n The Past
- Clipped out discount coupons
Vouchers started off as nothing more Promotional codes than papers that you would eliminate of ads that were typically in the paper with a set of scissors so that you might bring them to the store to redeem for a percentage off of whatever purchase you will make. Many people (possibly yourself consisted of!) still do this. However there are a lot more methods to utilize vouchers now!
In The Present
- Clipped out vouchers
- Online only coupons
- Printed in the house coupons
Now, online coupons have actually presented themselves into the mix. Rather of having to take a coupon to the store, you discover a voucher online and copy down the "voucher code". You go to an online store and get in the voucher code throughout the checkout process to claim your discount. Or, if you prefer to shop at a physical store, you can find vouchers online and print them out to bring with you! The choices have been considerably broadened for the typical voucher user.
Perhaps you are not a typical discount coupon user. Perhaps you are a coupon veteran, in which case all of this would be really fundamental for you. However the way coupons will work in the future is most likely new to you.
In The Future
- Clipped out vouchers
- Online only discount coupons
- Printed in the house discount coupons
- Coupons delivered to your mobile phone, in the shop, with neighboring items in mind
The time is not too far off when we will be able to utilize our cell phones in physical stores to get coupons and redeem them, without ever utilizing any paper or copying anything. The cell phone would be able to discover coupons for the consumer based on the products right next to him or her! That way, without having to look stuff up and bring things with you, you can identify the lowest priced product on the shelves right in front of you after taking coupons into account!
What about utilizing them? The coupon program on the cell phone could be extended so that it could put the voucher straight into the account tied to the regular buyer card.
Why would a store go through all the problem of carrying out such a complicated system just to put vouchers in the hands of their consumers when they can just hand discount coupons to them by hand if they had to? Well, because it does a lot more than just put vouchers in the hands of their customers. By keeping track of when items are picked up and put back down, and where there are stockouts and misplaced items, they can also do more than just keeping the shop stocked and in order. They can track customer habits. They can see which products are practically getting people to buy it (great deals of people choose it up and put it back down), which locations are more frequently strolled through (in case they want to do an in-store screen), or even which products never get considered, not to mention purchased. Optimizing such things can result in bigger revenues for the grocery store, and more savings for you. It's a win-win situation!
A lot more, all of this is only a few of the possibilities that such a system can supply. Coupons will end up being a lot more sophisticated than this as time advances.
Jeff Manors has been living frugally since his very first year in college. Because his family didn't have money, he needed to survive primarily off of part-time work and loans. In an attempt to be as solvent as possible, he has actually found out to utilize coupons for everything that he needs, a minimum of as far as possible.