With the advancement of technology, a variety of coupons are being born, there are food coupons, flight coupons, and the most popular ones, recharge coupons.Basically you name it, and there’s a coupon for that.
A coupon is a piece of paper, a number, or anything that’s unique to a customer and it gets him a specific discount or special privilege with the product. (I’m pretty sure you knew about that!)
It’s a marketing strategy that helps companies get more customers for themselves, and they might at times accept going through a bit of loss to acquire a longer-term customer.
The coupon you use today do have quite a bit of history, you wouldn’t believe if I told you how back they date to, well they’re older than your grandparents, and their grandparents so as to say.
Benefits of Discount Coupons in this Age of Online Shop
The first coupon came around in 1886, and I believe you’re well acquainted with the founding company, yeah it was Cola-Cola, one of the world’s first Soft-drink companies.
Credit: marketbasketfoods
It was a marketing strategy that worked so well that it’s still in use today after 130 long years! In fact numbers indicate that in 9 years, that’s from 1894 to 1913, more than 8500000 cans of “free” coca colas were distributed, all thanks to the coupons!
Not just the US, even Australians started using this strategy when a company started promoting coupons on the back of shopping bills! There was just no doubt that this thing was gonna work, and so it did.
And here’s another fact for you, even though the small 100-200Rs discounts might not seem a lot to you, just in 2002 the American market used almost 4BILLION$ of coupons!
Trust me that’s a big number, and for a 130 year old marketing strategy, I’d say it works like a charm.
Well, there isn’t just one type of coupon now is there? Let me list some of the most popular ones out for you.
Recharge Coupons:- This being the 21st century, recharges are everyone’s needs, it’s almost like a basic need of a livelihood, so no doubt it’s one of the most popular forms of coupons. I see you’re excited? Would you mind if I throw you a platform where you can grab the evergreen, always fresh Airtel Offers? (The bonus I was talking about!)
Food Coupons:- With the advent of food chains like KFC and Yo Chine, McDonaldz and what not, the other basic need of humans surfaced itself, “food”! And who could say no to “food coupons”, right? It’s almost as if someone’s offering you a treat, now who can say no to free food,right?
Credit: simplisticallyliving
Delivery methods:-
In case you don’t already know, well there are quite a number of ways for companies distribute coupons. The Internet is obviously the most popular method (to deliver anything, not just coupons as a matter of fact!).
Paper coupons are another popular method to spread the way around.
Anyway bottom line being, coupons are important, they make shopping easier and pocket-friendly, they get companies customers, and customers the products they’re looking for, so it’s kind of a mutual benefit thing.
Limitations:-
Most of the coupons come with an expiry date / limitations, it acts as a leverage for the companies over the customers. For eg. flight coupons come with specific travel dates, food coupons come with specific day-limitations etc.
It makes sure that the customers buy the products exactly when the companies want them to buy the products.
Giving a coupon without limitations doesn’t hold any guarantee that it would be used by the customer, but when it comes with a limitation that guarantee is provided and hence it’s a marketing strategy within a marketing strategy.
So bottom-line, Coupons are great, do use them.