Coupon-Clicking Replaces Clipping

On March 13, AOL launched an online service for paperless coupons and simultaneously announced that The Kroger Co. was the first retail partner to join the program. General Mills, Kimberly-Clark and Kraft were the first consumer-product-goods manufacturers to participate with coupons for their brands.

At Shortcuts.com, the AOL-hosted Web site, consumers set up an account using their loyalty card from any Kroger Co. grocery store. Next, shoppers can simply search the online coupon service by brand, product or category and click on the grocery coupons they want to add to their loyalty account. When they are shopping in the store, the coupon discounts are automatically applied to their purchases when the loyalty card is scanned at checkout.

For those shoppers who require a paper list for grocery shopping, Shortcuts allows them to print a list of the “clicked” coupons. Additionally, users can access the Web site to review their loyalty-card savings-to-date and their remaining balance of coupon values.

In a prepared statement, Ken Fenyo, VP, corporate loyalty, The Kroger Co., stated, “We’re always looking for new and innovative ways to build customer loyalty and saw the Shortcuts program as another way of helping us to do so.”

Another advantage is that online coupons reinforce sustainable practices by eliminating the need for paper coupons and the energy consumed in processing and transporting the paper.