Co-operative Group gets a taste for mobile proximity marketing
The Co-operative Group has announced the launch of its first mobile proximity marketing campaign.
Working with O2 and Dr Pepper, the Group is sending a text message to customers within 0.5 miles of a Co-operative food store offering them a free 500ml bottle of Dr Pepper that can be collected from their nearest Co-operative store.
The text messages are being sent out from today until 14 June 2011.
The initiative is being supported by O2 Media, which is providing the database of 16 to 34 year olds who have chosen to receive location-based marketing messages.
To facilitate the scheme, virtual perimeters or “geo-fences” have been set up around Co-operative food stores and the service is triggered by the customer’s proximity to one of these stores. Eligible customers in these areas will receive an SMS/MMS text message with the offer and the address of the nearest store.
The Co-operative Group has already announced that it will become the first major UK food retailer to introduce contactless payments, which will be trialled in 150 Co-operative food stores from September, following a link up with Barclaycard.
Sean Toal, commercial director for The Co-operative Food, commented: “The Co-operative is keen to make use of cutting-edge technologies, and mobile proximity marketing means we can target customers with specific offers and engage with them directly.”
The Co-operative Group has approximately 3,000 stores nationwide and is the UK’s fifth biggest food retailer.
