Brand
manufacturers and bricks-and-mortar retailers used to run coupons in newspapers
and other print media to entice customers with discounts and special offers.
Some still do. However, since many people shop and read online now, the coupons
have gone digital, too.
The first
digital coupons that appeared on websites and in email resembled their
newspaper predecessors, complete with dotted borders. The latest types of
digital coupons have evolved quite a bit.
That’s Biz,
a marketing solutions company that makes coupon apps for smartphones, just
released a new system that enables restaurants and stores to post coupon offers
on a Facebook page for customers to text to their smartphones. Customers just
have to show the coupon on the phone screen when they visit the retailer. They
can also share it with friends. The system allows the merchant to put time
limits on the coupon or restrict the number of times an individual can use it,
without having to involve the store’s main point-of-sale system.
There are
many websites, such as FatWallet, that offer a wide variety of downloadable
product coupons in cooperation with manufacturers and retail chains.
Coupons.com recently began letting consumers “link” selected coupons to a registered
credit or debit card with the discount automatically applied at the point of
purchase in the store (although they can also be used for online shopping).
Some coupon
sites are experimenting with gamification as a way to attract interest and give
customers a means to earn additional discount points. No Kidding Coupons, a new
site, says its members can earn coupons for online purchases up to 99% off by
reviewing products and promoting ones they like. However, unless you register,
the site is a little cagey about what brands are participating.
