31 Oct 2019

Shopping discounts: why it is a must-have employee benefit

It’s no surprise that the most effective and successful employee benefits programmes are the ones that are most relevant to employees. As a business, you need to choose a benefits offering that will have a meaningful impact on your employees’ lives. Why? Because it adds value to them and to your business.

Benefits that allow employees to make valuable savings on everyday purchases are significant. They give employees the opportunity to make their money go further so they spend it on other things or put it away for the future. That’s why shopping discounts are so powerful.

According to the Office for National Statistics, the average UK household spends £91 a week on food. This equates to an average annual food cost of around £4,700. Of this, we spend over £3,150 on food for home and more than £1,600 on takeaways, restaurants, cafes and snacks.

Imagine being able to reduce the price of the weekly food shop by 5% every week. Think of the difference it would make – the savings that could be accumulated in just a short space of time would be substantial.

Shopping discounts are therefore a relevant and valuable benefit for employees. So, here’s our case for why they should be no-brainer employee benefit for any business.

Relevant to all demographics

Delivering an employee benefits package that is relevant to everyone in your business can be a real challenge. Your employees will all have their own interests and preferences that will affect whether they engage with the scheme.

To tackle this, it’s important to consider what your employees have in common. What do they all do? One thing you can be certain of, is that all of your employees spend money. They will all have regular outgoings on everyday products and services. Shopping discounts are therefore a fantastic benefit that delivers company-wide value.

Of course, the shopping habits of your employees will vary from person to person, but retailer discounts allow them all to save money on a regular basis.

Shopping discounts can be used on everyday purchases, by everyone. What’s important is to provide a wide range of discounts that cover supermarkets, high street shops, restaurants and smaller, independent business. So, whether an employee wants to save money on their regular purchases like the weekly food shop, or on more ad-hoc expenses like clothing and gifts, they can find an offer to suit them and their circumstances.

This is an employee benefit that can be integrated into employees’ daily lives to help them save money week in, week out. And with broad appeal, comes high engagement.

Cashback savings

Shopping discounts that use a cashback mechanism rather than being money off the full price, are even more valuable to your employees.

Getting money off the weekly shop is helpful, but this money can quickly dissolve into other everyday purchases, which means that employees won’t experience the true value of the discount. By using a cashback mechanism, your employees can accrue a pot of savings over time which is essentially free money that they can spend whenever they like.

Rather than simply spending less on every day purchases, employees can actually see how much they’ve saved over weeks, months and years in their cashback account. This is tangible money they can then access and directly benefit from. Using this mechanism, employees can save hundreds, even thousands of pounds each year by simply using a reloadable card or voucher when they do their usual shopping.

Financial wellbeing

When employees have the ability to save money on the high street it gives them more money to spend or save, which can relieve financial pressures. As we all know, some everyday expenses simply can’t be avoided, so for employees that are stressed about their finances, shopping discounts are a convenient benefit that can have a positive impact on their financial wellbeing.

Shopping discounts can be used on a regular basis, so they provide an easy way for employees to stretch their household budget further, thereby reducing financial strains. The money saved can provide a buffer that allows employees to feel more financially comfortable. So, by providing this benefit, you can reduce employees’ financial worries and concerns right across your business.

We know that there is no one-size-fits-all solution for employee engagement, but shopping discounts are relevant to everyone. If you’re looking for an employee benefit with broad appeal, shopping discounts are a no-brainer. It doesn’t matter how many employees you have or how much they spend every week, if you can provide a wide range of shopping discounts, your employees will be able to make savings on a range of products and services on regular basis, which will make their money go further and subsequently improve their financial wellbeing.

This article is provided by Peoplevalue.