The state of printed promotions

European Shopper Survey
This survey seeks to identify retail consumer trends in Europe. The findings focus on the consequences and benefits of shifting from printed promotions to digital for shoppers. This knowledge can enable retailers to make more informed decisions based on real-world feedback.
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Key takeaways

This annual report seeks to identify retail consumer trends across European markets. This year we look into how shoppers would react if retailers stopped distributing printed promotions and the implications for digital alternatives in the market.
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Printed promotions are still deeply embedded in shopper behavior
Retailers should address specific benefits and concerns when switching to digital
Retailers should consider what channels they use to communicate promotions
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There is a strong emotional aspect to the usage of printed promotions
Shoppers mainly want to hear about price and promotions from retailers
Shoppers prefer moving to a familiar format if the use of print is minimized

Printed catalogs and leaflets are still commonly used by shoppers

A tried-and-true format

Printed promotions have been used for a long time by retailers around the world to easily display promotions and discounts in a curated, inspiring way. Despite the growing shift from offline to digital channels by retailers, the results show that today's shoppers still have printed catalogs and leaflets deeply rooted in their shopping journey.
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How often do shoppers use printed catalogs and leaflets?
Never
Less often
A couple of times a month
A couple of times a week
Daily
10%
18%
25%
39%
9%

Shoppers across Europe would miss the promotions if retailers stopped printing

An emotional connection to the format

Aside from Denmark, shoppers from all countries state they would miss the printed catalogs and leaflets if they were gone. There seems to be an inherent emotional connection to the printed promotion format for more than half of all shoppers - either due to tradition, culture, habits or something else.
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How much the surveyed countries agree with the statement:
"I would miss printed promotions if they were no longer there."

If there was no print, shoppers would use digital channels more

A transition to a familiar format

The findings show that shoppers envision digital catalogs and leaflets as the easiest or most intuitive transition away from their printed counter-part. This further underlines the value shoppers see in the format, and also shows that there is a gap in the market to offer a similar experience online, other than "just" a digital version of the printed promotion.
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Impact on the browsing activity of shoppers if printed catalogs or leaflets were not an option
Digital catalogs and leaflets
+36%
Websites
+28%
Search engines
+26%
In-store
+21%
Apps
+16%
Word of mouth/talking with family and friends
+9%
Social media
-3%
Digital catalogs and leaflets
+36%
Websites
+28%
Search engines
+26%
In-store
+21%
Apps
+16%
Word of mouth/talking with family and friends
+9%
Social media
-3%

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The survey is designed in collaboration between Epinion and iPaper.

Results are based on an online panel survey across eight countries; Denmark, Spain, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, France, Poland and Hungary. A total of approx. 7,000 interviews were collected in June 2022. Data is weighted based on each country’s contribution to the total for this survey, and representative distributions for gender, age and region are ensured. Data quality checks have been performed and validated by Epinion.
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