Retailer promotion activity increased 56.2 percent to more than 6.7 billion pages

MINNEAPOLIS, MN July 8, 2010 – Free Standing Insert (FSI) coupon activity increased 10.1 percent based on Coupons Dropped during the first six months of 2010 versus the same time period a year ago according to Marx, a Kantar Media solution.  This increase is the greatest observed during the first six months of a calendar year, surpassing the second highest growth reported in Coupons Dropped of 8.0 percent realized in the first half of 2004.  “CPG manufacturers are continuing to use FSI coupons to reach consumers in the home to deliver advertising impact, influence consumer purchase decisions, and secure retail merchandising support,” said Mark Nesbitt, President, Kantar Media Intelligence.

Marx, the industry standard for tracking FSI coupon activity, also reports that retailer promotion activity continued to grow with a 56.2 percent increase to 6.7 billion pages in the first half of 2010.  Target led retailer promotion activity based on Pages Circulated, with nine of the top 10 retailers increasing Pages Circulated during the first half of 2010 versus one year ago.  Additionally, the number of manufacturers participating in retailer promotion events increased from 135 during the first half of 2009 to 213 during the first half of 2010.

“In addition to Target’s expanded use of cooperative FSI coupon vehicles to support their retailer promotion activity, other leading retailers are expanding their use of retailer promotion events, especially within the Food, Drug, Value, and Pet Specialty channels.  One of the trends observed in response to the declining economy was consolidation of
retail shopping trips within the super center format.  The increased use of retailer promotion events within cooperative FSI coupon vehicles may be an effective retail response to combat the consolidation of trips.” said Nesbitt.

Overall FSI Activity
During the first half of 2010, more than $234 billion in consumer incentives were delivered via FSI coupons in Sunday newspapers, up 17.8 percent from the same period in 2009.  During the same six month period, more than 155 billion coupons were distributed within more than 113 billion FSI pages.  FSI coupon average Face Value achieved a new record level in the first half of 2010 at $1.51, up 7.1 percent versus the first half of 2009.  However, Average Expiration (Fuse) dropped to 8.8 weeks, down 9.0 percent versus a year ago which is the largest percent decline in Fuse for the first half of the year reported in the last five years.

                                    Source: Kantar Media

Sector Activity
The CPG sector remains the largest user of FSI pages with a 74.4 percent share, followed by Direct Response, which includes general advertising activity, and Franchise, comprised of restaurants, portrait studios, and other businesses. CPG had the largest percent increase; up 11.4 percent to more than 84.6 billion pages, while Franchise increased 2.1 percent to more than 10.0 billion pages.  Direct Response decreased number of pages 9.0 percent to 19.0 billion.

                           Source: Kantar Media

Top 10 Retailers based on Pages Circulated
Retailer promotion pages increased 56.2 percent to more than 6.7 billion pages in the first half of 2010.  While the number of retail banners remained flat, the number of active manufacturers that participated in retail promotion events increased 57.8 percent from 135 in 2009 to 213 in 2010.

Target continues to lead with more than 1.3 billion pages, up 66.9 percent versus the first half of 2009.  Dollar General had the largest actual increase based on Pages Circulated among the top 10 retailers, increasing 566.8 million to more than 1.0 billion pages to rank second during the first half of 2010. Family Dollar went from a rank of 29 in the first half of 2009 to a rank of 5 in the first half of 2010, distributing an additional 488.9 million pages for a total of 512.8 million Pages Circulated. Walgreens and PetSmart also reported large increases in Pages Circulated, up 69.4 percent and 32.7 percent, respectively. These trends reflect the overall growth of retailer promotion within traditional FSI vehicles to drive trips, transactions, and profits across channels and retail formats.

Top 10 Categories for New Product Activity
During the first half of 2010, there were 196 new products that delivered FSI coupons compared to 199 new products during the same period in 2009.  However, event dates increased from 301 during the first half to 2009 to 308 during the first half of 2010, translating into an increase in event dates per new product from 1.5 to 1.6 during the same periods.  The Snacks category led with 16 new products, followed by Alcoholic Beverages with 15 new products and Cereals with 9 new products.

CPG Non-Food vs. Food
In the first half of 2010, Non-Food categories distributed more than 92.0 billion coupons, up 10.2 percent versus the same time period in 2009, while Food categories distributed 64.0 billion coupons, representing an increase of 9.8 percent.  All areas reported increases in Coupons Dropped during this period.

Additionally, manufacturers are increasing the value of the offers that are being delivered to consumers in both the Non-Food and Food segments.  Weighted Average Face Value (WAFV) for Non-Food increased 9.1 percent to $1.87 and was combined with a 0.4 point increase in Multiple Purchase Requirements (MPR) resulting in Weighted Average Face Value Per Unit (WAFVPU) increasing 6.2 percent to $1.65.  WAFV for Food increased 1.7 percent to $0.99 and was combined with a 2.7 point increase in MPR resulting in WAFVPU remaining flat at $0.74. 

Top 10 FSI Product Types in First Half 2010 (by Coupons Dropped*)
The top 10 product types based on Coupons Dropped accounted for 39.6 percent of all FSI coupon activity during the first half of 2010.   Combination/Personal products ranked first and increased 20.8 percent to distribute more than 8.3 billion coupons. Pet Food & Treats moved to second place with a 19.6 percent increase to 7.7 billion coupons. Bar/Liquid Soap moved up into the top ten with an increase of 48.9% to 4.0 billion coupons.

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