Originally Posted by annielaurie_us  The inserts in my weekend paper are real sad
in my SS and P&G I don't even have half of what is listed and my RP only has the Redbook coupon and for a restaurant that is 2 hours away  the rest of the inserts are ads. I would like to know where and how they decide what paper get what coupons. The small town or small city get trash while the big citys get the good stuff. Done blowing off steam. |
The manufacturer/brand buys coupons based on several factors:
--location/target markets
--circulation
--cost per thousand to place the insert
are just some of the things that go into decision marking
The decision on where to put coupons depends on the product's distribution and the brand's goals. If the product is not in more than 2/3 of the US then the manager may decide to just buy certain markets because it is not cost effective to buy the whole US (based on the way the coupon printers sell their space).
Unfortunately the smaller circulation papers may cost more per thousand circulated to place coupons than the larger circulation papers. So some managers may choose to place coupons in larger circulation papers where they can get the most for their spending.
Sometimes they run coupon tests to see the effectiveness of coupon price points--say 50 cents off 1 in a handful of markets versus $1.00 off 1 another handful of markets. That's why we see variation of coupon prices from market to market.
Sometimes managers are running coupons in an area to support distribution in a certain chain of stores. This happens more with new products. The chain's buyer wants to see what support the new product is getting and may even require it in order to decide to add the product to their shelves.
One good thing for consumers is when national brands are going after one another hot and heavy.
For example, Always has been launching their new Infinity pad. I noticed that there are good deals on Kotex and Stayfree as a result. They are defending their share of the market with sweetened deals for the consumer. IMO Always is spending on sampling and advertising while Kotex and Stayfree are doing a lot of promotion/coupons/store ads.
Sometimes a new product like the Always Infinity creates more new products from the competition--like when Kotex or Stayfree brings out their Infinity like product. That sets off a new round of good deals for the consumer. :)
One nice thing the internet has done for consumers is give us the ability to go get the coupons we will really use (ebay, etc.). Probably makes it harder for the brand to run coupon tests, though. :)
Re: Smartsource and P&G 1/18/09 
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