GENERAL QUESTIONS
Q: How does the Be truly Local app work? Can you explain the process from a merchant’s perspective?
A: As a merchant, joining the Be truly Local app is a straightforward process:
- Register on the Merchant Portal: Sign up for the Merchant Portal using 1. any web browser.
- Provide business information: Complete the onboarding process by entering basic details about your business, including name, address, hours, website, type, and features. Your business information will immediately appear in the Merchant Feed of the Be truly Local app once you submit it.
- Leverage geofencing and search categories: Your business location is shown on the app’s map view and shows the user the proximity to your location; your business type and features are used as filters by app users in the promotion and merchant feeds, and for search of local businesses making it easier for app users to find you.
- Create promotions: Easily create promotions to showcase deals or special events. These promotions will be displayed in the Promotion Feed. Set up the Claim it Now parameters for redeeming promotions, let us know if the promotion will be listed in the weekly email promotion newsletter and the promotion is immediately displayed in the Promotion feed.
By following these steps, you can quickly and easily promote your business to the Be truly Local app’s user base and attract new customers.
Q: What are the fees or costs associated with running a promotion in the Be truly Local app? Are there any upfront costs, monthly subscriptions, or transaction fees?
A: To run a promotion in the Be truly Local app and weekly newsletter, you’ll incur costs based on the following factors:
- Promotion Listing: There is a daily charge to list the promotion in the app.
- Promotion Claims: There is a charge based on the number of Claim it Now redemptions.
- Weekly Newsletter Listing: A one-time fee is charged to list your promotion in the weekly newsletter that features the promotions running for the next week.
- There are no upfront costs, monthly subscriptions, or transaction fees associated with using our app platform.
Q: How do you reach the Be truly Local user base?
A: We utilize a multi-faceted approach to reach the Be truly Local app user base:
- Business Community Outreach: The Be truly Local ambassador is the key contact for the Chamber of Commerce and Merchants to promote the app through Chamber and merchant events, in-store signage, promotional cards, and email campaigns.
- Chamber Engagement: The chamber serves as a central point of contact, organizing events, sending out email newsletters, and hosting online sessions to educate members and the community about the app.
- Merchant Promotion: Merchants play a vital role by actively promoting the app to their customers through in-store signage, promotion cards and other marketing materials.
By combining these efforts, we aim to increase app downloads through engagement with residents and visitors, providing a valuable platform for our merchant members to reach new customers and local shoppers.
Q: As a merchant, why should I participate in the Be truly Local app and platform?
A: As with any business, your goal is to increase your customer base and expand the number of customers in through the front door. The Be truly Local platform incentivizes users to continue using the app and let’s face it, shoppers are always looking for a ‘deal’ and will travel to take advantage of it. After having completed a 6+ month trial in Downtown Napa, the app has proven itself as a useful and desired tool by shoppers to seek merchants that want their business.
PROMOTIONS AND VISIBILITY
Q: How can I create and manage promotions on the app? Is there a user-friendly interface for setting up promotions and to update my profile information?
A: Yes, the Be Truly Local Merchant Portal offers a user-friendly interface for creating and managing promotions, as well as updating your profile information. Accessible through any web browser, the portal provides a straightforward process for creating promotions. Simply log in to the Merchant Portal, navigate to the Promotion page, fill in the fields and upload an image (optional) and then click on Submit. Once created, your promotions will be immediately visible in the Be Truly Local app’s Promotion Feed. For updating the merchant’s profile information, simply click on Merchant Info page after logging into the Merchant Portal. Any changes you make will be reflected instantly in the app’s Merchant Feed.
Q: How do you ensure that my promotions are visible to the right audience?
A: While all promotions are initially visible to app users, they can be filtered based on specific business types (e.g., restaurants, bars, nightlife) and features (e.g., happy hour, kid-friendly). This allows users to tailor their feed to their preferences, increasing the likelihood that they’ll see and engage with your promotions. Additionally, app users have the option to mute specific merchants in their settings, providing granular control over the content they see. This ensures that your promotions are only displayed to users who are interested in your business and its offerings.
Q: How do you provide tools to measure the success of my promotions?
A: Be Truly Local offers dashboard tools to help you track the performance of your promotions. Through the Merchant Portal’s Promotion Dashboard, you can access detailed metrics such as:
- Promotion Quantity: The total number of promotions created by the merchant.
- Promotion Duration: The duration of each promotion.
- Claim It Now Redemptions: The number of times users have tapped the Claim it Now button to redeem each promotion.
- Promotion Listings in the Weekly Newsletter: The open rate and clicks to your website for a promotion listed in the weekly email newsletter.
By analyzing this data, you can gain valuable insights into the effectiveness of your promotions.
Q: How can I increase the visibility of my business on the app? Are there any additional features or paid options available?
A: To enhance your business’s visibility on the Be Truly Local app, consider the following strategies:
- Create Compelling Promotion text and image content: Craft clear, concise, and engaging promotion text and a captivating image that effectively highlights your business and encourages user action for the promotion.
- Utilize the Weekly Newsletter: Feature all of your promotions in the app’s weekly newsletter to reach a wider audience and give users a preview of your upcoming promotion.
- Leverage Personalized Push Notifications (Coming Soon): Take advantage of our upcoming personalized push notification feature to send targeted alerts directly to your users’ devices, even when the app isn’t open on-screen.
- Advertise in the Weekly Email Newsletter: Gain even more exposure by running digital ads at a merchant discount rate in the app’s weekly email newsletter, reaching a broader audience beyond the in-app users.
By combining these strategies, you can significantly boost your business’s visibility and attract more customers.
Q: How much control do I have over a promotion after I launch it ?
A: You can change the parameters of a promotion in the Merchant Portal at any point in time. You can control ‘Claim it NOW’ redemptions for each promotion including the total number of available redemptions and the number of redemptions per individual user. Remember, the Claim it NOW usage incentivizes the user and provides you one-to-one knowledge that your promotion was used and successful.
Q: How do I pay for my promotion listings and how do I receive credits from customers that use the Spend it Now credits in my business?
A: You will setup your billing information in the Merchant Portal.
- Your information will be taken by a secure third party finance system called ChargeBee. It is highly secure and trusted by large companies and systems such as Toyota, Calendly, and Freshworks. (www.chargebee.com)
- You will receive a monthly statement that will detail charges for promotions, Claim it Now redemptions, and Spend-it Now credits.
- (Coming soon), you will be able to look up daily activity for your promotions at the Merchant Portal and request an automated email to be
MERCHANT AND CUSTOMER SUPPORT
Q: How do you handle merchant inquiries?
A: The Be truly Local support team provides exceptional support to our merchant partners. If you encounter any issues related to promotions, merchant information, the dashboard, Claim It Now redemptions, or Spend It Now credits, simply send an email to us through the Merchant Portal.
The Support team will promptly review your inquiry and help you. For complex issues that cannot be resolved immediately via email, we will assign a support ticket number to ensure timely follow-up and resolution.
Q: How do you handle customer inquiries and complaints related to my business? What is your customer support process?
A: Be Truly Local App users can contact our support team directly via email for questions related to:
- App Access: Issues with navigating the app or using specific features.
- Claim It Now Redemptions: Problems claiming promotions.
- Spend It Now Credits: Questions about earning or using Spend It Now credits.
For any issues directly related to redemptions or credits, our team will reach out to you to resolve any problems. We strive to respond promptly and efficiently to all customer inquiries.