Cutting coupons and flipping through pages of books for recipes may be becoming a thing of the past. Retailers and food marketers have been posting deals and recipes on their branded websites and are now seeing the value of reaching their consumers through sites that offer group deals and creating apps for shoppers to use in-store.
“Food marketers have a huge opportunity to connect directly with tech-savvy consumers like never before,” said Darren Seifer, NPD food and beverage analyst, in a post on Progressivegrocer.com. “With a click of the finger on a smartphone or mouse, consumers are responding to marketing communications whether they’re downloading coupons and recipes or being loyal to a name brand.”1
The NPD Group said in its report last month that as the use of social media networks increases, frequent users tend to be more loyal to name brands, because social media interaction helps marketers develop relationships with consumers.
Coupons
To support the idea that shoppers are seeking deals and resources with apps and online, the NPD Group found that coupon use from digital sources is increasing.
- Coupon apps are used by about 25 million Americans every month
- More than half of U.S. consumers surveyed are aware of Groupon with one in five consumers receive emails regularly from Groupon
Online Recipes
While 55% of households report searching for recipes online, don’t toss your cookbooks out just yet – 83% of households say that they still use books that they’ve owned for at least two years. An NPD study released on July 9 found that the use of recipes once a week or more has increased from 37 percent of households in 2005 to 42 percent in 2001.2
It’s refreshing to know that social media is keeping coupon and recipe usage mainstream!
Check out the PCI Health Buzz for Check Out with Lara Flanagan!
1 2012, May 23. Smartphone apps, Social Media Take Foothold in Grocery Shopping. Progressive Grocer. June 4, 2012. http://www.progressivegrocer.com/industry-news-trends/regional-supermarket-chains/smartphone-apps-social-media-take-foothold-grocery-shopping
2 2012, July 9. Recipes Make a Comeback as US Households Eat Meals At Home More, Reports NPD. July 13, 2012. https://www.npd.com/wps/portal/npd/us/news/pressreleases/pr_120709#.UAB-mpFhT6O