Digital coupons have been around almost as long as the internet itself. Online shoppers know what they want - deals and discounts. Ninety-two percent of shoppers say they are “always” looking for deals when shopping online, according to a survey from Hawk Incentives. And furthermore, coupons and discounts are cited as the number two reason why people buy specific products online, after free shipping.
So you’re sold on offering coupons as a part of your product. Great! Adding digital coupons to a site or product and monetizing content through coupon affiliate programs has historically been somewhat challenging for publishers, app developers, or other businesses that don’t have the resources to include a wide range of coupons. Finding the right mix and number of merchants to monetize your content in a meaningful way can feel impossible for a couple of reasons.
Challenge: Applying to individual merchants takes time
The first challenge is getting accepted to individual merchant affiliate programs. On top of the daily challenge of managing your own site or product, finding relevant merchants and then attempting to become accepted into their affiliate program can be even more difficult. It takes time and dedication, and applying to merchant affiliate programs is a very manual, resource-intensive process. And, there’s always the chance your application is rejected… over and over and over.
Challenge: Finding valid coupons and keeping offers up to date is challenging
The second challenge is making sure to have recent, valid coupons. Almost nothing is as frustrating to an online shopper than trying to use a coupon code that doesn’t work. How do you ensure you’re only displaying working coupon codes to guarantee a great user experience for your customers?
How digital coupons can enhance your business
A robust digital coupon feature can give your site/product credibility as a trusted shopping companion, increasing your customer loyalty, and - not to mention - increasing your monetization from affiliate marketing programs to boot. By including a wide-ranging assortment of digital coupons from many merchants, and by offering valid, relevant coupons that actually work, your site or product can become a trusted shopping partner for your customers.
Done right, digital coupons should be a powerful conversion magnet, with well-timed, valid offers shown to users when it matters most in their shopping journey - at the beginning when they’re deciding where to shop AND at the end when it’s time to apply coupons.
A successful digital coupon affiliate program benefits the customer by helping them find the valid coupon deals they want, and discovering and applying them as they are shopping online.
In turn, digital coupons benefit your business by increasing the e-commerce sales originating from your site - thus, increasing your revenue from affiliate marketing programs.
Ideas for incorporating digital coupon program to your offering
It’s critical to lean on a dependable digital coupon provider with accurate information, ensuring your customers will always see the most relevant and valid deals. The last thing you want to do is alienate your customers by showing outdated or otherwise invalid coupon codes.
Using a reliable digital coupon platform can also help you behind-the-scenes. It removes the onus of manual affiliate program applications. Instead, you’ll be able to almost immediately tap into affiliate coupons and offers from thousands of online stores.
Not sure how a digital coupon program can help your customer-facing product or offering? Here’s some ideas:
- If you cover a particular niche, you can create a custom list of stores with relevant products & their offers.
- If your business is more seasonal and demand for related products varies, create a seasonal “shopping portal” only showing stores with those products at certain times and highlight the available deals.
- If you do product reviews, include the stores where those products can be purchased and showcase corresponding coupons.
- If your site is considered an “influencer” which recommends products to end-users, curate the offers and coupons you show to your end users.
- If you’re a general-interest site, create a shopping page with notable stores & corresponding offers and then encourage your customers to start their shopping journeys here.
- If you’re a bank / financial services / financial app, align your business with your customers’ financial wellness by creating a shopping site with deals from popular stores. You could even consider diverting some of your affiliate revenue earned from such a site, back to your customers in the form of cashback rewards to engender more loyalty to your company.
There really is no limit to how you can enhance your offering to your customers using a digital coupon affiliate program. People love saving money. If you can create an aggregated “one stop shop” for them to be able to see trusted, valid, accurate deals at the stores they already shop from everyday, then they’ll keep coming back to your site or product to begin their online shopping trips. (Especially if you give them some type of reward as noted above.)
It all adds up to happier customers, more loyalty for your site, and ultimately more revenue for your business.
