Zappit.co is a leading tech player in the promotional marketing industry, delivering insight led shopper marketing & customer care solutions through digital coupons and instant cashback.

Zappit’s digital-first proprietary tech stack underpins their Coupon, Cashback and Customer Care platforms helping Clients to attract NEW customers, GROW footfall, INCREASE rate of sale, REINFORCE loyalty and REPEAT custom.
The journey starts wherever a customer is able to click, scan or text and can drive sales in-store, online or into hospitality venues.

ZAPPIT activations are;

·        Brand-led and drive sales

·        Rich in 1st party data and insight

·       Built with proprietary technology to minimise fraud

·     100% digital, trackable and eco-friendly from start to finish

·        Accessible to everyone – no login, no app, no paper

·        Easy to redeem via your mobile phone

Clients include Unilever, P&G, Colgate, Fever Tree,  AB InBev, Arla, Costa Coffee, Mitchells & Butler

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Covid 19 has had a huge impact and presented several challenges to the ever-changing world of retail. It is clear that bricks and mortar models are going to have to adapt quickly as even though shops are now reopening there is a clear sense of concern, with customers preferring to spend online rather than visit shops. BRC data¹ shows that UK footfall on the third week of reopening was down 49.6% from the previous year. This has meant that since re-opening the high street has been filled with sales as shops slash prices (as high and as crazy as up to 70%²) with the hope to get the economy running back to pre-covid levels.

Covid 19 has also brought along an ever-growing added challenge of customers going online for their needs with 43% of UK shoppers spending more online during lockdown than usual (Global Data, 2020³). Therefore, with the online retail market growing what have you got in place to make your products stand out on the shelf amongst all the reduced items?

Yet, offering a reduced sales price is not the only way to a quick boost to increase customers interest. Furthermore, it might do more harm than good by damaging long-term customer relationships either by irritating customers who previously bought it full price or devaluing the brand in the long term.  It doesn’t have to be this way, below are top ways to tactically boost sales without slashing your prices.

1. Cashback Promotions

 For brand owners looking to avoid the cycle of price discounting, cashback offers the chance to entice customers with a potentially higher reward than a point of purchase saving may offer. They also allow a brand to offer an incentive above and beyond the retailer price point, balancing product value with perceived reward. A digital communication platform (in addition to point of sale), allows the reach of a campaign to be extended, targeting the zero moments of truth when a consumer begins their journey of researching a potential purchase.

Cashback promotions are also great at creating a quick boost in sales as they allow you to set the time limits with customers which gives them a reason to buy now rather than wait. They are also easily accessible, can be applied to almost any market and they are relatively low cost to deploy.

2. Instant win promotions / Free prize draws

Instant win promotions are especially great at attracting and engaging customers as they create huge excitement with customers. This can be applied either on-pack, digitally or via social media. Everyone has heard of the story ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ with the intense anticipation of whether Charlie will find the golden ticket in his chocolate bar. So, why not bring this into the 21^st century and create this online?

Instant win promotions are also great at creating an extended customer journey as the journey doesn’t just end when they have bought the product. This excitement continues past finding out they are a lucky winner. Several examples of this working in action are Cadbury’s Cream Egg Campaign that ran in the early months of 2020 and McDonald’s Monopoly which has run for the last 15 years pleasing customers with prizes ranging from £100,000 cash to free apple pies.

3. Scratch & Win Campaigns

Scratch & Win Promotions are nothing new but highly effective. Billions are spent in lotteries and gaming with the chance to win. As shown as in 2018/19 financial year alone the National Lottery sales were £7,206.8 million (Camelotgroup⁴). Meaning this simple yet effective marketing tool still works.

Scratch & Win promotions are great at engaging customers whether you decide to create them as a physical card – showering customers with a glittery mess or bringing them into the 21^st century and creating them online as a digital card, both are equally successful and increases customer engagement.

Therefore, there are plenty of different options out there to increase customer engagement and add a quick boost to sales rather than price discounting and slashing prices. Equally, these options allow you to extend your customer journeys whilst positively impacting brand loyalty, increasing customer satisfaction and allowing your customers to engage more with your brand online. At MRM we are always happy to help and give advice, with our expertise your campaign is in safe hands. Please don’t hesitate to give Mel a call on 01858 414714 or drop us an email to melanie.sheldon@mrm.co.uk.

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Quidco, the UK’s leading online cashback website, has launched a football-themed digital promotion to drive brand awareness this summer.

Players of ‘Quidgoal’, hosted on the brand’s site, must complete a footballing challenge for the chance to win instant cash prizes.

There are three challenges in total: taking penalty kicks, saving penalty kicks and evading tackles. Players are assigned one at random, and must complete it to stand a chance of winning a share of the £25,000 prize pot.

Repeat plays are unlimited, meaning users can increase their chances of winning by playing multiple times.

Users must be signed up to Quidco’s free service before they can participate, as winnings are deposited directly into their Quidco accounts.

The Quidgoal experience can be played on both desktop and mobile devices. A dedicated campaign to drive traffic to it will incorporate email, social media and word-of-mouth.

Quidco partnered with creative agency Ready on the campaign. Ready has previously helped Quidco use gamification to drive awareness of its service around seasonal events including Easter and Christmas.

Ready’s creative director Jake Xu said: “Creating a highly addictive game that offers instant cash prizes is the perfect way to showcase just how simple it is to earn cashback by shopping online through Quidco.”

The campaign, which launched this week, will run for three weeks.

It is sponsored by several of Quidco’s retail partners including Littlewoods, Microsoft and Paddy Power, generating exposure for each brand and encouraging members to earn cashback by purchasing from their ecommerce sites.

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Valassis, the UK’s largest coupon and voucher services provider, has launched Cashback & Rewards, a new multi-channel promotional solution that facilitates direct payment between the brand and the promotion’s beneficiary, removing reliance on third parties to fulfil the promotion.

Valassis says cashback has significant and broad-reaching promotional applications – research has found that nearly 20% of shoppers made a purchase or spent more than planned because of a cashback offer. Cashback & Rewards can be implemented for any number of target audiences – shoppers, merchants or even staff, as an employee benefit – the company adds.

The Cashback & Rewards mechanic has been designed to be simple for the shopper, the company says. Once they have bought a product, the shopper inputs their details online along with a picture of the receipt and is then sent a cashback or reward payment.  Payment can be delivered via a number of methods – cash, PayPal, cheque or coupon. Rewards can also be product samples or entry into a prize draw.  This direct fulfilment allows brands to reinforce messages, which often is not possible when fulfilled via a third party.

Valassis has worked with brands across Europe to deliver Cashback & Rewards for products in the pharmaceutical sector, with cashback given to both merchants and shoppers. The service is now being made available in the UK.

Charles D’Oyly, Valassis’ Managing Director, observes: “Our new Cashback & Rewards solution means that brands can deliver benefits directly to intended beneficiaries and without involving point of sale.  It taps into existing interest among consumers for cash back and represents a flexible and compelling promotional tool to engage shoppers via an easy and seamless customer experience.”

Valassis Limited is the UK’s largest coupon and voucher services provider, performing crucial data management and financial clearing services. Responsible for handling most of the UK’s coupons and vouchers, Valassis Limited is uniquely positioned to deliver insights on UK consumer promotions and is regularly quoted as an expert in the media. Valassis is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Harland Clarke Holdings, a US provider of payment solutions, multi-channel marketing campaigns, and secure data-driven lead generation and critical communications.  In addition, Harland Clarke provides promotional products, call centers, and governance, risk and compliance (GRC) solutions.

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Molson Coors, one of the UK’s biggest brewers, has announced a new partnership for its award-winning loyalty programme, iPint, with Football Manager, the best-selling football management simulation game.

As part of Carling’s strategic partnership with Football Manager, the app will now include a new and exclusive Football Manager quiz which rewards players with cashback prizes. Players compete for a spot on the weekly leaderboard by answering five football-related questions within a ten second time limit. The top ten highest scorers win £10 deposited straight into their bank accounts.

Alpesh Mistry, Customer Marketing Director at Molson Coors, says: “iPint continues to go from strength to strength with research showing 75% of all engaged iPint users have visited the app more than ten times in 2016. Our new partnership with Football Manager is the perfect example of how we are leveraging fantastic relationships with like-minded brands to generate consumer excitement and increased loyalty in the beer category.”

Mistry adds: “Our long-term objective is not only to build the most significant loyalty app, but to continue to ensure we utilise relationships with a number of key partners to unlock value for our customers both in the on- and off-trade.”

Miles Jacobson, Director at Football Manager, says: “It’s hard to imagine two brands that go together as well as Carling and Football Manager. The Carling Weekly Quiz promotion is a perfect example of both teams bringing something to the party and we’re looking forward to working together on a number of similar projects with the Carling team.”

Molson Coors continues to strengthen ties with iPint’s existing partners to give consumers access to even more exclusive rewards upon the purchase of Carling four packs. Prizes and rewards include cashback, 30% off Sky Sports day passes from NOW TV, 25% off bills at Sizzling Pubs and the chance to win a £1,000 holiday getaway.

Carling iPint has previously been ranked as one of the top 25 all-time free apps for the iPhone. The revised iPint app was developed in partnership with mobile agency Hi Mum! Said Dad and is available for download from the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.

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