Procter & Gamble, General Mills and Unilever were the top FSI coupon advertisers last year, as Americans continued their love affair with clipping coupons.
In 2004, 251 billion coupons were distributed within newspaper FSIs, a 7.7% increase over 2003. And, more than 850 FSI coupons were issued for every U.S. citizen with the potential for savings of close to $1,000 per person, according to the annual Marx FSI Trend Report from TNS Media Intelligence and Marx Promotion Intelligence.
Consumer packaged goods manufacturers remain the largest users of FSI coupons, accounting for two-thirds of all FSI page activity and the majority of FSI coupons distributed, the report said.
The report also found that over the past five years, couponing for non-food products such as household items and health and beauty aids has increased significantly and now surpasses couponing for food products. Nine of the top 10 couponing brands in 2004 were non-food items, a trend led by a surge of new product introductions within the oral care, cosmetic and household cleaning categories.
Overall the top 20 packaged goods companies accounted for nearly 60% of all coupons distributed. Following are the top 10:
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| *Coupons Distributed equals the actual number of coupons distributed in FSI inserts for manufacturer’s brands. |
Trends that impacted the study included the continued expansion of P&G’s BrandSaver newspaper insert, now in its third year. Other trends include larger multi-brand coupon events, retail-driven co-marketing promotions; the influence of diet trends from both food manufacturers and restaurants and high-value coupons for non-traditional offerings, such as coffee makers and electric shavers.
“FSI coupons traditionally account for the majority of all couponing in the U.S.,” said Mark Nesbitt, COO at Marx Promotion Intelligence/TNS Media Intelligence. “We are continuing to see an increase in the number of FSI coupons distributed as coupons remain a critical piece of a brand’s overall marketing campaign.”
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