Best Buy Takes Shopkick's Mobile Rewards National

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Best Buy is expanding its 257-store Shopkick pilot to a nationwide endeavor. Patrons who have the mobile app open whenever they walk into one of the retailer's 1,300-odd locations will earn reward points for items like gift cards, song downloads, and flat-screen TVs.

After running an eight-month test, Drew Panayiotou, SVP of marketing at Best Buy, has decided to open the spigot. "Our customers are always on the go and are increasingly looking for tools that fit into their daily lives to make shopping easier," he said in a prepared statement. "Now, Best Buy shoppers across the country can get rewarded not just for shopping, but simply for walking into one of our stores."

Indeed, Shopkick's technology verifies when a user is in-store, and then rewards him or her with points that the Palo Alto, CA-based company calls "kicks." Other Best Buy offers will also be listed in the app's general "deals" sections. Shopkick says 1.5 million people have downloaded the iPhone/Android app, which is also being tested as a marketing platform by Macy's, Target, Kraft Foods, Procter & Gamble, and Unilever.

Meanwhile, the development marks the second straight day with interesting news from Shopkick. On Thursday, it announced a partnership with The CW Television Network. The broadcast company's advertisers will be able to reward Shopkick users with offers meant to drive them to stores if they watch select ad spots.

TV viewers will be prompted by CW's programming to open their app when a commercial airs. The application will "hear" and recognize the advertiser's spot through the iPhone or Android microphone and then deliver rewards to the viewer.

The CW is Shopkick's first network partner, and their relationship comes on the heels of a flurry of activity in the growing TV-mobile advertising realm. Pepsi has partnered with IntoNow to let Major League Baseball viewers tag Pepsi Max commercials through their phones and earn a free 20-ounce bottle of the soda.

And TV check-in platforms like GetGlue, Philo, and Miso have been busy partnering with brands and broadcast networks. For instance, GetGlue has been working with Fox TV and restaurant chain Fatburger to promote the television series, "Bob's Burgers." In one example of how rewards have been dished out, users who checked in to the animated show's premiere on Jan 8 received a Fatburger sticker that included a printable coupon redeemable for a free burger.