Since a plethora of its customers use mobile devices, regional retailer Meijer sought to enhance their shopping experience. As a result, Meijer installed free Wi-Fi in its 204 stores in Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, and Kentucky.
“Our customers are increasingly relying on apps to assist them with their shopping, and offering them free Wi-Fi is just one way Meijer is arming them with the tools they need to ensure they have a great shopping experience,” Michael Ross, vice president of customer marketing and emerging technology at Meijer, told Loyalty360.
Meijer launched its mPerks digital coupon loyalty program in the fall of 2010 as a way to help its deal-seeking customers save money and time at the register without having to cut, print, or present a coupon during checkout.
“mPerks is a key component that allows customers to save money, shop easier, and be rewarded for their loyalty to Meijer,” Ross explained. “mPerks is available to customers in multiple solutions. First, we built a website in a responsive design that scales across PC, Tablet, and mobile devices. And then we launched the Meijer Mobile App for our customers who use smartphones. It’s important for customers to have choices in how they wish to connect to the program across a range of devices they use every day.”
Ross said the mPerks loyalty program and the mobile app have resonated incredibly well with Meijer’s customers. The mPerks program surpassed two million members in December−just one year after achieving the one million mark.
“In some months, the program generates as many as 100,000 new users,” Ross said.
What’s more, Meijer’s mobile app has about 650,000 users and offers a variety of popular features:
View and clip digital coupons with the mPerks program
Create and check off items on a shopping list
Browse sale items and save to shopping list
Earn total purchase savings from Personalized, Pharmacy and Baby Reward programs
Receive maps to a nearby Meijer store
Search and find products on a store map
Meijer is credited with being the first hypermarket store in the U.S., which combines a supermarket and a department store under one roof.
“Our customers are relying on mobile devices more than ever as they shop, which is why we’re very focused on meeting that demand,” Ross added. “We are constantly providing our customers with new features–from free Wi-Fi in-store to mPerks to the Meijer mobile app–to enhance their shopping experience.”
Ross believes the success of the mPerks loyalty program is based on a few things.
“We believe the program’s success is based on a variety of factors, including a new web design that made it easier for customers to navigate, the convenience it offers, and its constant evolution,” he explained. “We began offering our customers personalized rewards last spring, which gives them monetary reward coupons based on their in-store spending. Meijer also introduced Pharmacy and Baby reward programs last summer, allowing customers to personalize their savings and earn rewards based on purchases in those categories.”