• by Aaron Baar , October 6, 2011

It's counterintuitive, but consumers who use online coupons tend to spend more and drive incremental business than those who don't.

 

According to a new survey of consumers conducted by Forrester Consulting (commissioned by online coupon company WhaleShark Media), active coupon users reported spending more than $800 per year with e-commerce sellers than the less active coupon users ($1,805 vs. $1,025). Moreover, nearly three-quarters of active coupon users said they would be more likely to try a new brand if they had a coupon or promotion code, compared with 54% of less active coupon users.

"[Online coupon use] generates new users and it increases spending," Cotter Cunningham, CEO of WhaleShark, tells Marketing Daily . "I had this image in my head of the coupon user who buys the most expensive thing they can [with the coupon] ... but it clearly isn't the case."

In addition, 88% of the respondents said the promo codes and coupons were the deciding factor when it came to making a purchase. The codes and coupon also reduce shopping cart abandonment, with 60% of respondents saying they would be more likely to reconsider buying a product they had placed in an online shopping cart, but had not bought if they received an online coupon or promotion code for that product.

"Consumers seem to be more loyal and have more positive feeling to merchants who [offer] coupons," Cunningham says. "And if I'm a merchant I would find it exciting."

Rather than cheapening a brand, online coupons may actually strengthen them. According to the survey, 88% of respondents said they had positive feelings toward companies that offer coupons. And those who actively seek out coupons online spent 18% more than the average online shopper. And they planned to spend 16% more than other shoppers in the next year.

"I think what you're really seeing is a shift from offline to online with behavior," Cunningham says. "People are learning they can work with retailers that want you and will work with you [for the best deals]."