Augmented Reality Makes Getting Valpak® Savings Virtual, Interactive

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Jul 09, 2013, 12:01 ET

LARGO, Fla., July 9, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Valpak Direct Marketing Systems, Inc., a leader in local print and digital coupons, will introduce a special Augmented Reality feature on The Blue Envelope® for two months during August and September, which will direct consumers to Valpak coupons and offers and allow them to interact on a real-time basis.

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Augmented Reality uses innovative technology to combine real and virtual, making the consumer experience interactive and in 3D.

Consumers will first download the Valpak app onto their smartphone, tap the AR icon and then scan the envelope. The AR feature launches and consumers can then hold their phone to the horizon and view nearby businesses offering a Valpak coupon.

The app launches the smartphone's camera and GPS to overlay a set of 3D icons in real-time, showing the available Valpak coupons in the vicinity as the user scans the surroundings, with a radius varying from 5 feet to 25 miles away. The coupons and offers literally "pop up" on the screen so that a consumer can see what offers are around them.

"AR offers the consumer a new and fun way to find local coupons in their area," said Michael Vivio, president of Cox Target Media, provider of Valpak, Valpak.com and Valpak apps. "In addition, it offers advertisers further reach for their businesses and gives them the added bonus of attracting nearby customers at the same time they're ready to make a purchase."

Once the two-month print/envelope promotion period is over, the AR will be available on the Valpak mobile and tablet apps, which is available on iOS® and Android® platforms. The original Valpak app and the AR feature were both developed by WillowTree® Apps.

Valpak has past experience using AR and has incorporated AR into offers in the past, first partnering with junaio in spring of 2010.

Initially, the AR feature will only be able to be launched through the Valpak envelope. The opportunity is offered by the USPS Emerging Technologies Promotion which offers a postage discount for companies using emerging technologies such as Near Field Communications (NFC) or Augmented Reality (AR). The USPS promotion is designed to promote awareness of how Augmented Reality can be integrated with a direct mail strategy to enhance the value of direct mail.

Valpak also participated in a similar program from the USPS in the summer of 2011 with Quick Response (QR) codes.

About Valpak®
Valpak, one of the leading direct marketing companies in North America, is owned and operated by Cox Target Media, along with Savings.com. With nearly 170 franchises across the United States and Canada, the signature Blue Envelope delivers savings and value to nearly 40 million households each month. Annually, Valpak will distribute some 20 billion offers inserted in more than 500 million envelopes. Valpak also offers digital solutions with http://www.Valpak.com, an online site for free coupons, e-commerce and coupon codes, which has nearly 70 million offer views each month, as well as mobile coupon app for smartphone platforms For more information about advertising with Valpak, please contact 1-800-676-6878.

About Cox Media Group
Cox Media Group is an integrated broadcasting, publishing, direct marketing and digital media company that includes the national advertising rep firms of CoxReps. Additionally, CMG owns Cox Target Media, which operates Valpak, one of North America's leading direct marketing companies, and Savings.com, a leading online source for savings. The company's operations currently include 14 broadcast television stations and one local cable channel, 57 radio stations, eight daily newspapers and more than a dozen non-daily publications, and more than 100 digital services. CMG currently operates in more than 20 media markets and reaches approximately 52 million Americans weekly, including more than 30 million TV viewers, more than 4 million print and online newspaper readers, and 14 million radio listeners. For more information about Cox Media Group, please check us out online at www.coxmediagroup.com.

Contact information:
Marsha Strickhouser
8605 Largo Lakes Drive
Largo, FL 33773
727-399-3175 – office
[email protected]

SOURCE Valpak