FT. LAUDERDALE, FL -- (Marketwire) -- 09/08/09 --

CORE NEWS FACTS:

• A survey commissioned by Coupon Craze and conducted by Harris Interactive polled 2,022 adults 18+ within the United States to get an in-depth look at the spending and saving habits of online shoppers.
• The data reveals that despite being educated and affluent, the vast majority of coupon users may be getting ripped off by using faulty or expired coupons.
• Coupon Craze offers tips and tricks to help online shoppers save precious time and money by avoiding encounters with faulty or expired coupons.

SURVEY FINDINGS:

Who is shopping online?

• Adults with a higher education level are more likely to shop online -- 94% of those with a college degree or more shop online, while only 83% of those who have a high school degree or less shop online.
• Adults with a household income of $75K or more are more likely to shop online than those who have a total household income of less than $35K (93% vs. 82% respectively).

What are consumers buying with coupons?

• 94% of all adults have used a coupon to make a purchase.
• Although at 88% groceries are the number one item coupon users have used them for, coupon users are also using them to buy health/beauty items (63%), clothing (54%), electronics (46%), gifts (43%) and travel related items (32%).

How are shoppers still missing out on savings?

• 95% of shoppers who have used a print and/or printable coupon have had an encounter with an expired or invalid coupon, yet nearly three-fourths of this population (72%) will at least sometimes continue with their purchase despite not being able to use the coupon.
• 94% of online shoppers have had an expired or invalid online coupon code, yet over half of this population (57%) will at least sometimes continue with their purchase despite not being able to use the coupon code.
• Purchasing items at full price despite attempts to save money encourages the distribution of faulty coupons, which not only wastes consumers' time and money, but also leads to frustration that can unjustly and negatively affect online retailers.

How can consumers find reliable coupons?

• Tip #1: Use online coupons instead of printable coupons. If you do come across an expired or faulty coupon, you are more likely to find a replacement coupon online and end up saving that money than if you are at the store in a checkout line.
• Tip #2: Make sure the discount is applied to your total before you make the purchase -- a discount will NEVER appear after you have purchased an item.
• Tip #3: Avoid using sites that let users post coupons because the chances are much higher that the coupons will be faulty or expired. Instead use sites like Coupon Craze which ONLY post coupons that are approved by the merchant.

SURVEY METHODOLOGY

• This survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Interactive on behalf of Coupon Craze from August 6 - 10, 2009 via the QuickQuerySM online omnibus service among 2,022 U.S. adults age 18+.
• Results were weighted to be representative of the U.S. adult population on the basis of age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, region and household income. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents' propensity to be online.
• Results were also weighted as needed to reflect the composition of the U.S. online adult population using targets on the basis of Internet usage (hours per week) and connection type as well as by age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, region and household income.
• This online survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated. For complete survey methodology and full survey results please make a request here.

ABOUT COUPON CRAZE

• Founded in 2000, Coupon Craze is a free, online consumer resource that allows shoppers to take advantage of double-digit savings by providing the most reliable and up-to-date database of free coupon codes from more than 9,000 online retailers.
• Coupon Craze only posts codes approved by retailers and is updated daily to avoid frustration and cart abandonment at checkout.
• Coupon Craze empowers savvy, value-conscious shoppers to never leave the promo code box empty when shopping online.

LINKS:

Please use this link to access Coupon Craze

PRE-APPROVED QUOTE FROM COUPON CRAZE, CEO, CHRISTIAN GORDUN

• "I was shocked to learn that so many coupon users move forward with a purchase regardless of an expired or faulty coupon. At Coupon Craze we update our site daily. We strive to provide the most reliable and up-to-date database of coupons to help keep a healthy relationship between consumers and retailers because faulty coupons inevitably hurt both parties."

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