Tech startup boosts brand placement app

CEBU, Philippines — Cebuano-led start-up tech company Hoy! has boosted its user-brand engagement with quick and high-value rewards, taking advantage of the "instant-gratification" market behavior.

Hoy! is a brand placement in social network that allows users to capture memories together with a brand and get a real reward.

Hoy!Technology CEO Seph Mayol said the app is enhancing user and brand engagement with the app’s new Quick Rewards campaign.

Instant gratification will drive the latest campaign as users can get their rewards minutes after posting a selfie with a branded animated filter.

"The traditional product sampling is limited in terms of coverage as brands do it mostly in supermarkets or malls, and that aside from cost, its manpower is intensive and acquiring data is difficult. In Hoy! we will make use of the reach and mobility of internet-connected phones so that brands can distribute their products anywhere in the country. It’s the modern approach of product sampling,” Mayol explained.

The app’s first Quick Rewards is a campaign from the oil giant company, Total, where they are rewarding free fuel (gas or diesel) to the first 3,000 Hoy! users in Cebu who can take a selfie with their branded filter. "No need to get a single Like."

Hoy! will also capitalize on the moment a user's post is rewarded by congratulating the user through an adreward (advertising + reward) notification where the brand's advertisement (image or video) will be shown to increase reception.

“The adreward notification will answer the ever growing annoyance of pop-up ads which disturbs everyone’s surfing experience online. We believe that we are offering our partner brands high-quality engagement," added Mayol.

Unlike any other apps that provide users with poinys, Mayol reasoned that Hoy!, on the other hand, retains the brand's identity by rewarding the user with an experience of their product and service.

“The industry is shifting from an advertising-driven market to one controlled by the consumers. This is the main reason why the online marketplace model is so powerful,” said Mayol adding that this is why they created Hoy! to let consumers engage with brands when, why, and how they want to.

Hoy! was first launched in 2016 and is available for free for iOS and Android users.