Project Aplication Zupy
Problem Statement
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Micro and Small businesses face two major challenges in order to survive: attracting and retaining new customers.
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According to a survey by the Brazilian Loyalty Market Association, despite 92.5% of points being issued in Retail, only 12.6% of these points are redeemed within the retail sector.
Origin of issued points/miles (4Q22)
Destination of redeemed points/miles (4Q22)
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Most of the existing loyalty programs, despite offering benefits to users, do not focus on ensuring loyalty to the establishment. They are mainly geared towards accumulating miles and cashbacks through the use of credit cards, where the vast majority of these accumulated points are exchanged for travel or on some online marketplace.
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Small businesses do not have the resources or knowledge to implement a loyalty program like large companies, or even to issue their own currency so that their customers can return and redeem rewards at the establishment where they were issued.
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Another important factor is related to the issue of security and fraud with traditional systems; therefore, using blockchain technology for the issuance, verification, and even transaction of points among users makes perfect sense.
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These entrepreneurs still use paper loyalty cards or embedded systems, where customers often lose track of their points or the rewards they can redeem.
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Users and customers seek to discover and obtain information about new places, enjoy socializing and having fun, participate in promotions, be recognized for their loyalty, and save money. However, they face these issues because with traditional programs, customers often have their points expire and find it very difficult and time-consuming to redeem a reward, or they end up redeeming less attractive rewards on marketplaces to avoid losing their accumulated points and miles. This breakage rate (expired points/miles) is at 15.5% in 4Q22.
Solution Overview
Zupy’s solution aims to address these problems in two ways:
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Attracting New Users and Customers:
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By seeking to employ the latest concepts of loyalty 4.0, which not only involve point accumulation through financial transactions but also take into account the social activities performed by users, such as inviting new members (Member Get Member), check-ins, social media posts and shares, and gamification, including badge unlocking and NFTs. Users can also earn points by participating in surveys or receiving promotional messages, thus creating a Social Loyalty economy.
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To achieve this, a Zupy Coin or Token will be created, representing the user’s score for their social activities.
Loyalty and Rewarding Users and Customers:
- A specific Coin or Token will be created for each participating company, for example, Pet Coin or Pizza Pan Coin, where customers will receive these coins for their financial transactions, following the rules defined by the company’s strategy. These coins will be used to redeem rewards at the establishment where they were issued, thus creating a bond and loyalty between the customer and the establishment.
Prize Marketplace
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To attract new customers and promote their businesses, companies can offer prizes that users can redeem using their $Zupy Coins.
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A portion of these redeemed $Zupy Coins can be used by the companies to increase their promotion efforts and even distribute them to users for their social activities within the establishment. For example, a user who checks in, completes a survey, or leaves a recommendation at a restaurant will accumulate $Zupy Coins offered by the establishment.
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To prevent an inflation of $Zupy Coins, we will control this by burning a portion of the coins when users redeem prizes at establishments. In addition to the coins from the companies, a part of $Zupy Coins will also need to be burned.
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Another way to reduce the circulation of $Zupy Coins will be by offering prizes funded by Zupy or provided by partners, such as movie tickets, concert tickets, and high-value intangible prizes that users can acquire through auctions. To place a bid in an auction, a portion of these coins will be burned.
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This way, we won’t need to assume costs for acquiring prizes or the responsibility of rewarding users, thus avoiding creating liabilities for Zupy, as is the case with traditional loyalty programs. Since the prizes will be offered by the partnering establishments or through auctions.
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Value Proposition
- To be a Unique and Definitive Tool for Customer Loyalty
- To create a single user database where users can complete their profile once and participate in various loyalty programs without the need for repeated registrations.
- To provide integrations with various ERP, E-commerce, and payment gateway tools for the secure accumulation of company-specific coins.
- To offer a fun platform for users to discover locations, seek information, leave reviews, and be rewarded with prizes and discounts.
Technical Details:
- Currently, we use a platform built in Python/Django for users to find available companies and prizes. It’s integrated with a system for creating cards that can be saved in the user’s mobile wallet or in the company’s own app via PWA.
- Companies validate user purchases through an authorized scanning app for each account or through the web platform.
- Our differentiator is the creation of a White Label program for each company, allowing users to use their mobile wallet without the need to install a specific company app or save the company’s app on their mobile home screen.
Demo or Prototype
The system is already functional, with over 71,000 users participating in the programs of 77 companies. We even have clients outside of Brazil, in Portugal.
You can explore the tool and see how it works at:
There are promotional videos showcasing how the tool functions and how it is used in action.
Clube Zupy - CartĂŁo de Fidelidade no Celular
Video of the current tool usage by users
Como funciona o CartĂŁo Fidelidade Zupy!
Market Potential
Fórum de Fidelização 2023: democratizando o Loyalty
The sixth edition of the Brazilian Loyalty Forum, organized by the ABEMF (Brazilian Association of Loyalty Market Companies), on September 12, 2023, in São Paulo, reaffirmed the strength of the sector with numbers and ideas. According to the association’s president, Emerson Moreira, in 2023 alone, the sector will generate R$20 billion in the country.
In Brazil alone, micro and small enterprises make up 93.7% of the country’s businesses.
- The most recent Business Map, conducted quarterly by the Ministry of Development, Industry, Trade, and Services, recorded over 21 million active businesses between January and April 2023. Out of this total, more than 20 million (equivalent to 93.7%) are micro-enterprises or small businesses.
Team Overview:
We have a team with over 20 years of experience in entrepreneurship and the digital market. These are long-time friends, with over 15 years of friendship, who have also collaborated on previous projects together.
Fábio Martinelli - CEO:
- LinkedIn: Fábio Martinelli
- Entrepreneur - has been in the internet business since 2000.
- Hustler, Specialist in Customer Loyalty and Gamification.
- Proficient in sales.
- Creator of the Customer Loyalty Canvas methodology.
- Author of 2 books on the subject:
- “Customer Loyalty in Practice - Step-by-Step for Implementing a Loyalty Program.”
- “Attracting and Retaining Customers Without Spending a Fortune.”
Wellington Cruz - CTO:
- LinkedIn: Wellington Cruz
- Hacker Entrepreneur / Technology Expert.
- 18 years of experience in system development and architecture.
- Last 7 years as an Architecture Manager in the insurance and healthcare market.
- Manages highly specialized technology teams, including architects, tech leads, and senior developers.
- Fluent in executive business discussions.
- Specialist in planning and activating technological strategies to achieve strategic objectives.
- Experience in Research and Development of technology, including implementing technologies like FHIR/HL7.
- Creator and host of the technology podcast “PPT Não Compila.”
Daniel Ricardo - Hipster: CMO
- LinkedIn: Daniel Ricardo
- Specialist in creativity, design, and UX for the internet since 2000.
- Entrepreneur in the Cannabis market since 2016.
- Expert in online media campaigns and direct sales.
- Skilled in designing processes.
Thiago Menon: Tech Lead
- LinkedIn: Thiago Menon
- Software development professional since 1999.
- Background in data processing, bachelor’s degree in computer science, and a postgraduate degree in project management.
- Has worked for large multinational companies and currently works for an American bank on Salesforce CRM solutions.
With such a diverse and experienced team, the project is well-positioned to tackle challenges and seize opportunities in the loyalty market. This combination of technical knowledge, entrepreneurship, and expertise in relevant areas is a valuable asset for the success of our venture.
Milestones & Roadmap
Feedback & Questions
I’m seeking feedback on the program and assistance with creating the Tokenomics for the creation of $Zupy coins and their burning.
Integration with other wallets.
User Testimonials
- Depoimento Vida Boa Poke & Cia - Zupy
- Depoimento Mania de Bicho - Macaé
- Depoimento Chic Chic - Clube Zupy!
Challenges Faced:
In the beginning, we offered a loyalty program tool, but we didn’t have a defined strategy. We were following the strategy of traditional paper-based loyalty cards where customers would redeem rewards after accumulating a certain number of points.
Other clients had their own strategies, which often turned out to be ineffective and led to low engagement or poor results for their loyalty programs.
During this period, I discovered what worked and, more importantly, what didn’t work in a loyalty program. What usually didn’t work fell into these categories:
- Uninspiring rewards.
- Confusing point systems.
- Difficult-to-earn points.
- Points that expired quickly.
- Hard-to-attain rewards.
- Rewards that didn’t resonate with customers.
- Cashbacks that only focused on the customer’s wallet.
- Programs requesting unnecessary information.
- Offering only cashbacks and discounts.
- Failing to create a desire in the customer to return.
- Teams not effectively promoting the loyalty program.
- Customers unable to track available rewards.
To address these issues, I created a Canvas for designing a flexible loyalty program adaptable to any business. I also wrote a book teaching how to create such a program.
In addition to these materials, I simplified the strategy, which I present in my second book, by offering an attractive incentive for new user sign-ups and a ladder of rewards. This approach helps customers see value in the program from the beginning and encourages them to return to earn better rewards.
I also turned this strategy into a digital course to onboard new businesses.
The biggest challenge is not selling a loyalty program tool but rather creating awareness among entrepreneurs about the importance of customer loyalty and how to use the right strategy. It’s almost like implanting a Loyalty Culture in Brazil.
Since this market is saturated with solutions like cashbacks or miles, which don’t work well for small businesses, the task is to shift the perspective towards effective loyalty strategies.
Future Enhancements
- Creation of $Zupy Coin: Developing the $Zupy coin to enhance social loyalty and gamification. This will involve improving the Zupy app to allow users to register, recommend new businesses, and accumulate coins, similar to the old Foursquare but with points that can be converted into real rewards.
- Creation of NFT Badges: Implementing NFT badges to reward users with additional benefits within the app. Additionally, creating NFTs for businesses that can be used to verify loyalty levels, participation in events, or consumption of specific items.
Collaborations or Partnerships
- Partnership with OstenMoove: We have formed a partnership with OstenMoove, an accelerator associated with the BMW dealership in Brazil. Together, we are conducting a series of lectures in various business associations, initially in the State of SĂŁo Paulo. Our goal is to bring digital transformation to small business owners who are still in need of marketing and, most importantly, customer loyalty strategies.
The post was originally created by Fabinho Martinelli and had 4 vote. It was later migrated to here.