TORONTO—A new survey commissioned by Metroland Media—a publisher of community newspapers and flyers—and produced by BrandSpark International—a marketing and product innovation research company—shows that consumers prefer using flyers when making purchasing decisions. In fact 97% of those surveyed said they relied on flyers, and look to print for information about shopping, even those in a younger age group.

"Despite the trend toward online forms of advertising and marketing to consumers, we heard directly from Ontario consumers that they rely on print flyers more than any other medium when looking for deals, gift ideas and making a purchase," Ian Oliver, President of Metroland Media said. "The value in print flyer advertising is real and the research indicates that many consumers view print flyers as indispensable." 

The survey found that print flyers remained a top source for identifying sales, and finding new products. Consumers looked to print flyer advertising more than store websites to research product information and deals (3.3 times more); when comparing price and value (twice as much); while researching the range of products available (1.6 times more) and when researching which store carries a product (1.6 times more).

Participants also said print flyers helped them discover new products. 71% said they are more likely to visit a store that sends them flyers and 72% said flyers impact their purchase decisions. 51% of those surveyed stated that they have visited a store’s website after reading a flyer.

Highlights from the Ontario consumers surveyed include:

•    97% read flyers (only 3% report 'never' reading flyers)
•    94% of grocery consumers and 88% of mass merchant consumers
      read flyers
•    73% of consumers use flyers to learn about new products
•    Consumers spend more time reading print flyers compared to
      online and email flyers

BrandSpark surveyed 1,814 retail shoppers in Ontario between June 17 and June 27, 2014. Calculated scores have a margin of error + 2.3%, 19 times out of 20.