Kellogg’s and United Biscuits have become the first brands to sign up and trial Shopitize’s patented brand-to-consumer cashback mobile couponing service. 

A group of over 1,000 UK shoppers are now receiving coupon deals from Kellogg’s and United Biscuits via the Shopitize service, which went live on November 14 2012.

Sam Blunt, brand experience and digital controller at Kellogg’s UK, says: “Mobile technology is becoming more and more integrated into our everyday lives, and Shopitize is the first mobile couponing system we have seen that operates right across the retail trade.”

Exclusive deals for Shopitize users include well-known brands such as McVities Jaffa Cakes, Kellogg’s Special K, Crunchy Nut and Coco Pops breakfast cereals, Pringles and Special K Cereal Bars. Shoppers are being offered savings of up to 50% of normal retail prices.

Shopitize has developed a promotional platform and apps to deliver exclusive deals to registered smartphone users. Once consumers download the apps, they are able to receive exclusive deals on their phones. 

All users need to do is visit their supermarket and buy the products featured in the Shopitize app. Using the app, they take snaps of their paper shopping receipts, which are then automatically processed and validated by the Shopitize mobile ecosystem. Consumers are rewarded by cashback either by PayPal or cheque.

Shopitize says its big advantage is that its app gets round the challenges associated with redeeming paper coupons in store, and that there is no need to scan a mobile barcode at the till, as with other mobile systems, which supermarket tills can struggle to do. 

It also claims to put the consumer in control, allowing them to monetise their loyalties while also giving brands the tools to join each individual consumer’s circle of trusted brands and optimise their marketing spend, resulting in savings for both.

Irina Pafomova, Shopitize’s managing director, says: “With a wealth of information at their fingertips, consumers are savvier than ever. They're also much less likely to be swayed by traditional, in-your-face advertising and commercials. Instead, they want to be entertained and engaged by marketers. As more users join and use Shopitize to share their shopping data in privacy, brands will be able to better target the profiles of consumers and offer them highly personal and exclusive offers based on their precise shopping behaviour. This can drastically improve the efficiency of their promotional spends.”

Network giant Cisco recently chose Shopitize as one of the six finalists in its British Innovation Gateway Awards.