Retailers are increasingly looking to marketing options to set them apart from their competitors. However, a recent report suggests that companies may want to harness a more traditional strategy to boost their store operations.

Consumers are increasingly augmenting their shopping and purchasing experiences with coupons and special offers, according to the 2012 NCH Coupon Facts report. The research found that approximately $470 billion of coupon value for consumer package goods was offered to U.S. consumers in 2011, MediaPost reports.

Of the amounts offered, $4.6 billion in savings was realized by consumers, amounting to a 12.2 percent increase over 2010 and a 58.6 percent jump over 2006. Consumers used 3.5 billion coupons, an increase of 6.1 percent from 2010.

Additionally, retailers embraced new delivery modes for coupons last year.

"Digital coupons, as the newest media choice for marketers to reach consumers, grew with 11 percent more print at home and paperless offers distributed and tracked on NCH's database; yet, the total quantity of coupons in these growing formats doesn't yet exceed 1 percent of all coupons distributed in the U.S," MediaPost explains.