Upside launched in early 2016 to help retailers offer their customers another incentive to shop. Gas stations were the first retailers to join the platform, followed by restaurants in summer 2017 and then grocery stores the following summer. 
The Upside app allows shoppers to earn cash back at participating retailers. The customer just follows a few simple steps: open the free app and claim a cash-back offer at an Upside-affiliated retailer before shopping; make the purchase and pay with a credit or debit card; and cash out earnings to their bank account, PayPal or a gift card.
Schnucks Markets, the St. Louis, Missouri-based grocer that operates 114 stores in Missouri, Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin, started its partnership with Upside in October 2021, “so our customers have been earning Upside rewards for nearly four years,” notes Caleb Carr, senior director of data science and engineering for Schnucks, which “for over eight decades … has proudly nourished our customers and communities through a unique combination of friendly service, high-quality foods and value-creating innovations.
“Beyond our traditional Schnucks locations, we’ve also introduced Schnucks Fresh, a smaller-format store with a strong emphasis on fresh departments such as produce, meat and seafood,” Carr added.
Carr spoke to The Shelby Report about how Schnucks came to partner with Upside and shared insights into the results they’ve derived from the partnership.
What made you decide to partner with Upside?
In 2018, we launched our award-winning Schnucks Rewards program, which quickly drew nearly 2 million enrollees. To build on this momentum, we sought innovative methods to offer our Schnucks Rewards customers more ways to save on groceries while also attracting new customers to shop at our stores.
Upside became a key partner in this effort. Their platform excels at bringing new customers into our stores, allowing us to highlight Schnucks’ unique offerings.
Concurrently, it motivates our customers to visit more often. Thanks to Upside’s personalized, margin-bound offers, we drive tangible results and only incur costs based on actual performance. It’s been an intelligent and effective strategy for expanding our reach and reinforcing loyalty.
[RELATED: Schnucks, Upside Unveil App To Boost Rewards Membership]
Have you seen gains in sales, new customers, loyalty, etc., by offering shoppers earnings tied to Upside?
In the last six months, our Upside partnership has delivered impressive results for Schnucks: a 2 percent same-store sales lift at a 71 percent ROI. What’s more, these gains were achieved without any additional spending on advertising or traditional marketing.
We’ve also observed Upside making a significant impact on our Schnucks Rewards program. Specifically, more than one in five Upside users who visited Schnucks were new customers.
This clearly demonstrates the platform’s effectiveness in expanding our customer reach. Of these new shoppers, 19 percent enrolled in Schnucks Rewards within 30 days, providing us with a valuable opportunity to cultivate long-term relationships.
Even among our existing loyalty members, Upside moved the needle. After engaging with the platform, they increased their visit frequency by 24 percent and spent 5 percent more per trip.
Anything you would like to add about your experience with the app, such as ease of implementation, customer support, shopper response?
As part of a regular review of our investments, we conducted an A/B test by temporarily deactivating some of our stores on Upside. After comparing results for a month, we found that stores remaining on Upside saw 3 percent higher sales than those that came off the platform.
When we reactivated the removed stores, they regained the sales lost during the test. This clearly speaks to Upside’s effectiveness and our trust in the platform.
Over our four years of partnership with Upside, it has truly been a win-win for everyone. Our customers receive meaningful offers that help stretch their grocery dollars, and we love seeing them make more trips to our stores because we want to create Schnucks customers for life. Meanwhile, our business is attracting new customers and using our unique resources to nourish their lives.