Here’s a link for my US-based readers: Huge collection of online Coupons here!
There’s a good selection including coupons for Amazon and Disney.
Who knows, I may take advantage of the really
weak dollar today and get some stuff from the U.S.
So, why do retailers use coupons anyway? Well, the main reason is that they encourage
users to try out their products (by reducing trial costs) on the basis that it’s easier
to encourage repeat sales than new purchases. Obviously there’s an opportunity cost
in issuing the coupon, but this is far outweighed by the benefit of attaining a lifetime
customer. The other benefit to a retailer is that coupon usage is easily measurable
and can help guage the performance of a marketing scheme. Compare this to TV advertising
where it’s very difficult to attribute a purchase decision to the media consumption
pattern a user exhibits.