2019.02.04 Services for Business
● Use of LINE Beacon allows retailers to promote campaigns in real time to in-store visitors
● Maiden campaign gives users chance to win LINE Points when they visit any of Lawson's 13,400 locations nationwide
TOKYO – February 4, 2019 – LINE Corporation ("LINE") introduces LINE Check-in, a new ad option for its in-store promotion solution, LINE Sales Promotion.
As a solution dedicated to promoting in-store sales by leveraging the LINE app and related services, LINE Sales Promotion was launched with the goal of helping clients reduce in-store operations and point-of-purchase (POP) advertising, encouraging customers to enter promotional campaigns, gaining insights into consumer buying behavior, and resolving other pain-points related to driving in-store sales.
LINE Check-in allows in-store LINE users to receive exclusive real-time campaign promotions and information
Over the last few years, the increasing popularity of smart devices has caused the distribution and retail industries to shift away from paper and other traditional media to digital. Consequently, point of purchase (POP) advertising, posters, and other in-store marketing mediums have also dwindled and reduced the options available to manufacturers for reaching customers.
Against this backdrop, LINE is launching LINE Check-in as an additional option under LINE Sales Promotion, enabling distribution and retail companies with brick-and-mortar stores to promote their campaigns and send information to in-store LINE users in real time. Utilizing LINE Beacons*1 set up around a store, retailers can send these visiting LINE users exclusive campaign information through their store's official LINE account. Campaigns themselves will be run on the LINE Instant Win platform, which allows users to enter campaigns and instantly receive incentives or prizes by simply visiting a store. A post will also be shared on their Timeline the moment they enter the campaign,*2 further raising awareness among other LINE users who have not yet visited the store.
Companies who leverage LINE Check-in will be able to tap into the LINE app's user base of 79 million MAU*3 to continuously promote store visits and run large-scale in-store advertisements unrestrained by POP and posters.
*1 LINE Beacon enables communication with LINE users by linking the LINE app to signals from beacons installed around town. Beacons that support LINE Beacon must be installed to use the service.
*2 Users can choose whether or not to enable Timeline posts when entering the campaign.
*3 Number of monthly active users (MAU) in Japan as of December 31, 2018.
LINE Check-in's maiden campaign gives users a chance to win LINE Points at any of Lawson's 13,400 stores nationwide
As the first campaign to use LINE Check-in, users will be given the chance to win LINE Points or coupons for the popular Black Thunder chocolate when they visit any of Lawson's 13,400 stores nationwide (excludes Lawson Store 100 and other select stores). When visiting a participating store, LINE users can enter the campaign via a message sent from Lawson's official LINE account.
Apart from this latest endeavor, Lawson has already been actively using the LINE app for sending out information and promotional activities, including setting up LINE@ business accounts for its stores all over Japan. Also, from January 15 – 31, Lawson and LINE teamed up to conduct a proof of concept at all Lawson stores in the city of Fukuoka for an in-store sales promotion campaign that utilized LINE Wallet.*4
Following on from the maiden campaign, LINE aims to expand the number of stores utilizing LINE Check-in to 50,000 by the end of the year. Additionally, stores can link LINE Check-in with the new business account plan*5 launched by LINE in December 2018 to send out targeted campaign information.
By continuously offering a variety of ad options, LINE provides valuable information touch points for both businesses and users, and explores new and diverse ways to be useful as communication infrastructure.
Campaign Overview
Period: 11 am, February 5 – 10:59 am, March 5, 2019
Participating stores: Lawson convenience stores nationwide (approx. 13,400)
*4 Press release on the LINE Wallet proof of concept in Fukuoka City: https://linecorp.com/en/pr/news/en/2019/2583
*5 Press release on the new pricing plan for LINE Official Account: https://linecorp.com/en/pr/news/en/2018/2550
About LINE Sales Promotion
LINE Sales Promotion is a solution specialized in promoting store sales by leveraging the LINE messaging app and related services to allow businesses to reduce in-store operations and point-of-purchase (POP) advertising, encourage their customers to enter promotional campaigns, gain insights into consumer buying behavior, and resolve other pain-points related to driving in-store sales. LINE is able to provide simplified pricing and specifications by offering a standardized package instead of custom-tailored solutions. The LINE app and related services are utilized to create a new point of communication between manufacturers (particularly those in the food and beverage industries), distributors, and consumers. At present, the solution provides numerous campaign platforms, including LINE Sampling, LINE Mileage, LINE Instant Win, and LINE Open Campaign.
About LINE Instant Win
LINE Instant Win is a campaign platform perfectly suited for businesses seeking to boost sales or trials of their products. Users enter an instant-win sweepstakes by scanning a unique QR Code®*6 provided with designated products purchased in-store. In addition to these conventional campaigns requiring a product purchase to enter, LINE Check-in makes it possible to run instant-win campaigns which utilize LINE Beacon and set a store visit as a condition of entry. The moment a user enters a campaign, a post is also made on their Timeline and shared with their friends. This mechanism enables businesses to increase awareness of their promotional campaign by reaching other LINE users who have not yet purchased a designated product in-store. Businesses can also carry out follow-up promotions by optionally including friending or unblocking an Official Account as entry conditions.
*6 "QR Code" is a registered trademark of DENSO WAVE INCORPORATED.
About LINE Sales Promotion:https://www.linebiz.com/jp/service/line-sales-promotion/ (Japanese only)