We all know Australians love saving money. This is a great opportunity for businesses of all sizes to expand their customer base. Discount deals or coupons are a proven method of getting customers through your door. While many small businesses are taking advantage of this form of promotion, some of Australia’s largest companies have perfected it.
Lets take the fuel discount success story of the large supermarket groups here in Australia. People were not only willing to travel extra distances to fill up with cheaper fuel, they were deliberately spending more to achieve the threshold to obtain the discount.
Without realising, the customer was building an alliance with these supermarket groups and moving away from the independent, personal and local service station. This is driving business through offering the customer a reward for visiting their particular outlet.
This method of marketing is not out of reach for most businesses here in Australia and there are many who are embracing the opportunities coupons offer.
The amount of people who use discount coupons or daily deals is impressive. Twnety seven percent of our audience has used a coupon in the last month. A recent study completed by Sensis’ Yellow Pages stated that more than 64% of respondents wanted a discount more than anything else from pages they followed through social media.
It’s not just price sensitive pensioners wanting to get in on the deal scene. The whole group buying revolution was built on the younger market getting online and using the deals to save money and get more for less.
Taking a look at our business, Shop A Docket, people over 60 are perceived to be the consumers dominating this market and using our service, but it’s actually the 35 to 49-year-old main grocery buying mums. They are generally the household accountant, the financial controller or the rooster of the family wallet.
The trend we are starting to see through talking to our advertisers is the ‘trial buyers’ from a discount tend to revisit. Not only are they visiting the store when they have a valid coupon, they are returning any time of the week to re-purchase.
An example of this trend can be seen in the purchasing behaviour of Nicholas Breen, a video production professional from NSW. Nicholas was enticed to purchase his lunch from Subway with a two for one coupon that was redeemable on Tuesdays. Nicholas and his colleague ate at Subway every Tuesday for the next two months. They have now become regular visitors of Subway not only on Tuesdays, but other days throughout the week.
When you have this proven buyer in your outlet, you have the opportunity to reward the customer. They have made their way into your business to spend money. Keep them interested and involved and there’s a big chance your product will end up on their weekly shopping list for years to come.
Simon McCord
Managing Director
Shop A Docket