AppCard, a marketing and loyalty platform for small and medium-size retailers announced the close of a $20 million series B funding round this past week.
AppCard sends personalized offers
from retailers to consumers based on their shopping habits. Offers include mobile coupons and SMS messages, as well as a reward points system. The service also can provide a plastic discount card to
swipe for the app averse.
The new funding is intended to propel existing growth and further develop company technology.
The company helps marketers automate their offers with an
"artificial intelligence engine" that accounts for customer spending habits and provides access to data scientists and account managers to help maximize ROI.
Essentially, retailers pay a
monthly subscription fee to buy into a network that will allow them to understand what draws their consumers the way a larger company would be able to do alone.
53.47% of offers that were
redeemed resulted in customers buying an additional item, according to AppCard. The company also says that users spend 28.1% more than those not in the program.
The round was led by Alexander
Rittweger (founder of Loyalty Partner, and PLDT Capital) and included existing investors Founders Fund, Innovation Endeavors, and Jerry Yang of Yahoo.
Loyalty programs have been proven
valuable on mobile, eliminating the need for keeping track of multiple cards while maintaining and improving upon the trust and loyalty of the consumer (if executed properly).
Mobile users are
already pushing retailers to up their mobile game, and Business Intelligence expects mobile commerce to make up 45% of total ecommerce sales (or $284 billion).
The funding round also
marked the launch Android and iOS mobile apps, as well as a redesigned Web site and logo.