According to the latest report from Experian Simmons, two-thirds of American households use coupons, and a vast majority of them (87 percent) use them to save money. Although 70 percent of coupon-using households still obtain their coupons from newspapers, the Internet is a growing coupon source. Over the last three years, the number of households that get their coupons online has increased by 46 percent.

Taking Simmons’ findings into account, it should come as no surprise that customers are much more likely to make a purchase when offered a coupon via email. This finding and several others were confirmed in Experian Cheetahmail’s recent white paper, The coupon report: Benchmark data and analysis for email marketers, which examined the performance of emails with coupons redeemable online and those with coupons to be printed and redeemed in-store. The businesses that participated in Experian CheetahMail’s study had a 64 percent average increase in revenue per email, as well as increases in all other transaction metrics. In addition, average order values and transaction rates increased by six percent and 48 percent respectively.

These metrics show that coupons prove to be successful in driving and creating an incremental lift in sales, but businesses have to use best practices if they want to truly experience email coupon success. Some of these email coupon best practices include:

• Targeting the right segments. Email subscribers that are involved in membership clubs, loyalty programs, and professional groups, as well as wholesale buyers tend to all have notably high responses to coupons offered via email. Make sure to include consumers that meet these criteria in your coupon-based email campaigns.
• Creating a sense of urgency and exclusivity. Email and online coupons have the unique advantage of being able to offer instant discounts through the use of codes that are redeemable at online checkout. Some customers may still take time to reach a buying decision. You can shorten this lag period by creating limited time offers that create a sense of urgency. This tactic works well for online as well as in-store coupons.
• Tailoring coupons to business cycles and needs. Sending email coupons in conjunction with the seasonality of your product line and inventory cycle is an effective way to move inventory. Data indicates that mailings announcing deeper discounts, typically of 30 percent or more, drive high performance rates when offered on top of clearance prices or aggressive sales on specific items.

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