We know. Coupons are as old as the hills – and there’s a reason why they’re still around. But no reason why consumers need to clip them, in the Age of Mobile. MobiSave is a free mobile coupon app that turns grocery receipts into cash, and what shopper is going to say no to that – especially when it’s so easy!
And we mean that it’s as easy as downloading the app, and get cash back with MobiSave. MobiSave’s exclusive rebates are valid at all stores, and there are no inactivity fees or minimums to be paid.
Like we said – easy. CEO David Florence tells us how they’re going direct to consumer and creating a win for brands.
Tell us about MobiSave.
MobiSave is a mobile consumer promotion system designed specifically to serve major consumer packaged goods manufacturers. Many might refer to it as a mobile coupon app.
How is it different?
Our single minded focus is on providing manufacturers a direct consumer incentive channel with the ability to optimize purchase incentives, based on known consumer behavior,and do it without dependence on retailers or any third party. For shoppers, it provides great savings on everyday items, anywhere they shop, with nothing to clip or print.
What market are you attacking?
Our primary focus is the $7.5 billion spent on freestanding inserts (FSI) annually
What is your business model?
MobiSave is a free app, with no membership fee. Registered members can select from a broad range of grocery, household, health and beauty items. After selecting offers of interest, the member can shop anywhere that provides an itemized receipt (over 225,000 locations). After shopping, the member verifies the purchase by snapping an image of their receipt using the app’s camera. Once received by MobiSave’s backend, the image is converted to data and searched. Matches are communicated back to the member in minutes, and the reward is paid into their PayPal account within the hour. Simultaneous to validating the purchase, we are also mining the entire sales receipt to learn more about members and their interests so that we can offer each individual member the most relevant assortment of offers possible.
Manufacturers pay nothing to appear on MobiSave. They only pay after a sale has been made. MobiSave charges a small per redemption fee to the manufacturer.
What inspired you to found the company?
We were witness to early mobile coupon systems that were providing elegant solutions to, what we believed were, all of the wrong problems. Having spent our lives working for major brands and the ad agencies that served them, we felt that we were uniquely equipped to build a solution that could become the “preferred solution of leading packaged goods marketers”
Is the mobile commerce revolution finally ready to begin?
The revolution started when GSM networks began penetrating developing countries in the early 90s,having a dramatic economizing effect on countries with very little communication and information infrastructure. What we are seeing now is just an evolution as different technologies merge to provide new ways of doing things. Peer to peer banking is a great example. The day when paper checks and paper receipts are a thing of the past is near.
What are the milestones that you plan to achieve in the next six months?
We are focused on accelerating manufacturer adoption. We have experienced tremendous consumer interest in MobiSave, but we are waiting for manufacturer participation to catch up with that interest. The milestone that we are focused on is earning a seat at the manufacturer’s table when they do their planning for 2016 later this year.
What is the one piece of startup advice that you never got?
Who not to listen to.
If you could be put in touchwith one investor in the New York community who would it be?
We love the one we’re with.
Why did you launch in NY?
I©NY. Born & bred.
What is your favorite outdoor bar?
Without question, the best outdoor bar is the Honorable William Wall.
