Mountain View, California — Relentlessly striving to capitalize on its e-commerce solutions, search giant Google over the weekend introduced a real-time new digital coupon offering called Zavers by Google, a service that empower retailers and manufacturers to reward their loyal customers with relevant coupons. The company, however, said that it would be demonstrating the product first-hand to visitors of Google’s booth at the annual National Retail Federation (NFR) Convention & Expo in New York, which runs through Tuesday.
Basically, Google is touting Zavers as the method for getting “the right coupons to the right shoppers.” But the one discomfort shoppers have with coupons is actually remembering to use them when the time comes to present it at checkout. But, with the new service that will make using coupons an easy and painless ordeal.
Also, retailers can utilize the product to extend their existing incentive programs. Hence, Zavers by Google coupons are applied to purchases without the need to show and scan paper or digital coupons; redemption occurs “in real time.”
Here is a summary on how it works, according to the product site:
Explaining the uniqueness of the service, it stated, Shoppers would find the manufacturer discounts on their favorite retailer’s websites and add the digital coupons to their online cards. Savings are automatically deducted at checkout when shoppers swipe their rewards card or type in their phone numbers — no scanning or sorting necessary.
“Unlike traditional media, Zavers’ real-time data empower manufacturers novel ways to guage coupon redemptions and analyze consumer preferences so they can manage distribution, tailor campaigns, and optimize budgets for maximum ROI,” says Google Commerce Director of Emerging Platforms, Spencer Spinnell. “Zavers also offers access to an extensive network of manufacturer coupons, opening up new retail revenue streams.”
Spinnell, explained further in a blog post, using a few colorful examples in which “dog owners do not get cat food coupons and parents of teenagers do not get diaper coupons. Then they simply shop for those products and check out as usual. Manufacturers only pay when a product is moved off the shelf.”
As a matter of fact, real-time turnaround and responses to data feedback — whether it be in retail, finance, or just about anywhere else related to business — looks like it is going to be a major topic in 2013.
As for those who prefer in-store experiences, Zavers has also been consolidated with Google Wallet. Google Wallet users will just tap their phone at checkout, and, once again, the coupon is applied to the purchase. As of now, it seems Google Wallet integration is the only way to use Zavers in-store, although it is expected that Google will consider supporting other methods.