Have you ever thought about starting a coupon or daily deal site? Making and saving money with coupons can be quite profitable when you use them wisely. In fact, it’s the universal appeal of getting a good deal that makes coupons so important … and used in just about every business imaginable.
Consider the various applications for coupons. Everything from product discounts to enticing visitors to subscribe, or as a way to generate social buzz’ for your business and drive traffic to your website. For example, there are numerous companies that offer coupons to a specific group of people, such as Discounts for Teachers, or coupons for specific restaurants, and so on.
The benefits of reaching new customers, and even bringing back past customers to make new purchases can make all the difference between an underperforming campaign and a profitable one.
Everybody loves a deal, and if you’re offering a limited time discount you’ll see higher conversion ratios. The psychological aspect of scarcity is part of the sales mechanism behind why coupons are so effective.
When looking at various websites that successfully use coupons and daily deals, a few stand out from the rest. Larger sites like Groupon and RetailMeNot are quite popular coupon models, and you also have daily deal sites like SlickDeals.net and FatWallet.com which are great for coupon bargain hunters.
Consider that you want to give customers options, but not too many. As an example, look at InternetChoice.org which breaks down online internet service providers, displaying the best options and coverage areas for your local area. Just think of the products or services in your business that you could likewise be offering a discount on.
Whether you are offering a ‘buy one get one free’ style offer, or time sensitive as in ‘for the next 48 hours only’, you can set the terms and conditions of your coupons and make different types. Afterwards, you can split test them with different products to see which ones will perform the best over time.
A few key points to remember when couponing:
1.) Watch your statistics. Does the return on investment work for the time the coupon is active? If you set your price points right, you can even forego some front-end profits to eventually gain back-end profits for long-term brand awareness.
2.) Are you collecting customer data? Coupons are often used as incentives for signing up and subscribing to the mailing list. Use this strategy whenever possible on your homepage and as pop-up coupons when new visitors arrive on your website.
3.) Think about creating customer loyalty promotions. Those who make up your user base should be appreciated from time to time … and this helps keep customers and business owners connected.
4.) How easy is it for your customer to redeem their coupon? If you’re making them jump through hoops, it might be a big turn-off.
The social sharing power you can create with coupons can bring your business to new heights. If you’ve ever bought a product and was excited enough about it that you told your family and friends … or even a complete stranger? Then you might realize why coupons need to be part of your daily strategy.
Author bio: Sam Jones is a digital marketing expert, social media and branding consultant and guest blogger for various publications, including Business2Community, Inbound.org and TestPrepPlace.com. In her free time, Sam is an avid traveler, foodie and lover of all things technology. She’s also a fitness fanatic (in the making).
