Businesses can now add coupons and discounts to “check-ins”
Fousquare, SCVNGR and Yelp are notably the most popular “check-in” websites. And for good reason, have you seen the “Check-in Offer”?
Businesses can add a discount or coupon when a patron “checks-in” to their location using Yelp. It can be the first time or after repeat visit that the discount will appear and the patron is given the option to “Use It” or “Save It”. There are three different offer types: percent off, free or fixed price offers.
Yelp even sends business owners a sticker for their window to remind patrons to use the “check-in” feature. Business owners also have access to a tracking and analytics tool. Yelp reports a 50% increase in “check-ins”.
Some retailers have had a similar “check-in” offer, on Foursquare, to receive a percent off your purchase. In August, GAP gave a 25% discount for checking in, no printing required. Anne Taylor offered a similar 25% discount after the fifth “check-in”.
GAP currently has an online ad campaign that, when clicked, adds GAP to your Foursquare to do list including a coupon for 30% off one item.
While most of these discounts can also be found on Twitter and Facebook, the catch is you’ll have to print those. Using a check-in app on your smartphone only requires you to show them the offer on your phone to receive your discount. Nice!
If you search “check-in” on Google, you will also see results from social networks like Twitter, Facebook and MySpace. The number changes more than once per second, so it’s obviously a popular thing to do.
Google search "check-ins"
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Interesting statistics about check-in usage on Black Friday
So who had the most “check-ins”? According Foursquare statistics, Target was number one, followed closely by Wal-Mart then Best Buy.
Black Friday "check-in" statistics
Could your business benefit from this new media trend? Have you already created a new “check-in” offer? Tell us about your experience below.
