On-line discount vouchers: the latest craze or here to stay?

September 8th, 2009 by tom | Filed under Daily News, Debt, Money Management, Recession, Retail, Saving, UK Small Business.

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According to a series of reports, the number of people in the UK who spend their time scouring the internet for “discount vouchers” has grown by close to 50% within the last year. This seems to be part of a global trend with since l. Google reporting an increase of two thirds in searches “discount vouchers” in the year up to December 2008.

With the recession at its fiercest, consumers are embracing this internet based phenomenon, that experts expect will remain long after the economic recovery. The use of on-line discount vouchers to save money on retail, food and other purchases is here to stay.

Reports conform that about 70 per cent of middle class consumers are reported to have taken advantage of money-off vouchers during the last six months, which translates to around 20 million adults in the UK.

The number of websites catering to the discount voucher trend has mushroomed during the past year, with on-line retailers paying commission on sales through the coupons, generally a few per cent of the final sale price.

Most of the forward thinking companies, who have successfully marketed the internet voucher concept, are not so inclined to attribute their success to the financial downturn that has hit the UK especially hard in the last 12 to 18 months. They hasten to point out that during the last few months, when signs of a recovery have been growing fast; demands for vouchers have been growing as well as the rates of conversions to sales.