Without realizing what I was doing, I’ve apparently gotten most of the people in my life hooked on using retail store apps for their Android or iPhone. I mean, I’m well aware that I love using these apps, but I guess I hadn’t realized I’d been selling their greatness to anyone and everyone who would listen. You see, I’m a business major and, to me, shopping is serious business.
How most retail store apps work, whether for Android or iPhone, is pretty simple: shop, earn, and redeem. But what I wanted to know was how to make the most of them to really up my shopping game with a free app. I wanted to pinpoint what my college business professors might call a set of best practices for using free shopping rewards apps on my smartphone.
Let’s take a look at some of my personal recommendations for getting the most out of retail store apps—because you don’t have to be a business major to get down to the business of savings and rewards.
Free Is the Way to Be for Retail Store Apps for Androids and iPhones
Here’s a definition of what best practices are, taken straight out of my old college notes: Commercial or professional procedures that are accepted or prescribed as being correct or most effective. And here’s the definition of them that we’re going to use today: retail app usage procedures that are accepted or prescribed as being correct or most effective.
Now that we have that clear, let’s start with the most obvious tip I can offer when it comes to retail store apps for both Androids and iPhones: free is the way to be.
You simply shouldn’t have to pay a cent to use a great retail store app, whether it’s for a specific store or one you can use at all the spots you shop.
This is more than just a catchy little rhyme, it’s also vital to understand. You simply shouldn’t have to pay a cent to use a great retail store app, whether it’s for a specific store or one you can use at all the spots you shop. The point, after all, is to save not to spend. Or maybe I should say save while you spend in 2018.
Retail Store Apps Should Be Versatile
Since I started urging all my friends to use retail store apps for their iPhone and Android smartphones, I have, on rare occasions, encountered some hesitation. Like most of us these days, many of them have started to do the bulk of their shopping online.
They understandably worry that taking the time to download and start using a retail store app won’t be worth it to them, since they find themselves going online to buy almost everything, from paper towels to books to clothes to electronics. Hey, I’ve been there. I get more and more things online every year, too!
That’s why our second best practice for using these apps is to make sure the one you choose will also help you earn points for shopping online. My favorites are the ones that let you get paid to shop online, even if you’re making purchases from your mobile device. It’s generally pretty simple to use them when you shop from a desktop, too—as simple as it is to use them in person at brick and mortar stores. You get points for plenty of online shopping activities, including:
- Visiting online stores
- Viewing select products
- Making mobile purchases
- Watching featured videos
These are all things you’d probably be doing anyway, so why not earn while you do? This is why making sure you get an app you can use when you shop online ranks second on our list of best practices.
Go for the Best Retail Store App
When I went back to look for an exact definition of best practices in my old college notes, I noticed something else I’d underlined: always collaborate with the best and brightest. I think this is also true of using retail store apps. While using multiple apps to maximize rewards is definitely a great strategy, my advice is to never lose sight of which app is the best. To me, that means the app that is both the most fun and gives you the most chances for savings.
While using multiple apps to maximize rewards is definitely a great strategy, my advice is to never lose sight of which app is the best.
Since shopping is a thing we all have to do all of the time, it’s vital to get an app that gives you reasons to look forward to using it, like turning every trip to the store into a fun scavenger hunt for points. For me, the app that does this best is Shopkick.
How Shopkick works is cool because when you use it, you literally start scoring points, called kicks, the moment you walk into the store. Then it becomes a hunt to find featured products and scan their barcodes for prices and info. Finally, it also gives you points once you make your purchases. Plus, it fits in with the first two best practices for shopping apps we established above.
You may have your own school of thought on these apps, but for me, the choice is easier than Business 101: Shopkick is not only at the top of the class, but in a class of its own.
Start making the most of retail store apps for your Android or iPhone by using Shopkick. Download the free shopping rewards app and join a community of loyal Shopkickers who’ve already discovered the fun of shopping with us!
And, if you love social media as much as you love your smartphone, join us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Image courtesy Wayhome Studio
