Consumers use of Smart Phones for Shopping and Recipes Shows Potential of Mobile Commerce

Mobile phone applications quickly are becoming the go-to source for countless daily tasks, including finding grocery deals, according to the NPD Group. That has implications for growth of mobile payments, use of mobiles for coupon delivery and marketing.

Consumers are using the Internet and social media to hunt down recipes, shop for food, and connect with their favorite food brands. That is one obvious linkage to delivery of information and inducements to buy specific brands and products used by various recipes.

Coupon apps are used by about 25 million Americans each month, and this happens most frequently in households with children. The foods these app couponing families consume more often skew towards kid friendly staples like eggs, cold cereal, bacon, sausages, macaroni and cheese, soup, and fruit juice.

More than half of U.S. consumers are aware of Groupon, the localized deal-of-the-day website, and about one in five consumers receives emails regularly from the service.