Can Shopping Apps Offer Real Discounts?

October 31, 2024 | 3 minutes read


Editorial Team

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Introduction

Let’s face it – saving money never gets old. If shoppers can score a deal on their favorite merchandise, groceries, restaurant orders, and gas station top-ups, they will. And wherever there is demand for savings, discounts, and rewards, suppliers will be lining up to present their offerings. A plethora of shopping apps peppers the App Store, Google Play Store, and shopping sites with a wide range of offerings. These money-saving services are designed to help shoppers keep more of their cash in hand.

We live through inflationary times, and the cost of a typical basket of goods and services is much higher today than a year ago. This presents significant challenges to businesses and their customers. Without effective cost-cutting measures up and down the supply chain, higher prices are invariably passed on to consumers. SMEs realize that budgets are tightening, and discretionary spending is lower. Many customers are prematurely eating into their savings, depleting their lines of credit, and struggling to keep pace.

Cost-Reduction Strategies Explained

Never has it been more critical to implement cost-reduction strategies for the benefit of society. There are, of course, multiple workable plans to implement to achieve these strategic objectives. Economies of scale can undoubtedly bring down the per-unit cost, provided that costs of factors of production can be contained. However, cost-effective solutions such as shopping apps, restaurant discount apps, and consumer rewards apps are doing their part to assist in stemming the tide of price rises.

For example, the foremost restaurant discount apps reward patrons for their purchases by offering cost savings from businesses listed on the apps. It’s now possible for customers to get genuine cash back, not rewards points or miles, but cashback on purchases of gasoline and food. Such money-saving solutions resonate with customers for many different reasons. For one thing, customers don’t need to change their buying habits to save money on purchases. It’s business as usual, with cash back on purchases. For instance, if a shopper buys dinner for the family at a restaurant, that same purchase could now be paired with a reward in the form of cashback.

Benefits for Businesses and Consumers

There are many different cash-back apps in cyberspace. Among the best cashback apps, customers can expect access to a pool of tens of thousands of participating restaurants, grocery stores, and gas stations. This bodes well for both sides– shoppers and business owners. For businesses, visibility on these apps is great marketing. Plus, it provides a treasure trove of data analytics to pour over. Companies can learn about their customers’ shopping habits, tastes, preferences, budgetary requirements, etc.

Businesses are competing with one another for limited customers. Customers are grappling with rising prices amid geopolitical uncertainty. A welcome reprieve is sorely needed. And that is precisely what awaits with shopping apps offering real discounts. It’s a two-way street, however. Businesses also benefit dramatically from participating in these programs. Since the cost of acquiring new customers is high and the success rate is so low, it pays to drill down deeper with existing customers loyal to the brand. This results in increased customer loyalty, greater trust and transparency.

Choosing the Right Shopping App

However, shopping online has peripheral benefits, with unique app payment methods. Most apps permit various payment options; customers can benefit from rewards programs. In other words, you could use Visa, MasterCard, or American Express and enjoy the points or cash-back benefits from your payment provider and the discount apps you choose. If you make timely payments, you can avoid excessive interest repayments and score a win with rewards and discounts. It’s all in a day’s work, with no sweat off your back.

The Google Play and App Store are filled with many competitive discount shopping apps. Each one should be considered on its merits. It’s important to point out that discount shopping apps are not limited to grocery stores. Some offer unique promotions, coupons, and rebates. Customers are advised to take note of the features and preferred use cases for shopping apps. Some work well on Android operating systems and others can be used across Android and iOS platforms. For example, Capital One’s mobile app boasts a unique feature that allows customers to watch airline and hotel prices through Capital One, with recommendations to buy now when the price is right. Other shopping-based apps enable customers to store gift cards in the app, while others are exclusively designed for brand-name purchases. Whatever your preference, a digital solution is geared expressly towards your requirements.