Shoppers are no longer just looking for cheaper prices, they’re looking for relevance, resonance and relationships. Brands that rely on outdated promotional playbooks risk falling behind. Discover how to adapt to this new generation of promo shoppers to gain not only sales, but sustained customer loyalty.
Promotions have long been the lifeblood of convenience retail. But the shopper behind those redemptions is changing. Today’s consumers are more than just discount chasers: they’re digitally fluent, brand-conscious and increasingly driven by experiences over price.
Understanding this evolution is critical - especially as we enter a peak trading period spanning summer, back-to-school and the high-stakes Q4 run-in.
Brands that continue to treat promotions as a simple price lever risk falling behind. Those that adapt to the expectations of a new generation of promo shoppers stand to gain not only sales, but long-term loyalty.
From price tags to perception: A new kind of promo shopper
It’s tempting to think of the traditional promo shopper as someone opportunistic - flitting from one deal to the next on impulse. But today’s convenience shoppers are more considered in their choices. The protracted cost-of-living crisis means they still care about price, but recent data from Lumina Intelligence reveals their motivations are increasingly multifaceted.
When compared to the total market, these promo shoppers show a slight uplift in value-led attitudes (+0.3 percentage points), but they strongly over-index on quality (+3.4pts), brand preference (+6.7pts), and experience-seeking behaviour (also +6.7pts). [Lumina]
These are shoppers who want more than a markdown.
They want offers that feel relevant, authentic and worthwhile. They’re also not afraid to switch brands to get it. Not just for price either, but often for perceived value, better quality or a more engaging experience.
The digital layer: Where convenience meets intention
Statista research shows over 94% of UK adults now use smartphones. And with mobile comes a shift in how and when consumers engage with promotions. Today, the path to purchase often begins long before the store visit - with a scroll, search or tap.
Modern promo shoppers actively look for value online: browsing apps for coupons, following brands on social media for exclusive codes, even setting alerts for new promotions. They are intentional, informed and empowered.
This behaviour is accelerating a move away from static, shelf-edge mechanics towards dynamic, mobile-first campaigns.
Brands can now meet shoppers where they are - on their phones - with offers that are personalised, time-sensitive and interactive. And the convenience sector, with its highly localised footprint and fast-moving categories, is uniquely placed to benefit from these advances.
Loyalty is earned, not bought
While price might get someone through the door, it rarely keeps them coming back. In high-frequency categories like groceries and impulse, consumers often display entrenched preferences—but they’re open to persuasion, especially when a promotion does more than cut cost.
Think of a shopper choosing between two breakfast cereals. One is discounted at the shelf. The other offers a mobile voucher plus a gamified loyalty challenge that unlocks future rewards. The price drop might prompt the first trial - but it’s the experience that encourages repeat behaviour.
This will be especially relevant in the post-HFSS environment. Brand-led, digitally enabled campaigns offer a compliant and compelling alternative to traditional in-store promotions—enabling emotional storytelling, immersive experiences and clear calls to action that can resonate beyond the store.
Sector-specific behaviour: One size doesn’t fit all
Of course, promo engagement varies by category. In impulse, the quick decision-making process makes mobile-led activations a powerful tool for capturing attention in real time.
In alcohol, where price sensitivity is particularly high - 28% of shoppers rate percentage-off promotions as most appealing [Lumina] - brands must strike a balance between value and premium cues.
In grocery, where loyalty runs deeper and habits are more ingrained, digital campaigns must focus on strengthening brand affinity and encouraging repeat purchase.
What unites all these sectors is the growing demand for smarter, more relevant and more rewarding promotions.
First-party data: The missing piece of the puzzle
The most transformative shift in modern promotion strategy has been the move toward data-driven execution. Digital redemptions generate rich, first-party data, offering insight into who’s buying, where, when and how often.
This data doesn’t just inform better targeting for future campaigns. It also fuels more strategic decisions around media NPD and category planning, allowing brands to build a more agile promotional engine to help them track real-time performance and optimise spend.
Perhaps best of all, digital redemptions can provide powerful consumer contact details and acquisition data, enabling brands to deliver future campaigns direct to shoppers’ phones.
In a market as dynamic and fragmented as convenience, this level of intelligence is no longer a luxury. It’s a competitive necessity.
Rethinking promotional strategy
As we enter H2’s peak trading period, brands that rely on outdated promotional playbooks risk falling behind. The game has moved on. Convenience promotions now need to be:
- Digitally enabled: Optimised for mobile and social channels, not just shelf-edge.
- Emotionally intelligent: Offering more than a transaction - offering a reason to believe.
- Data-driven: Capturing first-party insights to refine future campaigns and inform NPD.
With nearly 50,000 convenience stores in the UK, the scale is vast - but so is the competition. Brands that can evolve with the modern promo shopper will be the ones to capture not only sales, but sustained consumer loyalty.
The takeaway
Convenience retail is at a crossroads. As shopper behaviours evolve, so too must the strategies we use to reach them. Promotions remain a powerful tool but only when they reflect the complexity and consciousness of today’s consumers.
Shoppers are no longer just looking for cheaper prices. They’re looking for relevance, resonance and relationships. The future of promotion lies not in shouting louder, but in listening better.
Need a partner to take your digital promo campaigns to the next level? PayPoint Engage can help you turn everyday purchases into lasting brand impact. Share your details and we’ll be in touch to arrange a demo.
