Seoul-based mobile loyalty platform, Spoqa, has secured a significant investment of $3.9 million in funding to fuel its expansion across both Japan and Korea.
Spoqa operates Dodo Points, a tablet-based merchant loyalty platform that enables local businesses to engage with their customers more effectively. Since launching in April 2012, Spoqa claims to have attracted over 2.5 million customers in Korea alone.
Customers can use Dodo by simply entering their phone number into the tablet at checkout and redeeming their points for reward programs at each participating store. This unique loyalty program offers a compelling alternative to traditional plastic magnetic cards or paper punch cards, as users do not need to carry physical cards with them while shopping.
In comparison to other larger Asian markets, Spoqa decided to expand into Japan first due to the higher ratio of local merchants in the country who are less systemized when it comes to loyalty solutions. The company has also received support from partner merchants in Japan who have started paying for their services even before a properly translated version was available.
Richard Choi, Founder of Spoqa, explained that while other companies like Rakuten and Kakao are focusing on mobile-first or online-to-offline (O2O) transactions, Spoqa is taking the opposite approach by concentrating on connecting offline traffic to relevant online/mobile content and services linked by phone numbers. The goal of Spoqa’s unique proposition is to pioneer the O2O market in Asia.
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