Coupons/ Rebates/ Pricing

Charleston, S.C. – One-third (33%) of U.S. families are making less money as a result of job loss, moving to a part-time job and/or working at a lower-paying job.

In addition, according to three recent consumer surveys from America’s Research Group (ARG), 40% of parents are trying to save as much money as they can for their children's college education, 38% of families did not take a vacation this year of four days or longer, and 44% of parents will do most of their back-to-school apparel shopping in December when the deals are better.

Hackettstown, N.J. – Custom couponing app Photopon is releasing version 2 of its iOS app, which lets consumers select nearby deals, attach a personal photo and write a message to create a personalized coupon that can be shared through the app, email, text messages or social networking sites.

New York – Despite many forecasts of a gloomy holiday season for retailers, Deloitte is predicting an increase in consumer spending. Deloitte's 28th annual survey of holiday spending intentions and trends indicates shoppers surveyed plan to spend an average of $421 on holiday gifts this year, up from $386 last year. They also expect to buy an average of 12.9 gifts, ending a five-year decline in the number of gifts they plan to purchase.

Despite many forecasts of a gloomy holiday season for retailers, Deloitte is predicting an increase in consumer spending.

New York - Almost three-in-four Americans are holding back on spending, according to a new Bankrate.com report, with stagnant income the most frequent reason (32%), followed by the need to save more (24%) and worries about the economy (20%). Just 27% of Americans say they are not holding back spending at all.

Additional findings:

One-third (33%) of U.S. families are making less money as a result of job loss, moving to a part-time job and/or working at a lower-paying job, which may have an impact on holiday shopping.

In addition, according to three recent consumer surveys from America’s Research Group (ARG), 40% of parents are trying to save as much money as they can for their children's college education, 38% of families did not take a vacation this year of four days or longer, and 44% of parents will do most of their back-to-school apparel shopping in December when the deals are better.

Toys"R"Us has unveiled its 2013 holiday marketing plans, including a new television campaign that positions the store as the go-to destination for toys this holiday season.

The broadcast commercial, which began airing on Sunday, Oct. 20, features a group of children who think they're going on a field trip to "Meet the Trees" and end up at Toys"R"Us instead.

Los Angeles – Almost seven-in-10 (66%) shoppers feel retailers will offer better prices and discounts this year due to the current state of the economy. The new Winter Holiday Shopping Survey from PriceGrabber also shows that 21% of holiday shoppers said they started saving money before June, while the majority of survey respondents plan to start shopping for the holidays in October and November.