Consumers reveal effectiveness of back-to-school offers

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KidsThe age old store vs. store battle for the back-to-school dollar has been complicated by the emergence of online retail outlets. So this list of which tactics work best from the consumers themselves will help broadcasters help their clients no matter which side of the virtual fence they operate from.


The bottom line is this: consumers are looking to get the back-to-school items they need for as little cash as possible. There are, of course, a number of ways to hold the lines on the total spent, and here, from PriceGrabber, are the most popular tactics:

* 74%: free shipping
* 72%: sales
* 66%: price cuts
* 63%: coupons
* 43%: online promotions
* 28%: in-store promotions

PriceGrabber’s Graham Jones said, “Whether shopping in stores or online during this back-to-school season, consumers should leverage the multitude of money saving tools and retailer incentives that are available. We can deduce from our survey that free shipping will be a huge deciding factor when consumers purchase online. Savvy shoppers will get the most for their money by searching for coupons and actively using comparison shopping websites to ensure they are getting the best deal.”

The PriceGrabber survey also listed other consumer tactics designed to hold down costs:

* 62%: use comparison shopping websites
* 56%: shop at discount, bargain and outlet stores
* 50%: search for usable school supplies at home before buying new items
* 49%: inventory owned clothing before buying new items
* 36%: use a list to control impulse spending
* 34%: visit retailer websites to print out coupons

Jones concluded, “We aren’t at all surprised to see that survey respondents selected online and comparison shopping websites as the number one money-saving method for back-to-school purchases. With the ability to monitor prices at one’s fingertips and to shop around the clock, today’s busy and money-conscious consumers are looking to online and mobile shopping as go-to options for finding the best deals.”

RBR-TVBR observation: What you have here is an outline of what elements will be important and effective elements of an advertising campaign. There are things here that will be good for your client, no matter what type of retailer outlet it is.