During Quarter 1 of 2023, the number of promotional offers increased by 21% in comparison to the same period in 2022. The reason for this significant rise in promotions was the occurrence of Ramadan Season in the first quarter itself. Retailers commenced their promotional activities in February to attract more customers to their physical stores.
Top Categories promoted during the first quarter of 2023
The categories to be promoted the most were Grocery and Health & Beauty, with Home, Furniture & Pets, Electronics, and Frozen Foods following closely behind. The remaining categories, collectively referred to as “Other,” accounted for approximately 39% of the promoted products.
Category Wise Promotions in Q1 2023 & Q1 2022:
During the first quarter of 2023, there was a 5% decrease in the number of promotions offered in the Health & Beauty category. This decline was attributed to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, which led to a greater focus on promoting health care products, hand sanitizers, and other related items instead.
Sub-Category Wise Promotions:
The chart above shows the distribution of promotions across sub-categories for each category. The highest proportion of promotions in the Grocery category, at 41%, were for products in the Sauces, Spreads & Canned Food sub-category. In the Health & Beauty, Home, Furniture, Pets, Electronics & Frozen Foods categories, the largest number of promotions were for products in the Skin & Hair Care, Cooking & Dining, Kitchen Appliances, Mobile & Accessories, and Ready to Eat sub-categories, respectively.
Ready-to-eat products have become increasingly popular in recent times, particularly in the post-covid era, as people lead increasingly busy lives and have less time to prepare meals. According to a report, this trend has resulted in a consistent growth in sales for these products on a year-on-year (YoY) basis. The convenience of these foods has made them an attractive option for consumers, who are looking for quick and easy meal solutions. This trend is expected to continue in the future, with more and more people seeking out ready-to-eat options to meet their busy schedules.
Mobile Phones, Marinated & Breaded, Shampoo & Conditioner, Pots & Pans, Canned Beans, Lentils & Corn were the most promoted items under their respective Sub-Categories in Q1 2023.
Although, a drop in offer promotions was seen for items like Kettle & Coffee Makers, Frozen Burger, Body Lotion & Cream, Dinnerware & Honey in comparison to Q1 2022.
Promotions During Special Events:
During Quarter 1 of 2023, 3 major event promotions included Ramadan Flyers, Winter Flyers & New Year Flyers. These promotional events constituted 28% of the total flyer promotions during Q1.
Out of the 3 Event Flyer Promotions, Ramadan flyers had the maximum share percentage i.e. 21%. While the rest consisted of New Year & Winter Flyers.
As per the Clicflyer App Activity Analysis, in Q1 2023 Rice, Oil, Milk, Chicken & Cheese were the top 5 searched items.
User Engagement Analysis with Different Categories:
The weekly average user count for Q1 2023 was almost 15% more than Q1 2022.
Also, Category-Wise User engagement can be seen in the chart above. Top 4 Category-Wise User Engagement were for Grocery, Dairy, Electronics & Frozen Foods.
Two noteworthy points to mention are that even though dairy products were not among the top 5 promoted categories, they ranked 2nd in terms of engagement analysis on the ClicFlyer app. Additionally, eggs, despite not being heavily promoted, are highly sought after by users who frequently search for egg deals.
ClicFlyer is a leading retail analytics service provider that offers exceptional business intelligence tools to retailers in the UAE and KSA regions. By leveraging our tools, retailers can gain valuable insights into consumer behaviour and market trends, enabling them to make informed business decisions that drive growth. Contact us at sales@cfcorporate.azurewebsites.net for more information.
