G&J Pepsi Progressive Web App Case Study

About the project

Background

Pepsi is a widely known brand already – one of the most well-known brands in the world, in fact. Local Pepsi bottler G&J Pepsi helps localize that branding, bringing the tastes Pepsi fans crave and tailoring them to a smaller community. Rather than focusing their efforts on brand awareness, as consumers are already familiar with it, the bottler instead focused on giving its audience something they love just as much as Pepsi’s beverages: savings. More specifically, savings in the form of coupons. G&J Pepsi hoped to deliver its geographically targeted coupons to consumers in a more unique, user-friendly, and rewarding way.

We stepped in, using the household name of Pepsi as a foundation not just to deliver coupons to existing Pepsi fans, but to expand the G&J Pepsi brand and turn new customers into returning customers.

 

The Challenge

G&J Pepsi wanted to put coupons in the hands of more people and with greater frequency. However, the brand was hitting roadblock after roadblock, unable to find an effective and efficient method of coupon distribution. Employees contacted their media team at iHeart Media, and iHeart contacted us at Blue Laser Digital, knowing we were prepared for the challenge.

 

A Native App Wasn’t the Solution

To distribute coupons, competitors like Coke employ native apps to engage and re-engage its audience. Unfortunately, building a native web app from scratch can be complicated and is much too slow for the volume G&J Pepsi was ready for. G&J Pepsi, and its audience, needed to get electronic coupons in quick and easy ways.

Services

Creative Direction, User Experience, Interactive Design, Prototypes, Web Development

 

Features

Push notifications, MailChimp API integration, Progressive Web App (PWA), Live Error Tracking, Live Performance Monitoring, Geolocation

 

Technology

HTML, Javascript, React, SASS, Firebase, CI/CD

The Answer

A native app was ideal in theory, but not in practice. Progressive web apps, or PWAs, succeeded where native apps failed. A solution was born.

 

PWA Benefits

PWAs are fast, user-friendly, and enable users to quickly choose, obtain, and redeem coupons. PWAs don’t require a trade-off in functionality, but this can be a downfall for clients, too: with so many features available to the PWA and so many options to pursue, clients must have razor-sharp focus in order to meet budget, deadlines, and expectations. So, our team at Blue Laser began with a discovery phase. We partnered closely with G&J Pepsi executives to pinpoint exactly what their vision, goal, and intents were, and chose features that positioned the brand to achieve those goals to be included at launch.

The Progressive Web App is easy to use and simple, but not overly so. When the user clicks on a display, they’re brought to a web page that looks, acts, and feels like an app. However, the PWA is not an app, and therefore doesn’t need to be downloaded.

The PWA eliminates bottlenecks typically associated with a traditional app and funnels many, many more users through it. For added functionality and personalization, users can create an account that integrates with email, Facebook, or Google, and this is where increased personalization comes in. Features include giving users more coupons for their favorite drinks and sending users coupons on their birthdays.

Additionally, because G&J Pepsi has a targeted sales area, the coupons obtained in the new PWA must only be downloadable and redeemable in that specific area. We successfully tackled this problem, too.

G&J Pepsi iPhone

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