Internet currency company beenz.com is developing a technology to reward offline spending on the high street.
The technology consists of a series of codes issued inside product packaging by manufacturers or given to the purchaser at point of sale. Each code is unique and allows the merchant to track the product from its point of manufacture to its purchase by the ultimate consumer. The purchaser enters a code at a specified Web site, along with personal information that might be requested by the manufacturer, to earn beenz.
The launch of beenzCodes has been made possible by the acquistion of several US and foreign patents which provide beenz with the exclusive right to place alphanumeric codes on or inside product packaging (hidden from the consumer before the purchase has been made), in conjunction with the purchaser earning beenz by submitting that code through a Web site. Other applications include retail and wireless devices.
Charles Cohen, chairman and CEO of beenz.com, says: “Sixty-eight per cent of consumers who use Web sites to research products later make their purchase in an offline store, and spend 30% more than other consumers do. beenzCodes will enable our customers to capture, track and tap into the spending power of the multi-channel consumer.”