Americans among the most frugal shoppers and deal hunters, says survey

US-based digital coupon website RetailMeNot.com has released an initial set of data from its first international survey measuring the couponing and shopping behaviours of consumers in 11 countries around the world. The survey, conducted with Ipsos Public Affairs which interviewed more than 10,000 respondents, included consumers in the US, Canada, UK, France, Germany, Netherlands, Italy, Sweden, India, Australia and China.

Compared with the European and BRIC shoppers surveyed, Americans are among the most frugal shoppers and deal hunters. The majority of Americans (53%) said they value brands that offer coupons because coupons help them buy the things they want or need. Coupons are valued similarly by 52% of consumers surveyed in Canada, 50% in Great Britain, 48% in Germany, 47% in India and 31% in China.

More than half of shoppers surveyed in the US and France (56%) admit that a deal, discount or sale influences their purchase decision versus 50% of consumers surveyed in India and only 36% in China. Nearly half (48%) of consumers in the United States surveyed said that they use coupons proudly as a symbol of their savvy shopping skills.

US consumers (20%) seem less interested in buying expensive brand-name items and prefer cheaper non-branded products (35%) versus high rollers in India (52%) who prefer branded items even if they cost more. Nearly half of U.S. shoppers (47%) choose to shop online versus in-store for the same product so they can easily compare prices at different retailers and because they can access stores that they don’t live near. The inverse is true in China, with only 15% saying that this would be a reason to choose to shop online.

Consumers surveyed in the US and India (76%) rank the highest among international shoppers who think saving is important, with Australia (73%) and Canada (71%) trailing close behind. Only 15% of consumers surveyed in Sweden think that looking for opportunities to save money every day is very important.