Marketing Forecast from Ad-ology

The Second Annual Benchmark Survey on Consumer Coupon Behavior, conducted by HarrisInteractive for RetailMeNot, found that consumers are increasingly defining their spending habits by whether or not retailers offer coupons. According to the new survey, 30% of online adults will not make a purchase at an online store if they can’t find a coupon for that store, up from 27% in 2008. The survey also revealed that coupon use in the current economic environment is on the rise across nearly all demographics, but is highest among the employed and educated (college graduated).

As the U.S. economy suffered in 2008, the environment provided an opportunity for some online retailers to focus on gaining market share while other retailers struggled. For many, that concentration proved successful: according to a recent survey from Shop.org, one-third of online retailers (33%) said they increased market share during the downturn. As the economy begins to stabilize and consumer confidence grows, online retailers are hopeful for the future with guarded optimism. Four out of five online retailers (60%) believe the U.S economy will improve within the next year, and half (50%) think their web business will actually fare better than expected in the next 12 months.

More consumers feel confident that the economy will improve before the end of 2010 and this new attitude will lead investors back into the market. What may be different this time is that investors plan to come into the market armed with more information about where they want to put their money. This trend means that financial marketers from banks to brokers have a chance to win new customers by using educational ad campaigns.

Fewer consumers expect to reduce their spending on back-to-school items compared to last year, although economic concerns will continue to weigh on their shopping plans, according to a new survey by Deloitte. The number of people on the look out for value is up, as 74% plan to buy more items on sale.

Industry professionals are criticizing the results from a recent Harris Interactive poll. The poll found that 66% of Americans say ad agencies bear some of the blame for the recent economic turmoil.

“…in a recession ‘value’ takes on a different meaning in the eyes of the client,” writes sales consultant Paul Collins in a recent article for Rain Today. Collins presents eight tips to boost your business’s value during this rough economic time.