Online Canadians are interested in downloading coupons or money-off-deals from the internet, in particular for items that might be considered life necessities, according to a new study released by Ipsos Reid examining online coupons, writes Retailer Daily.
Over half of survey respondents stated that they would be “extremely likely” or “very likely” to download a coupon for gasoline (58%) or groceries (54%) – two categories that account for a large proportion of weekly expenditures and have increased rapidly in the past few years.
Other coupons that interest online Canadians include restaurants, 44%; delivery (e.g., pizza), 38%; consumer electronics, 35%; hotels, 34%; and airlines, 34%.
Gender plays a role in two of the categories tested: Grocery coupons are significantly more popular among females (59% vs. 49%), while consumer electronic coupons are significantly more likely to be used by males (40% vs. 30%).
However, outside of the staples of groceries and gasoline, the younger generation of internet users – those 18-34 and 35-54 – who are more likely to show an interest in downloading online coupons.
Household income also has an effect on online Canadians’ interest in internet coupons: Those with household income greater than $40,000 are more interested than other income brackets in coupons for gasoline, restaurants, hotels, and airfares.
“This data highlights a potentially underused channel for online advertisers and marketers to get their special offers in front of the Canadian population,” said study author Mark Laver. “Having weekly shopping coupons available on a company website could potentially be a significant driver of visitors to the website and eventually draw consumers to the ‘bricks and mortar’ retail environment.”
About the data: The findings are from an Ipsos Reid syndicated study, the Inter@ctive Reid Report, fielded from 06/30 to 07/14, 2008. This online survey of 2,711 Canadian adults was conducted via the Ipsos I-Say Online Panel, Ipsos Reid’s national online panel. Results are based on a sample where quota sampling and weighting are employed to balance demographics and ensure that the sample’s composition reflects that of the actual Canadian population according to Census data.
