Mobile grocery coupons may not be top of mind in consumers’ holiday shopping strategy, but perhaps they should be. As the holiday season approaches American shoppers start to scramble to find enough cash to make it a holiday season to remember. With all the pressure to create a memorable holiday, shoppers can put themselves in a financial debacle if they are not smart about their holiday shopping.
According to LearnVest founder and CEO, Alexa von Tobel, “People have the worst spending habits during the holidays.” She also said that 13.6 million Americans entered 2011 in debt, partly due to holiday spending habits. Mobile grocery coupons can help shoppers save on the weekly necessities and free up some holiday spending cash to avoid getting deeper into debt.
Approximately $485 billion worth of coupons — both print and mobile grocery coupons — were available in 2010, according to Yahoo’s Financially Fit. The average savings per coupon was $1.46 and one site claims that a family can find as much as $40 in savings each week by redeeming coupons. Within the weeks prior to the holidays, those mobile grocery coupons savings can add up to a couple of hundred dollars. That can make a substantial and positive impact on the holiday shopping plan.
Not much effort is required for shoppers to start building these savings. Mobile grocery coupons apps give consumers savings opportunities right at their fingertips, with very little effort. A good majority of consumers carry a mobile phone with them at all times and rarely forget it at home, unlike paper grocery coupons that often get forgotten on the kitchen counter. Introducing mobile grocery coupons into a shopping strategy can ensure that the opportunity for savings is never missed.
Major manufacturers feature coupons on their own websites as well, which is a great way for brand-loyal shoppers to find savings on their favorite holiday products. Typically, consumers can search the manufacturer’s site for a desired product and print the grocery coupons directly from the site. One advantage mobile grocery coupons have over printable coupons is that a mobile grocery coupons app will notify a user when a coupon is going to expire and will offer recommendations for savings on a product similar to the desired item.
The savings available for holiday shoppers is substantial. When the typical household budget goes haywire as the holiday draws nearer, mobile grocery coupons can help consumers stay on track and even get ahead of the spending game. With a pinch of effort to collect the coupons and a smidgen of discipline to buy necessities with coupons, a family can pull together a recipe for a successful holiday season of spending. The key is sticking with a plan and buying necessities and limiting impulse splurges.