Survey – How popular are mobile coupons?

Overall, fewer consumers may prefer mobile coupons than many retailers expect.

According to a survey of 4,220 consumers by financial savings site The Smart Wallet, less than half of respondents prefer to search for coupons and rebates online with a phone. Men (43%) are slightly more likely to favor mobile coupons than women (41%).

Men (13%) are also more likely than women (10%) to prefer using a computer to search for coupons and rebates online. However, women have higher rates than men for preferring mailers (18% vs. 17%) and having no preference at all (31% vs. 27%).

Breaking preference for mobile coupons down by age group, it is perhaps not surprising younger generations are far more likely than older generations to show preference for mobile coupons. Seventy-five percent of 18-24-year-olds prefer to redeem coupons and rebates with a phone. This figure drops to 70% of 25-to-34-year-olds and 56% of 35-to-44-year-olds.

The mid-40s (solidly into the Gen X demographic) seem to be the dividing point of mobile coupon preference – only 39% of respondents in the 45-to-54 age bracket prefer mobile coupons. That drops to 29% of 55-to-64-year-olds and 18% of respondents 65 and older.

Generally speaking, the older a respondent is, the more likely they are to either prefer printing out online coupons or to have no preference. One interesting exception is that more 18-to-24-year-olds (15%) prefer printouts than 25-to-34-year-olds (10%).