Katie’s Cards Uses Changes In Consumer Behaviour To Boost Subscriptions
Teddington, Middlesex, UK (PRWEB) June 28, 2012
The double dip recession has caused confidence to drop significantly with resulting changes in consumer behavior, leading to devastating results for some businesses. Clinton Cards have become the latest high street casualty, closing 400 stores after declining sales saw the company post a £10.7m loss in the year up to 31 July 2011, and have recently placed their ‘Birthdays Ireland’ chain into liquidation. La Senza, Game, Peacocks and Blacks have all gone bust in recent months demonstrating the current fragility of the retail sector. However, online businesses like http://www.katiescards.com are not only surviving the recession, but they are thriving on changes in consumer behavior and have seen a significant subscription rates rise in the last few months.
The recession, which began in 2008 with the collapse of Lehman Brothers that led to the ‘credit-crunch’ has radically affected consumer behaviour. Shoppers are now highly adept at seeking out good value for money, utilising a variety of techniques to secure great deals, including discount vouchers and coupons, waiting for sales to start, using price comparison websites or downgrading to a lower cost alternative. Although predictions suggest that inflation and unemployment are set to drop in 2013, many believe that the changes in consumer habits have become ingrained due to the length of the recession. The director of loyalty and insight at Sainsbury’s supermarket, Andrew Mann, explains that consumers are actually enjoying the challenge of looking for value for money;
“We see the trend of savvy shoppers as one that will continue. Our customers like the behaviour they have adopted and feel it is emotionally rewarding,”
Many other factors have contributed to changes in consumer behaviour, most notably the recent 30% UK postal stamp price increase that has forced individuals and companies who used to send printed communication through the post to look on-line for less expensive options.
http://www.katiescards.com have noticed a marked increase in subscriptions to their Ecard website since the UK stamp price hike. They believe an influencing factor is that e cards offer the recession hit consumer a convenient and cost effective way of sending greetings to loved ones without squeezing their limited budget. Also, with many people relocating to far-flung countries and the rapid growth of online communication methods, their services are looking more attractive. Katie Davies commented;
“In recent months we have seen subscriber figures double, with a sharp increase immediately after the stamp price rise. At present people don’t have as much disposable income as they used to, so they are finding new ways to save money. Sending messages via the internet has become a vital part of every day life, so sending an Ecard is n now an accepted and enjoyable activity. I don’t believe that e cards will ever replace paper greetings entirely but are a fun, entertaining and cost effective alternative.”
http://www.katiescards.com is an e card company who have been creating fun, modern, beautiful and entertaining e cards for over 6 years. They have a large range of wonderful cards suitable for all occasions, ages and tastes and charge a small membership fee in return for unlimited use of the cards. Members receive their own account from which they can manage their e card deliveries, upload and save an address book of contacts and pre-schedule cards to be delivered on a future date and send ecards via Facebook and access birthday reminders through the Katie’s Cards free Facebook app. For more details or to browse the collection, please visit katiescards.com
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