Price Cutter woos shoppers with mobile coupons

Price Cutter is using mobile to offer shoppers more convenience through coupons on the go and voice-recognition customer assistance.

“The strategy is to use the power of mobile to offer shoppers a new level of customer service that will make shopping at Price Cutter more convenient,” said Nathan Pettyjohn, CEO of Aisle411 Inc., St. Louis. "By using mobile to offer a customer service tool, Aisle411 and Price Cutter hope to gain the trust of consumers and thereby offer relevant promotional offers in the form of audio messages and mobile coupons.” Shoppers who call, state their location and the store, ask for the item and then receive the location of the product via an audio message and by text within seconds.

“It is our expectation that the mobile coupons offered through Aisle411 are at the peak of the purchasing cycle within the store, and we expect to see high redemption rates based on the timing of the SMS coupon delivery – within minutes or even seconds of a purchase,” Mr. Pettyjohn said. “With SMS, we’re also looking at bridging the gap between the more sophisticated phones that play video, by offering Web links that can display product demonstration videos or reviews for customers while they’re in store. From Mobile Marketer at http://bit.ly/EKaPl

For more information contact Andrew at damico@zipstripe.com

Vogue, Rachel Roy let consumers Shop, Watch, Win

Rachel Roy, a division of Jones Apparel Group, has partnered with Vogue magazine for a special iPhone initiative to celebrate the launch of several new Rachel Roy projects.

The interactive experience features a shopable fall look book from the new Rachel Rachel Roy collection, episodes of the Rachel Roy documentary produced by Vogue.TV and a sweepstakes to win looks from the new Rachel Rachel Roy collection. “The Rachel Roy brand came to us wanting to look at ways to bring the brand to a place where people can interact with it anywhere any time,” said Stephanie Horton, creative services director at Vogue, New York. “The iPhone is really big right now so we thought it would be cool to do something on it and appeal to that market.”

The interactive look book includes 13 fall looks personally selected by Rachel Roy from her new diffusion line, Rachel Rachel Roy and includes affordable contemporary sportswear, footwear, handbags and jewelry.
The iPhone initiative also features the three-episode documentary called Behind The Lens, produced by Vogue.TV and famed director Douglas Keeve. The documentary gives viewers a behind-the-scenes look into Ms. Roy's daily life, from fittings in her showroom to time with her family and the launch of her new diffusion collection. IPhone users can also sign-up for email updates from Rachel Roy about seasonal trends and new products or visit Rachel's Facebook or Twitter pages.

For more information contact teresa@zipstripe.com

JCPenney Expands Initiative With Mobile

J. C. Penney Company Inc. launched a new application for Apple’s iPhone, putting style, quality and price right at the fingertips of consumers.

The JCPenney Weekly Deals application lets users browse a select group of store-advertised sale items that are featured in the latest weekend sales circular. Additionally, consumers can create a portable shopping list within the application by saving items as favorites. “The launch of the new JCPenney Weekly Deals application builds on the retailer's Know Before You Go initiative, which allows consumers to have the research on the best prices, style and discounts right in the palm of their hand — making shopping easy and efficient,” said Margot Inzetta, digital publicist at 360i, New York.

The strategy was based on the fact that shoppers increasingly do research online prior to visiting a store.
The JCPenney site added innovative features such as enhanced search capabilities and product information, merchandise availability at local stores, and the ability to view weekly sales circulars online, making shopping at JCPenney easier. Now with the launch of this new iPhone application, customers can check for the latest special offers and find the nearest store to either their current location or to a ZIP code/city name right from the palm of their hand. Weekly content updates to the application will be automatic and require no action by customers. 

Additionally, earlier this summer JCPenney launched its Schooled in Style: Smart Looks for Less, multichannel campaign for the 2009 back-to-school season.The campaign combined mobile, digital, social and traditional media such as events. The mobile aspects let teens sign-up to receive text messages on their mobile phones about back-to-school sales and special offers at JCPenney.

“Furthermore, with more than 13 million iPhone users in the U.S. — along with 12 million iPod Touch users who can also download apps – the launch of an iPhone app allows us to share our style, quality and affordable prices each week with a rapidly growing base of consumers,” he said.

For more information contact Andrew at damico@zipstripe.com

Tiffany Targets Ladies Via Smartphones

Iconic jewelry brand Tiffany & Co. used mobile to promote its new product line to female consumers in their 30s who use iPhone or BlackBerry smartphones.

Tiffany wanted to create buzz and excitement around its new collection, drive footfall to its new concept store in California and generate product sales. The jewelry brand also wanted to underline the key differences of the new concept store compared to former incarnations. “The goal was to drive consumers in store,” he said.

As a luxury brand, a clean, seamless and intuitive interface and user experience wTiffany’s key demographic is high-net-worth females ages 28-54, with a strong interest in fashion, shopping and luxury products.ere key. “Our insight combined with their consumer research found that many of their target consumers are iPhone or BlackBerry users,” Mr. Carney said. “We identified the iPhone in particular as not only a great way to deliver brand innovation and get that story out, but provide content and functionality that is relevant to that audience, letting them experience the Tiffany shopping experience via their smartphone,” he said.

The mobile site let visitors find out about the new store, get directions via Google Maps and click-to-call the store. From Mobile Marketer at http://bit.ly/13I4kV

For More Information contact mike@zipstripe.com

Audible adds Mobile Calls2Action to Traditional Ads

Audible.com has incorporated mobile into its more traditional marketing initiatives, offering free audiobook downloads to BlackBerry users.
Traditional ads include a mobile call to action, asking consumers to text AUDIBLE to short code 35620 to get Thomas Friedman’s No. 1 bestseller free. The mobile calls to action are present on New York City subway trains,  within New York Times and Wall Street Journal print ads, and online via banner ads.

“We are trying to offer customers a chance to have an instant interaction with our ad,” said Will Lopes, vice president of business development at Audible.com, Newark, NJ. “Offering the ability to text gives consumers an opportunity for instant gratification to a free piece of audio with no obligations.” Audible is a provider of audiobooks read by authors and celebrities in addition to magazines, radio shows, podcasts, stand-up comedy, and speeches. Users who use Audible can download to their computer or sync to a mobile device. Audible is a subsidiary of Amazon.com.

“The broader strategic goal is to target commuters and communicate the utility of using Audible while commuting, as well as engaging them with an offer to which they can respond immediately,” Mr. Lopes said. From Mobile Marketer at http://bit.ly/155z2K

For further information contact Andrew at damico@zipstripe.com

Sears, Loehmann's, Rubio's using Mobile Coupons to Drive Consumers In-store

Big brands such as Rubio's Fresh Mexican Grill, Sears, California Pizza Kitchen and Loehmann's are leveraging location-based mobile-coupon network Yowza. Consumers simply show the digital mobile coupon on their iPhone or iPod touch at the time of payment to redeem the discount on their purchase. From Mobile Marketer at http://bit.ly/3GTKhZ

For more information contact mike@zipstripe.com

Petcentric Mobile App for Pet Lovers

Purina’s new iPhone application is using the phone’s location-based capabilities to help pet lovers and their four-legged friends.

Nestlé Purina Petcare’s “petcentric places” is a free download for both iPhone and iPod touch users. Consumers also can share photos of their pets in a photo gallery and are encouraged to add and rate pet-friendly places and services available on the application.

“Our strategy for petcentric places is to provide on-the-go pet owners with a one-stop source of helpful information that can enrich the lives of their pets — from local veterinarians to dog parks to pet products and pet-friendly travel accommodations,” said Laura Lee, digital brand manager at Nestlé Purina PetCare, St. Louis. The Purina application provides a way to find pet-friendly locations and activities in the United States, such as lodging, dog parks, dog beaches, campgrounds, amusement parks and travel accommodations.

The application also provides search services to find veterinarians, animal shelters, pet sitters, kennels, groomers and dog walkers.

“At Nestlé Purina, we're always looking for new ways to reach our consumers with information that can enrich the lives of their pets and strengthen the bond between pets and their owners,” Ms. Lee said.

“We're making petcentric places available for on-the-go pet lovers who use mobile phones as a source of information about their pets,” Ms. Lee said. “Our research shows that a growing number of pet lovers are using their mobile phones for fun and information, and "petcentric places" is a great way to connect with them.” From Mobile Marketer at http://bit.ly/OBdSm

For more information contact Andrew damico@zipstripe.com