The lowly coupon is back. And all it took was a global economic meltdown to bring it back. But the reality is simple. Times are tough. And lots of shoppers, who used to have plenty of money and little time, now find themselves with all of the time in the world, and precious little money.

While couponing is sometimes disparaged as tactical and destructive to brand equity, there is no denying the reality that when a market becomes cost-sensitive, coupons can be very helpful in solving short-term business issues by generating incremental volume quickly. And in the current economy, coupons are looking like our friends.

So the challenge is to implement tactical coupon programs in a strategically sound way. And the best way to do that is to send the right coupons to the right people. In other words, marketers must use segmentation to provide consumers with just enough incentive to act now. And we must reach these consumers with the right messages through the right media. All in all, it is a real challenge.

Coupons are back, and we need to use them. But if we are smart marketers, we will use them in strategic targeted ways which simultaneously move product today and market soundly for the long term. Coupons have a chance to clear their bad name – if only we use them properly