Consumers love options - especially with mobile coupons

Mobile coupon users prefer a larger selection of purchase options to a smaller one. This applies both to a scenario in which the coupon is redeemed online and to an analog offline scenario, i.e. redemption at a physical point of sale. This preference is also the same across the different generations. Specifically, it was clear from the research that the selection combinations with three purchase options are perceived as better than those with fewer purchase options.

Furthermore, most of the participants in the online survey on the acceptance of mobile coupons in German-speaking Switzerland stated that sending mobile coupons by e-mail appeals to them the most (61.9 percent). This is followed by displaying the mobile coupon in the form of a web store code (48.1 percent), downloading the mobile coupon as a PDF (37.8 percent), sending it by SMS (35.6 percent) and saving it in the wallet app (32.6 percent). In addition, 40.7 percent of all respondents confirmed that they would like to be informed about similar coupon offers by e-mail after downloading. The fact that the wallet app was mentioned the least is most likely due to the fact that it is not yet used very often and many (potential) users of mobile coupons are not yet aware of the user-friendliness of the wallet app.

Users by conviction

Users of mobile coupons rate the usefulness and user-friendliness of this form of marketing higher than consumers without direct experience, with around two-thirds of all respondents having already redeemed coupons, according to the study, which was supported by the digital marketing company CouponPlus. Overall, a slightly positive trend was found with regard to acceptance of mobile coupons.

From email to wallet app

In the case of a coupon redeemed offline, the following choice of subscription options is recommended: Saving the coupon in the Wallet app, downloading it directly as a PDF, and sending it as an email or via SMS. When redeeming the corresponding coupon online, the combination of saving it in the Wallet app, displaying the web store code and sending it by email or SMS is the most promising. Even though a clear preference of e-mail and web store code as a subscription option could be established, it is recommended to offer a selection of all options investigated, including wallet app. The subscription options that include a PDF version of the mobile coupon (PDF download and sending by e-mail) are particularly important, as many users like to print out mobile coupons.

Higher response rates

With a view to previous research results abroad, the study authors conclude that mobile coupons would gain in importance as a digital marketing tool in the future: "Not least because mobile devices now enable a time- and location-independent dialog between retail companies and consumers, mobile coupons are an increasingly popular tool for increasing sales." More than one billion people worldwide are expected to use mobile coupons as early as 2019. With a response rate up to 14 percent higher than paper coupons, nothing should stand in the way of the digital counterpart's breakthrough, the authors said.

"Currently, the challenge on the supplier side is to anchor the digitization of print coupons in their company. The faster and better a company succeeds in doing this, the greater its future competitive advantage."

Urs Schmidig, Managing Director of CouponPlus

Important location data

Accordingly, there is also considerable potential in Switzerland. If someone does not use mobile coupons, this could be because they are not aware of the great benefits of this technology. A higher acceptance of mobile coupons could be achieved specifically by increasing the perceived benefit as well as the perceived user-friendliness. The authors of the study recommend both retailers and the agencies involved to further increase the level of knowledge among the population about mobile coupons. This would further increase acceptance. Urs Schmidig, CEO of CouponPlus and sponsor of the study: "Mobile couponing has the potential to motivate customers to make purchases with individual, situation-specific discount vouchers that they would probably not have made without a coupon. At the moment, however, the challenge for providers is to anchor the digitization of print coupons in their company. The faster and better a company succeeds in doing this, the greater its future competitive advantage. Because growth can only be achieved with digital coupons here as well."

About the study

"Mobile Coupons in German-speaking Switzerland" is a study on the acceptance and subscription process of mobile coupons. The following students of the Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW) participated in the study: Andjela Bulatovic, Yannick Federer, Lea Grob, Ronny Widmer, Seline Zimmermann. Module: Integrated Projects: Deepening 'Fact Based Marketing'. Project leader: Prof. Frank Hannich; supervised by David Lucien Kübler. Project sponsor: CouponPlus, Zurich.

More than 500'000 coupons

The company CouponPlus AG has already distributed over 500,000 digital coupons via its system in Switzerland. The idea behind this new digital marketing channel: Potential customers are targeted online with attractive offers to benefit from certain products or services. Since mobile coupons - stored on the smartphone - are always with them, they are not forgotten at home, unlike paper coupons. That's why they have comparatively high redemption rates, sometimes over 40 percent. Mobile coupons are convenient to use: If the "Currently, the challenge on the supplier side is to anchor the digitization of print coupons in their company. The faster and better a company succeeds in this, the greater its future competitive advantage." Urs Schmidig, CEO of CouponPlus Smartphone users who are near a store from which they have saved a coupon will receive a reminder. Mobile coupons lead to frequency increases both in stores and in online stores and bring new customers.