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Smart-phone app promises money for 'checking in' [The Orlando Sentinel, Fla.](Orlando Sentinel (FL) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Jun. 19--Advertisement It's a simple idea: Take your iPhone to a place such as Ichiban Japanese Restaurant in downtown Orlando, snap a picture of yourself eating a tuna roll and post it on Facebook, Twitter or Foursquare. For that, you can earn some cash. A mobile application called WeReward was launched by an Orlando-based social-media marketing firm called IZEA last month. It's the first of the so-called "location-based apps" that offers actual money to its users. WeReward is limited to the iPhone for now, but the company says it will be offered for the Droid next month, followed by the BlackBerry. Location-based social networks are fast gaining popularity in the digital world. Smart-phone owners use their phones to pull up an application, such as Foursquare or Gowalla, find the business they are at and click the "check in" button. This allows friends to know where the users are or users can find others in the same area. Users can get "badges" or bragging rights as "mayor" of a particular place. WeReward is not competing directly with those apps, said Ted Murphy, IZEA's founder. "Our model is everyone gets compensated with cash," he said. "What gets listed is based on who is willing to pay [users] the most." Users get a penny per point, but businesses set up their own rates per visit. For example, Domino's Pizza, one of the main franchises already on board, offers 25 cents for a check-in with a pizza, Murphy said. Once they reach 1,000 points, users can cash out $10 on PayPal, an online-payment system. So far, 5,000 people from across the country have downloaded the free app. The businesses learn who checked in, how much they spent and on what. They can see other stores the users went to and what they bought there. Businesses could even contact the person through Facebook, Twitter or Foursquare. John Raser, a 27-year-old pro golfer who downloaded WeReward shortly after it started, likes it because he's getting money for what he was already doing. He checks in at his usual stops, such as Chipotle and Chick-fil-A. The Dr. Phillips resident earned 500 points by taking a picture of himself eating a Taco Bell taco, he said. "It basically paid for my lunch," he said. And it's not limited to location. Murphy aims at adding products to the list. For example, Jones Soda Inc. is signed on, and users can take a photo with a soda anywhere for the points. Lee Raine, director of Pew Center's Internet and American Life Project, called WeReward a "natural progression" in the use of social media. It's another version of the preferred-customer card. "This is the latest thing tied to new technology," he said. Steve Rubel, director of insights for Edelman Digital, which focuses on public relations, social media and digital communications, said businesses are starting to experiment on how to use location-based services. Pepsi Co. announced an app that let users earn points toward downloading music or earn a free Pepsi at a restaurant. "There is no doubt that offering incentives for participating is an interesting model that hasn't been fully tested yet," he said. He wonders whether the few cents that users get for a WeReward check-in will be enough to keep them coming back. "Will it wear out after a while?" he said. Ichiban's owner, Owen Siah, is eager to see whether WeReward takes off. "It costs us nothing unless people come in and buy something," he said. IZEA has for years been on the cutting edge of social networking, something that has prompted criticism of the company in the past. Last year, it started "sponsored tweets," which connected advertisers to users on the microblogging service Twitter. In 2006, Murphy debuted "PayPerPost," in which bloggers were being paid to post about certain products. Both programs are still going strong, Murphy said. They have 35,000 products being hyped with hundreds of thousands of Twitter messages and blog posts, he said. Raser, who has 7,000 Twitter followers and takes part in the two programs, has earned as much as $50 per tweet, he said. WeReward has garnered some buzz so far since it debuted at TechCrunch Disrupt, a conference with Web innovators, investors and journalists. The system already has 15 million business listed, Murphy said. His company will pay for points even if the business is not taking part in WeReward. He eventually wants to include other tasks, such as filling out a form or downloading a specific app. Murphy is planning a major sales push to show businesses the benefit of getting involved with WeReward. Rubel questioned how many people will want to share sometimes personal information with businesses. But Murphy said there is a policy statement when users download the app, saying people should assume all the check-in information is public. "Like all social media, we suggest that you don't share what you don't want to be seen," Murphy said. Sarah Lundy can be reached at [email protected] or 407-420-6218. To see more of The Orlando Sentinel or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.OrlandoSentinel.com. Copyright (c) 2010, The Orlando Sentinel, Fla. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email [email protected], call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. |