ReMe: building loyalty via customers' phones
Founded by a dynamic young group of Cape Town tech entrepreneurs, ReMe stands to revolutionise the way loyalty programmes are marketed to consumers. As pioneers in the digital loyalty domain, they aim to help customers throw all their out-dated, bulky, loyalty cards away and to engage with brands digitally on one platform for great rewards. Instead of carrying old-school loyalty cards, consumers simply download the ReMe app onto their phones via Google play and the Apple App Store, start to earn points and claim rewards via their phones as they shop.
According to Michael Zahariev, co-founder of ReMe, although the app can be applied to national chains and franchises, it is particularly attractive to SME businesses such as independent stores and eateries, "Loyalty programmes are expensive to build and implement, particularly programmes which have the goal of large-scale customer engagement.
"ReMe offers smaller businesses the opportunity to benefit from a loyalty programme in a cost-effective way and to capitalise on a marketing platform directed towards loyal customers."
Data to be leveraged
Zahariev explains that ReMe enables SMEs to share the development costs of a loyalty programme while reaping all the benefits of being on one large loyalty network and the extended data based marketing possibilities. "Essentially, there would be an exponential growth in a digital loyalty network powered by consumers interacting with a brand in meaningful ways. Brands will also begin to understand consumer subtleties and how they interact with specific businesses, products and loyalty programmes. The totality of the above is the accumulation of large amounts of data which can be analysed and leveraged by businesses in a manner which benefits the whole loyalty network of businesses and especially consumers."
By joining ReMe, any participating businesses will have greater access to data regarding their target demographic, and customer behaviour and interests, leading to better customer acquisition and loyalty campaigns.
Consumers to benefit the most
According to Zahariev, the consumer stands to benefit the most, "For customers tired of too many loyalty cards overloading their wallets, one all-encompassing, universal loyalty app on their smartphones that tells them instantly how many points they have earned and what special offers or rewards they can enjoy, is a convenient and logical evolution of reward programmes into the digital age."
How ReMe works:
• Download the ReMe app onto your mobile phone
• Just whip out your phone to Read the ReMe QR code as you visit your favourite spots around town who are on the ReMe network. Let the loyalty point collection begin.
• Once you've built up loyalty at your beloved locales, you can seamlessly start claiming a wide variety of custom rewards for your dedication to that brand.
• ReMe remembers your favourite brands, keeping you up to date with their latest deals and offers.
ReMe benefits to business:
Data mining
Customer data is aggregated using cloud technology boasting a high degree of security and digital accessibility for a business. Businesses can access this data goldmine by logging into their custom built administrator page. Being able to access all of this data in one place also means SME's can keep track of which of their loyalty programs are the most successful, thus being able to implement the most effective loyalty strategies more often. ReMe allows businesses to easily set up new loyalty programmes and offers in minutes.
Push message marketing
With a built-in push notification system, businesses can directly market and advertise their latest deals and offers to their most loyal customers with ease, which means less marketing costs on strategies that turn out to be less effective in targeting their ideal customer.
Security
The use of an app linked to QR codes in the points collection and redemption process will reduce the potential for fraud on a loyalty programme substantially.
