More than 2,800 supermarkets countrywide will offer paperless in-store coupons by the end of the year, as grocers like Meijer, Stater Bros., Ukrop's, and United Supermarkets, install the systems to help shoppers save money, according to Unicous Marketing, Inc.

The four retailers recently deployed the Ez-Pic instant coupon system from Unicous, bringing the current total of stores using the system to more than 1,000. Ez-Pic is also available at BI-LO, Big Y, Food City, and Kings. 

"Data has shown that Ez-Pic delivers-not just for consumers, but for retailers and manufacturers alike," said John Thompson, v.p. of operations for Unicous. "We're trending with a 71 percent lift on promoted items year-over-year."

Here's how Ez-Pic works: Promoted items are identified for consumers at the shelf with explanatory shelf signage that Unicous prints and distributes to the retailers. Consumers receive discounts on participating products merely by selecting the products in qualifying amounts and paying for them at the register. The discounts are automatically applied to the transaction at checkout, and are indicated on the customer's receipt.

Unicous integrates its proprietary processing technology to the point-of-sale system, which then does all of the work of recognizing, applying, and balancing for reimbursement all aspects of the electronic coupons.