CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Vibes, a mobile marketing leader, today announced its Catapult Wallet Manager platform supports Apple Watch, allowing brands running mobile wallet campaigns in Apple’s Passbook to immediately engage with consumers on the Apple Watch. As an official Apple developer, Vibes sends more branded content (coupons, loyalty cards, etc.) to Passbook than any other tech company, and now brings its proven technology and longtime expertise to Apple’s new wearable platform.
“With everything in Passbook now on your wrist, Apple Watch puts mobile wallet and payments closer to consumers than ever before,” said John Haro, CTO of Vibes. “The mobile marketing ecosystem is expanding and evolving thanks to advancements in wearables and Internet of Things technology, underscoring the need for CRM technology that helps brands build rewarding relationships on these increasingly personal devices. We’re excited to help marketers capitalize on this new Apple Watch opportunity with our proven mobile wallet technology and more than 150 mobile experts.”
With Passbook, marketers can use Apple Watch to engage with consumers through the entire purchase process. Marketers can send updates or push-like notifications to nudge consumers with time- or location-based offers while they are out shopping. In this way, Apple Watch will play a significant role in shopper marketing by allowing coupons and offers to proactively communicate with consumers wearing the watch.
Vibes also announced its WalletAds mobile ad technology, which allows consumers to tap a mobile ad and then save offers and special event reminders directly to their phones using Passbook, also extends to Apple Watch. Launched in February 2015, WalletAds is being rapidly adopted by major brands for its unique approach to mobile advertising that makes the consumer’s personal mobile wallet the post-click destination, instead of less effective destinations such as mobile commerce sites or app downloads.
Thanks largely to the popularity of Apple Pay, consumers are becoming more familiar with Passbook and the industry is accepting it as a valuable marketing solution. A February 2015 report from Forrester Research, Inc., “The Future of Mobile Wallets Lies Beyond Payments,” points to mobile wallets becoming powerful marketing platforms that can help build loyalty. Brands can position their digital loyalty cards or coupons side-by-side with consumers’ credit cards in Passbook. It provides prime placement for the marketer and enhances the shopping experience for the consumer on both the iPhone and Apple Watch.
“Vibes’ support for Apple Watch enables marketers to gain entry into the emerging category of wearable technology without needing to design an entirely new app,” said Haro. “Brands that are running Passbook campaigns with Vibes have the advantage of their loyalty cards and coupons already being available on consumers’ wrists.”
Catapult Wallet Manager helps brands quickly and easily create and manage mobile wallet campaigns using Passbook and Google Wallet. For more information, visit www.vibes.com/walletmanager.
About Vibes
Vibes is a mobile marketing technology leader that helps some of the world’s biggest brands unlock new revenue by arming them with the technology and guidance they need to succeed in mobile marketing. Vibes' Catapult Mobile Relationship Management (MRM) platform enables marketers to manage all mobile communications including text messaging, push notifications, Apple’s Passbook, Google Wallet and mobile web campaigns — all from a single interface. Vibes has delivered more than 5 billion mobile experiences since 1998 on behalf of customers such as Sears, Home Depot, Verizon, Allstate, The Gap, Pep Boys, Men’s Wearhouse, Gannett, Imagitas and Excentus. Vibes is a Tier 1 aggregator with direct connections to all U.S. wireless carriers. To learn more about Vibes, visit www.vibes.com or connect on Twitter.com/Vibes.
