Woke up to a BBB email in my inbox with a 20% coupon.
I could go to the “bag a week thread” with all the coupons I have. It would probably help my household clutter if they did discontinue them.
JC Penney’s tried to eliminate coupons and sales. That didn’t last long.
If BBB tries to eliminate their coupons (does anyone actually buy anything there without one?), it won’t last long either, unless they drastically cut their prices by more that the 20%. Either they’ll bring back the coupons or they’ll go out of business.
JC Penney’s really was a marketing disaster. Every woman on the planet who shopped there knew it would fall flat.
Remember, if you forget your coupons at BBB you can bring your receipt in with a coupon and they will give you an adjustment. I do it all of the time.
I usually carry several coupons in my car, but sometimes I forget to replace them when I run out.
I shop there a good bit and ALWAYS with coupons. They have plenty of lower priced competition (Home Goods, Costco, Amazon) which I would go to first if they discontinue the coupons. I would not pay for a BBB membership.
I haven’t shopped at JC Penney since they discontinued coupons. Even when they brought them back I was still angry at the company for comments that the CEO at the time made basically calling anyone who thought the coupons were a good deal was an idiot. Well, those idiots have pretty much put JCP out of business now. Our local store is a ghost town and had to lay off a large number of employees due to the lack of business (which coincidentally started around the time the coupons were taken away). It doesn’t take long to get out of the habit of shopping at a certain store. I don’t ignore Penney’s by conscious choice. It’s more that once I got used to looking elsewhere I forgot they existed. BBB could fall to the same fate if they were to get rid of coupons. Let’s hope they did not inherit the same CEO that JCP had.
BBB needs to realize “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Why shake up the one novel thing that has set BBB apart from the myriad of other sources for the same products (Amazon, Target, Walmart…all of which have a very large online presence with massive selections and convenient shipping right to your door?)
The coupons bring the inflated BBB prices down to normal market prices…with the advantage of being able to get your product same-day (i.e. no shipping wait).
But if I don’t need it same-day, the web is usually cheaper. I wouldn’t pay $29 for something I might not use all year. I’d pay it if I needed an expensive BBB item THAT DAY that made the $29 worth it for a 20% discount. But that would have to be a pretty expensive product (I don’t feel like doing the math).
“BBB needs to realize “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.””
Obviously, they do think things are broken and the market agrees. BBBY is off 25% over the past 12 months. Getting rid of the coupons are requiring some kind of membership might not be the answer but what they are doing now doesn’t seem to be working either.
If I was management, I’d still issue coupons but I’d put a firm expiration date on it and try some kind of reward program for frequent customers.
Amazon.
I do believe the email I got telling me about the annual $29.99 option, said nothing about eliminating other coupons. I assumed it was a way to avoid carrying around coupons, and having to use some at 10% after the 20% date expired. I just saw it as another option. If I were going to be setting up house for a first time, I would pay the $29.99 as I’d never have enough 20% coupons to do that. I do also use them when buying wedding gifts.
Okay sorry this is long but you all struck a chord. I like to shop and find my “fun” shopping experiences are disappearing. Internet clicking isn’t all that fun. (But does cut down hugely on the “bag a week” stuff…)
Books a Million has done the “pay for a discount” for years and it worked for some time.
Decent marketing tool. Many companies have followed suit. Amazon does it with prime. All a matter of perceived value.
My prediction: The pendulum will swing. Once “touch and feel” stores are gone then on-line shopping will take a dive. Presently people shop then order on-line. Most people don’t really want to buy sight unseen.
They buy for price or can’t find something locally.
Amazon is known for customer service and price which is how they grew. But I see more “fake reviews” and counterfeit goods getting in the picture which can halt sales (or cast doubt anyways) pretty fast.
(Listening Amazon? Probably. )
My marketing advice to BBB . I’ll send the bill later. …
!) Keep coupons. They are now part of the BBB landscape. Attract new buyers.Don’t lose the old ones.
-
Provide a better shopping experience. The atmosphere has degraded.
More is not better. Go see “bag a week” and think “get rid of clutter” in the store. The buying department needs to rein in and make some better decisions. BBB is not the corner drug store. We already have those. -
Physical : Remember Target started out with a big bang because the aisles were wider than Wal-Mart. The store was cleaner. Easy to navigate. Wal-Mart had to step up over the years (in a lot of areas) to compete.
-
Have kiosks which provide the " also purchase this in a bazillion colors etc" with actual fabric samples.
Basically BBB already provides this service now through on-line but no samples are available in-store.
Think “touch and feel”. Home Depot thrives on it.
And whatever they can do for exclusivity. …
Jo-Anne fabrics has fabric made just for them. BBB needs to do the same.
I nominate @gouf78 for executive VP of Marketing at BB&B! 
The 20% off coupon is what makes BBB unique. No other store has them the way BBB does.
Let’s look at Kohls. Since they started excluding almost everything I would buy there on their coupons, I don’t even step foot in the store.
Sorry…but if BBB does this…I just won’t shop there. Period.
I don’t know about the rest of you, but our BB&B has added a pretty big area of food/drink items to the middle of the store. Although I haven’t gone through it, it looks like they are trying to compete with World Market and/or Trader Joes.
Anyone else seen this in their store? Maybe this is their attempt to rebrand themselves and/or add a new line of products that might attract new shoppers?
I really wonder if that’s true with people around my age. I’m one of the very few people I know who doesn’t buy shoes on like Zappos. Well, that finally went away when I ordered from another website about a month ago and now probably won’t buy shoes in a store again.
I’m part of the “get it to your doorstep in 2 days or less” generation and I think that stores will stay around for some things (dress clothes, etc) but I don’t think we’re going back to a time where stores are preferred. It would take a major paradigm shift among younger people.
BB&B owns World Market.
I love the coupons and use them all the time, but it seems to me that they are only trying to do what Amazon, Costco and Barnes & Noble already do – pay a membership fee and get a discount. Coupons are certainly a better deal, since you don’t have to put out any money, but really – what’s the difference between what they are proposing and what those other places do?
Every time I’ve gone to BBB, I walk out after 15 minutes, appalled by its “full retail price” pricing, to head back to old reliables Marshalls and TJ Maxx/ Homegoods. If it’s not there, I wait. I can count on one hand what I’ve bought at BBB even w/said 20% coupon, still more expensive than TJ Maxx. I’m waiting for BBB to expire.
Sadly… If BBB expires, you will be paying more at your favorite discounters.
Agreed. I bet BBB was cheaper when LNT was still around.