In 2022, the U.S. digital coupons market was estimated to be $150.8 billion, and expected to grow by 18.5% over the next five years. Changing consumer preferences, new technologies and a shifting digital landscape are driving rapid growth and innovation in this market.
Digital coupons are delivered through retailers, on coupon platforms and savings apps. As a result of this growth rate, it comes as no surprise that other industries with high consumer engagement seek ways to participate.
In addition to having first-party shopping data from roughly 200 million consumers, U.S. consumer banks have strong engagement: 66% of their customers open their apps at least once each week and often visit their banks’ rewards programs. These programs are designed to drive card spend by offering deals from major retailers. However, there is one major limitation. The offers are not funded by brands or applied to specific SKUs.
Moreover, these deals don’t include everyday purchases such as groceries, primarily because banks cannot track item-level spending, limiting offers to percentages off the entire basket. Thus, consumer packaged goods (CPG) brands have been locked out of this valuable market opportunity.
It was always our ultimate goal to provide 100% attribution from CPG ad impression to in-store purchase, and then price it so the media buyer only pays when the shopper purchases the product. Our journey took years of trials and several challenges to overcome. In the end, we overachieved through a series of unexpected triumphs.
Companies such as Snipp Interactive have worked with CPG brands for more than a decade to drive shopper acquisition, retention and engagement. There are tools for tracking proof of purchases made in-store. The detailed basket data that is captured by these platforms is a critical value add.
We couldn’t help but wonder, after years of supporting customers’ campaigns when placed in third-party audiences, how could it be made better? While 100% attribution is essential, brands also wanted to reach all types of shoppers, not just coupon seekers. A fortuitous and unique relationship between Snipp management and several tier-one U.S. consumer banks came into play. What if we combined core technical capabilities with financial institutions’ massive and loyal cardholder base? All the pieces fell into place. There is a mountain of first-party shopping data, an engaged and untapped user base, a trusted and secure environment, and a broad targetable demographic and psychographic audience that no CPG was ever able to reach.
After several decades creating and deploying innovative digital media and loyalty products, you learn that the dogs don’t always eat the dog food, no matter how good the chef. Thankfully we partnered with banks, and the effort proved consumers were indeed hungry for the offers. In March 2024, Snipp’s new payments media network launched to 70 million active and loyal shoppers.
Solutions like these do not only provide access to a massive and loyal cardholder base. They also offer a secure and trusted environment for consumers. By combining cutting-edge technology with a broad range of data, we have paved the way for the next era of shopper acquisition, engagement and attribution.
About the Author
Tom J. Burgess, president, Snipp Media, is a serial entrepreneur and innovator with a career spanning more than 20 years focused on advertising, digital media technology, data and loyalty. He has been granted multiple patents for his pioneering work in these fields. Burgess is an active board member and advisor with a focus on sales acceleration, guerrilla marketing, culture management, corporate development and investor relations.
