The Affinity Rewards Finder application uses the iPhone’s location-based technology to find participating merchants that offer cash-back percentages through the Sovereign Rewards debit card program. The application is available for free download in Apple’s App Store.

“Letting customers know where they can earn cash rebates while they are out shopping is the primary goal of the app,” said Torq Perry, vice president of analytics and new product development at Affinity Solutions, New York. “We created a very easy-to-use application that lets customers know within two button clicks where they can be rewarded.

“We wanted to make the user experience as simple as possible while still delivering relevant offers to them based on their location,” he said. “Sovereign Bank is a great partner of ours and they are very innovative, always looking for ways to improve their customers’ experiences and provide them new and useful services. 

“They were a natural fit for the project and it was a very much a collaborative effort.”

Affinity Solutions has developed many offline and online relationship marketing and retailer-funded programs.

Sovereign will be leveraging Affinity’s network of national and local brick-and mortar retailers to create a robust offering of cash-back bonuses.

Reward me
Sovereign customers can log-in to their existing Sovereign Cash Rewards and earn up to 20 percent back from retailers.

Both companies are looking at future additions to the application including point-of-sale receipts pointing shoppers to other local participating retailers and a rewards toolbar, which annotates search results with relevant offers, among other capabilities.

“Sovereign Bank has really supported the app with several consumers facing marketing initiatives, including strategic Web promotion on both their online banking site, and within the Sovereign Cash Rewards site,” Mr. Perry said. “Additionally they have featured it in outbound marketing pieces”

Mobile extension
Affinity and Sovereign are looking to extend the application to other mobile platforms such as Android and BlackBerry in January.

“We are working on several mobile initiatives and other enhancements to the app as well,” Mr. Perry said. “We plan on adding an ATM finder to the app in the short term. 

“We also have some very interesting offer distribution opportunities that are in the works that will allow us to provide a high value offer to a customer based on their location for a retailer they are near,” he said. “These offers will be highly targeted offering retailers the ability to reach customers with a deal while they are out shopping, benefiting everyone involved.”

Final Take
Rimma Kats is editorial assistant on Mobile Commerce Daily, New York