offers are closely followed by Everyday Low Prices (EDLPs) tempting 43% of shoppers and coupons and vouchers favoured by 42%.

Promotions influence not only the supermarket that shoppers frequent, but also the products they buy. Nearly half of shoppers (48%) agree that relevant product coupons sway their decision on the brand they buy and 44% describe themselves as someone who actively seeks out coupons and vouchers before a supermarket shop.

Coupons and vouchers are not just attracting those who have to budget carefully. In fact, more affluent consumers are even more attracted to them: the survey shows 29% of ABC1s agreeing with the statement “I would describe myself as someone who actively seeks out coupons and vouchers,” compared to just 26% of C2DEs.

The Valassis survey results also underline a year-on-year decrease in supermarket loyalty. Consumer loyalty to one supermarket seems long gone, with only 16% of consumers stating they will not shop away from their main supermarket this festive season, down from 21% last year. This lack of loyalty is not just for Christmas, with only 11% of shoppers claiming to visit just one store each month.

The “deep discounters” are, interestingly, the pick of the bunch for shoppers this Christmas with 28% planning to do their main festive shop at Aldi, up from 25% last year, and 27% at Lidl. These shopping intentions are higher than for more mainstream grocery supermarkets.

Looking at the uptake of new technologies within grocery, online grocery shopping/home delivery has increased year-on-year with 25% of consumers stating they use this option either “often” or “always,” compared to 21% in 2016. Self-checkouts continue to increase in popularity, as a result of the rise of top-up shopping trips, with 40% of shoppers saying they often or always use them, up from 26% in 2016. Perhaps not surprisingly and tying in with their confidence in technology, younger age groups (over half of 16-24 and 25-34 year olds) are more likely to use self-checkouts. Beyond grocery, younger shoppers are also more likely to regularly use their phone for digital offers in High Street shops and restaurants – 24% of 16-24 and 30% of 25-34 year olds.

Charles D’Oyly, Valassis’ Managing Director, comments: “With the array of supermarkets being within easy reach of most shoppers, it has never been easier to cherry-pick the best deals. Perhaps the financial crisis of 2007 created a permanently more promotionally savvy shopper. Our research suggests, more than ever before, that deep discounters, 2-for-1s, vouchers and coupons have the strongest influence over the festive food shopping contest this year.”

The survey findings are based on an online survey of 2,002 nationally representative adults, conducted by GfK NOP from 20 to 24 October 2017 on behalf of Valassis Limited.

The post Supermarket loyalty challenged by promotions and discounters this Xmas appeared first on IPM Bitesize.

Mars brand SNICKERS is launching a money-off promotion with a difference in the US, to support its long-running “You’re Not You When You’re Hungry” marketing platform. A special ‘Hungerithm’ has been created to monitor the mood, and the hunger level, of the Internet. As the Internet’s “hanger” increases, the value of coupon discounts off SNICKERS at participating U.S. 7-Eleven stores will increase in real time.

“Sometimes you say stuff online you don’t mean in a moment of hunger,” said Michael Italia, Senior Brand Manager, SNICKERS Brand. “We’ve all witnessed this type of behavior from friends and family in our newsfeeds. Now SNICKERS can help satisfy in real time.”

“Hungerithm” was developed by Clemenger BBDO Melbourne under the “You’re Not You When You’re Hungry” umbrella and originally piloted in Australia to critical acclaim and business success. The algorithm checks social media posts in real time against a list of 3,000 commonly used words and phrases to determine sentiment and capture a snapshot of how people are feeling. It even understands slang and sarcasm. As hanger goes up, the coupon value goes up too.

Consumers can view the SNICKERS Hungerithm at www.Hungerithm.com and track the value of the money-off coupons across the day – they can then use their mobile devices to lock in a coupon value and generate a barcode which they can redeem at participating 7-Eleven stores.

“Hungerithm” went live mid November and will be available until December 22nd, 2017.

The post Snickers in the US runs ‘Hungerithm’ variable value coupons at 7-Eleven appeared first on IPM Bitesize.

Princes has launched an integrated marketing campaign, ‘So Good. So Simple’, to support its canned fish and fruit product ranges.

Reaching at least 8.4 million consumers, the initiative will involve a partnership with some of the UK’s largest radio stations, social and digital media, in-store sampling, coupons, a new website with improved user experience and the renewal of the brand’s successful partnership with celebrity dietician Lucy Jones.

The activity has been driven by consumer research and trends showing that shoppers are looking for tasty, easy and nutritious meals. It demonstrates how Princes meets those needs while encouraging them to increase their repertoire of dishes made with canned fish and fruit.

Neil Brownbill, Marketing Director for Princes Limited, says: “We have put an integrated marketing strategy in place to ensure we reach families through engaging content via channels that they most actively consume.”

The campaign will promote Princes Tuna Chunks in Springwater and its range of Tuna Fillers as simple, tasty toppings for jacket potatoes, alongside Princes Mackerel and rice as a quick protein and Omega 3-rich meal solution for busy lives.

Consumers will also be encouraged to try Princes Peaches, Mandarins and Mango with Juice – which are packed from fresh and contribute to one of your recommended five-a-day – as a convenient breakfast with yoghurt.

Brownbill adds: “We are confident that this campaign will provide a valuable boost for the brand and wider category.”

The campaign launched at the end of September and runs until March 2018, the activity builds on the success of the brand’s 2016 marketing initiatives which contributed to increased value sales of more than 12% on the featured lines across Princes Fish and Fruit products.

The post Princes runs integrated marketing campaign for canned fish and fruit appeared first on IPM Bitesize.