This holiday season the keyword is incentives. Most consumers aren’t frivolously spending their money; they’re cutting back and searching for the best deals. If you want to be the retailer that they choose, you’d better consider incentives. This statement might sound forward, however the statistics don’t lie. Let’s look at some incentives that consumers are searching for before making a purchase.

Coupons are a big hit and they are becoming more popular. According to comScore, a global internet information provider, 62% of consumers are using coupons to help cut back on their shopping expenses. A survey by eMarketer, a market research company, shows that 59% of consumers will be using coupons to decrease their shopping expenses. Surprisingly enough, wealthy consumers, those that make $100,000 plus a year are turning to coupons. According to a survey by comScore, coupon site visits by the wealthy increased by 37% compared to this same period last year. Here’s a hint, if you have an ecommerce site, coupons are a definite plus and consumers will be looking for you.

Consumers are also motivated by free shipping. If I’ve heard it once I’ve heard it twice, “If a site doesn’t offer free shipping, I’ll find a site that does.” If you don’t believe me check the statistics. According to a survey by comScore, 72% of consumers said, “If an online retailer charged them for shipping they would search for an online retailer that offered free shipping.” Now more than ever before consumers are becoming more savvy. If a competitor is offering the same product with free shipping, I’d bet money that you’re going to lose the sale if you’re not offering the same.

Sales and deals are being sought out by consumers. Everyone loves a discount. According to a survey by e-Marketer, 40% of consumers will be looking for sales and 24% will be looking for deals in order to lower their shopping expenses. Why do you think Black Friday is such a busy shopping day, not to mention Cyber Monday which follows a few days later?

Incentives are the key this year. More and more consumers are comparison shopping and not just buying items on the first site they see. Comparison shopping sites are seeing an increase in traffic and more competitors are allocating their advertising budget towards online spending. If a retailer wants to be competitive this year, they need to have an incentive, even if it’s not coupons, free shipping or big sales, there needs to be an offer that tells the consumer they are getting the best deals on a particular site.

It’s a fact that we are dealing with tough economic conditions which are showing little sign of short term improvement. We are all negatively affected in certain ways, and if you watch the news on a regular basis you may be even more skeptical.

As marketers, we need to be creative and continue to find ways to provide the positive results our clients are expecting. The initial reaction we have in tough economic times is to reduce or eliminate marketing budget, but drastic changes may not be the right decision in many cases. In fact, companies that continue to maintain an adequate marketing presence during tough economic times stand to benefit in a number of ways.

-Less competition: many companies will lower or eliminate budgets during tough economic cycles, which allows your marketing message to stand out better. Less competitors means more exposure to prospects/clients, and your branding impact should improve.

-Pricing: This is simple “supply & demand” – less buyers typically means more favorable pricing from vendors for ad space.

-Market Share: since your competition level is lower, you have a better chance of growing your market share – in most industries/verticals consumers are still consuming, and the customers you acquire now may stay with you for the long term.

A couple more important points:

Be creative with your marketing approach and focus on your current customers – offer a rewards program, discounts/special offers, and distribute a newsletter. Be sure not to ignore your base, especially in these tough times.

A strong value proposition is also vital to maintaining your customers during tough times, since we are all looking at ways to “tighten our belts”. If your product or service delivers great value, consumers will likely find a way to afford it.

The time has finally arrived. MySpace, the social media phenomenon, launched its self-serve advertising platform last month. With an overwhelming 78% share of the top searched terms on the internet, according to Hitwise, I say, it is about time. The big question now is, “Can MySpace monetize from its immense popularity?”

MyAds lets marketers quickly and easily create ads and serve them on MySpace, potentially reaching millions of customers. Just like any typical pay-per-click program, MyAds allows users to create an ad, select a target audience, choose a budget, and even track your results. 

Similar to Facebook Ads, MyAds lets advertisers tap into the MySpace network based on interest, demographics and location. MyAds currently allows display ads only.  Create an ad with pre-built templates and Flash tools or upload your own. You can choose between 728×90 or 300×250 ad unit. Facebook only allows text ads. MyAds operates on a cpc basis, while Facebook gives the option of cpc or cpm. There is no activation fee; however there is a minimum budget of $25 and a minimum cpc of $.25. Advanced hypertargeting technology is another feature that sets the two social media giants apart. MySpace builds out a profile for each user based on what they do on MySpace over time. With 1200 different ways to categorize each user; advertisers can target very specific groups with particular interests in a geo-targeted area. Facebook’s targeting capabilities are limited to what information the user actually enters.

There is no doubt that users are familiar with MySpace and spend a lot of time there. Now that advertisers have the option to reach this expansive network, MySpace is experiencing dramatic results with average daily revenue of $140,000 – $180,000, all within 3 weeks of launching! According to a recent article in TechCrunch, this advertising platform is poised to be a $50 million a month business. MySpace CEO, Chris DeWolfe believes this will be a significant revenue source. Some even estimate that MySpace revenues for the fiscal year ending in June 2009 will reach $1 billion. So, the question remains, can MySpace continue to capitalize on its popularity and the massive audience it attracts by monetizing its success?…only time will time.