A new survey of online grocery shoppers revealed that consumers don’t just hope to get a great deal, they expect special offers as part of their shopping experience.

When market research agency Buckingham Research asked over 500 online shoppers whether or not they expected retailers to provide special offers such as percentage-off discounts or BOGOF, a massive 89% said yes, they did. In fact, 18% considered special offers to be ‘the norm’.

Just 8% said they felt special offers weren’t to be expected and 3% didn’t know.

“These results prove that the recession is actively impacting on our expectations as shoppers,” said Lucy Pedrick, Research Director at Buckingham Research. 

It should come as no surprise to online retailers that cash-strapped consumers are looking for a bargain. Retailers should be meeting those expectations or run the risk of turning consumers away, not least the determined 4% in Buckingham Research’s survey who said they would not use a store that had no special offers.

Many consumers are searching through multiple sites before making a purchase, and special offers are sure to sway their decisions. They’re also actively searching for sites with money-saving offerings. Recent comScore data showed a marked increase in the use of search terms relating to money-saving techniques. Searches for “coupon” doubled to 19.9 million in December, 2008, while “discount” rose 26% to 6.3 million. 

More so, consumers know that stores are, or should be, actively competing for their business. Nearly a third (32%) thought special offers were now a standard component of online retail strategy.

Other reasons consumers expected special offers were:

- 18% anticipated special offers as part of any shopping experience as they always like to look for a good deal

- 16% said that they expected special offers as a result of their own monetary and economic concerns, 75% specifically referenced the current financial crisis