The decline in readership of the printed newspaper has also meant the decline in newspaper advertising, including the circular or free-standing insert. However, circulars still account for approximately 20 percent of newspaper advertising revenue, according to an article posted in The Wall Street Journal. And while retailers have been testing alternative means of reaching consumers, circulars still land in about 50 million homes per year.
The WSJ article goes on to state, “The problem is digital alternatives have failed to lure as many customers into stores as the weekly deluge of paper coupons… Fewer than 1% of people who read newspapers online end up clicking through to digital circulars embedded in the website… By contrast, around 80% of people who read a print newspaper look at the circulars inside.”
In fact, one major retailer restored its circular buy when digital advertising resulted in a decrease of traffic.
Print advertising, including the circular, is still a valuable medium. And some retailers are creatively making the circular work harder for them by targeting consumers by zip code cross referenced with data that determines each shopper’s status as either loyal, under-engaged, or new — data typically mined from loyalty club cards retailers have been using for years.
This level of personalized messaging can provide the relevance that today’s shoppers demand and is most effective when combined with other media such as broadcast, social, and digital. But don’t overlook the power of your in-store message to tie-in with your circular promotions and, therefore, connect with your customers.
Bacompt can provide store-location-specific tags and signs that draw shoppers to the specials promoted in your weekly circulars. More than simply offering value, we can bring the right offers to your customers using targeted data.
Contact us today to learn how you can up your game with in-store targeting.
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