How to Capitalize on “Rewards Apps”

“Is it worth it?” That’s the first question most ask when asked to join a loyalty program, download some company’s app, or even thumb through a booklet with coupons and promos for special offers. We live in fast-moving times – time really is money. It’s a hard sell: bring this card, or book, or piece of paper, and next time, you’ll get something for a marginally cheaper price. Stats bear this out – many people don’t bother signing up for loyalty programs as the returns are too meager. Shopping has also changed. In our web-connected world, bots can seek out even fractionally better deals. That shirt is US$25 there? Well… it’s US$23.99 over here. Amazon is a good example. They offer you their price, as well as a choice of cheaper options (many times including used options). If you’re ok with a particular color or a slower arrival date, the online shopping giant might even cut prices further or throw in free shipping. All this, coupled with our lives moving onto our smartphones, means the idea of shopping at one particular store – or even buying one specific brand – to get X percentage off some specific item is dead. Technology, however, is reinventing the idea of loyalty points or reward programs.

Witness the rise of the “reward app.” Like their ancestors, the app rewards you for purchases. But very much unlike the old model, anything and everything you buy is rewardable. It’s an idea that says every time you spend money; every time you buy something that comes with a receipt, that purchase should earn you “points.” Using the app is easy. You get a digital “wallet,” and by simply purchasing products – and for most of us, this is stuff we already intended to buy – app users start earning the equivalent of cash back savings. Your points can be cashed in for immediate rewards, say, an Amazon gift card or a free coffee. All you have to do is photograph or scan a receipt. This could be a receipt for filling up your car, or a receipt for lunch at McDonald's – it doesn’t matter to the app. Just scan and send in the data, and your “wallet” starts filling up. The point isn’t to push you to spend more. It’s a consolidation of reward programs that encompasses anything that you have a receipt for. Virtually every penny spent, therefore, counts as a penny earned.

Snap a picture? Scan a receipt? Isn’t that, like, work? In fact, users report getting used to the habit very quickly. And the apps are very aware of what they are asking; they know it takes a bit of time to scan receipts. That’s why reward apps are so flexible – they’re trying to make it worth your while. Grab a bottle of wine from any liquor store; it counts (as long as you’re over the legal age and your area doesn’t have restrictions on such deals). Buy pet food; it counts. Fill a prescription at CVS; it counts. It’s a liberating concept: a “buy-and-be-rewarded” plan that includes any purchase at any location at any time. And the trade-off – snapping a pic or doing a scan – becomes second nature after a few hours. Another plus is a flexible deadline – you can send in receipt scans up to two weeks after buying something, which is a pretty long window.

A decade or so back, there were perhaps many more of us who made sure – for example – to bring their gas station membership card when filling up the car, but consumer stats show that today, a huge number of people don’t bother. And, with pretty much every transaction – including payments – shifting from wallets to mobile phones, a reward app is an elegantly simple mobile technology that only requires a few moments of your time, but offers immediate returns. This immediacy is among the app’s best selling points. No waiting to get to some level before earning that discount – the points come rolling in seconds after you do your first scan. Users report the experience can almost be like a game: let’s see how many points I can scan and earn today. So back to the initial question: is it worth it? A pro/con analysis seems to lean heavily in favor of “yes.”

It’s a trade. You give your shopping data to the app, which gives it to data companies, who then use it to give corporations genuine consumer data. The companies benefit enormously from this unfiltered data and with the info, they can trim costs in a myriad of ways; and corporate cost-savings often end up meaning lower consumer prices. But both the app and the companies that use the data, know you want something of value for your valuable info. By making rewards immediate, flexible, wide-ranging, and offering you a significant amount of choice, they think it’s a worthwhile trade. It’s not exactly a “free lunch,” but it’s pretty close. Why not get rewarded for shopping you already intended to do?