For many E-com-shop owners, it can be agitating when an “exclusive” coupon code gets out to the masses. If you’re trying to send a welcome offer to customers when they sign up for your newsletter or attempting to run a promotion for a select group of customers, it may seem frustrating to have those codes revealed on big coupon sites like RetailMeNot. However, before you start trying to out-smart coupon sharers, you should take a step back and look at the bigger picture. Chances are, these coupon sites are actually doing your store a big favor.

How Coupon Sites Help Your Business

Although coupon sites may make it nearly impossible to keep any coupon code “secret” or exclusive for long, there are many ways you can use them to your store’s advantage.

Positive Association: When getting into the psychology of “deal hunting” or couponing, there is no doubt that people feel good when they feel they are getting something for less than its worth. While a smart business prices items to account for coupons and discounts, customers feel like they’re getting a steal of a deal. That also works to build a relationship between the customer and your brand.

Large-Scale Exposure: If you have a sale going that gets picked up by a major coupon site, it could very well get featured on the front page or even in the site’s newsletter–potentially reaching thousands of savvy shoppers. What’s more, when customers specifically search out coupons for a product, you get to catch them at the bottom of the funnel when they’re ready to buy.

Up-Sell and Cross-Sell: If you learn how to design your coupon promotions correctly, you can up-sell and cross-sell everyone who comes to your site and tries to use the coupon offer.

Grow Your Customer Base: If your offer is appealing enough to attract a new customer, that gives you the opportunity to turn them into a repeat buyer. That’s why many businesses opt for impressive coupons that boost sales but don’t necessarily turn a huge profit. If you do things right, you’ll profit in the long-term with great service, shipping, and quality.

Track Your Shoppers: If you have the analytics in place, you can track how many people use a specific coupon and better understand their spending habits.

As you can see, aside from free advertising, coupons also produce measurable results that you can use to further improve your business. With time, strategic coupon offers can grow your customer base and, through up-sells and cross-sells, even turn a huge profit.

Make The Most of Coupons

There’s no doubt about it: coupons are part of most people’s every day shopping. With everyone trying to save money whenever they can, browser apps like Honey and the plethora of coupon websites have made deal shopping easier than ever before. And, today’s savvy shoppers have come to expect it.

RetailMeNot even reports that an astonishing 96% of shoppers use coupons. Other sources agree, estimating that at least 90% of buyers look for discounts when making purchases. That adds up to more than 25 million Americans using couponing apps on at least a monthly basis. Plus, digital coupon use is only expected to grow. With that in mind, it’s important your business is going the extra mile to make the most of what these coupon sites have to offer.

If you really want to reap the benefits coupon websites can provide, it’s worth putting the time in to build a coupon strategy for your business. In simple terms, all you need to do is create special codes with the intention of sharing them on coupon websites yourself.

Doing so allows you to track how many buyers these coupon sites are actually promoting for your business. You can also think more specifically about the type of audience these sites may be bringing in, and plan up-sell and cross-sell opportunities accordingly. With that, your business will begin seeing the benefits in no time.