What Happened
Walgreens is making it much easier for shoppers to use digital coupons with Apple Pay. The Deerfield, Illinois-based drugstore chain was one of the first retailers to accept loyalty cards via Apple Pay and has allowed members of its Balance Rewards loyalty program to clip digital coupons from various sources for redemption in stores. Now with a deeper Apple Pay integration, Balance Rewards members will be alerted when they shop online of available digital coupons, which they can clip with one tap and redeem when they check out via Apple Pay in the Walgreens app, on its website, or in stores. The company reported that to date over 135 million digital coupons have been clipped through its app and website.
What Retailers Need To Do
Earlier this month, Walgreens introduced two new APIs, one of which enables third-party apps to access their digital coupons, signaling its intention to expand its support for digital coupons. Now with this Apple Pay integration, the drugstore chain is making coupons a lot more user-friendly to its loyalty program members. The added perks will likely help boost signups and activities for the Balance Rewards program, which can help Walgreens lock in shopper loyalty regardless of where they choose to make the purchase. Other retailers need to take a cue and start making their loyalty programs more accessible across platforms.
For more information on how retailers can effectively reach connected consumers by taking an omnichannel approach, check out the Boundless Retail section in our Outlook 2016.
Source: BusinessWire
