Strauss Group is one of Israel’s largest food and beverage companies—a true "House of Brands" with over 50 leading labels including Milky, Elite, and Yotvata. To bridge the gap between their products and their consumers, they created Strauss+, a loyalty club and mobile app where the core experience revolves around users uploading supermarket receipts to get rewarded for Strauss purchases and earn points for gifts.

While the app was highly successful at driving this functional "scan-to-earn" behavior, the team saw a massive opportunity to move beyond. They wanted to turn a receipt-scanning tool into a vibrant, two-way communication hub.

The Challenge: Beyond Receipt Uploads

The Strauss+ app had a solid foundation of utility, but the team faced a strategic plateau as they looked to deepen consumer relationships:

• Limited Engagement: Users primarily opened the Strauss+ app for the functional tasks of scanning a receipt or redeeming a gift, resulting in high utility but relatively low emotional dwell time and fewer opportunities to build a deeper connection.

• One-Way Broadcasting: Communication was limited to banners and newsletters, effectively "broadcasting" information without a way for consumers to talk back.

“Before Storyly, we didn't have this kind of two-sided relationship. It was mostly direct information or content that we were broadcasting, rather than something that encouraged real engagement,” said Yael Ben-Noon, Head of Strauss+.

The Solution: From Broadcasting to Communication

To transform the app from a utility-driven tool to upload receipts into a daily interactions tool, Strauss+ implemented a dual-widget strategy that separates information from interaction.

1. The Circular Story Bar: Always-On Knowledge

Located at the top of the home screen, these stories have been focusing on brand awareness such as product launches, nutritional information, and repurposing TV commercials for a mobile-first audience.

2. The Rectangular Story Bar: The Engagement Engine

Placed prominently in the center of the app home screen, this story bar is the driver of interactive marketing. It hosts at least three major campaigns weekly, utilizing:

• Interactive Campaigns: Brand quickTrivia to win prizes,  receipt upload activities or lotteries

• Two-Way Interactions : Using "Tell Us" prompts to gather qualitative insights and hearing the voice of the consumer (e.g., "Which new coffee flavor would you like to see on the shelves?").

• Gamified Rewards: Users can redeem their points for "participation tickets" to enter high-value specials-competitions for prizes like flights or exclusive merchandise kits.
  
• Push Notification Integration: The team leverages push notifications on a weekly basis to drive users directly into these active Storyly stories, ensuring maximum visibility.

“Nobody thought it would drive so much engagement and create such a deep relationship with our consumers. It’s been a big accomplishment for us. We are breaking all of Storyly global benchmarks. It really amazes me sometimes. It’s really a two-sided relationship that we didn't have before.” – Yael Ben-Noon, Head of Strauss+

The Impact: 

The results didn't just meet expectations, they shattered Storyly’s global benchmarks. By shifting the focus from "clicks" to "conversations," Strauss+ created an environment where users stay longer and share more.

• 67% engagement rate, showing nearly 7 in 10 users interact with the Storyly content.
• Up to 73% response rate for interactive content, proving high willingness to participate in competitions and share feedback.
• Up to 70% click-through rate (CTR) for stories guiding users to campaign details. 

Strauss+ is a standout example of a loyalty app winning through interactive marketing, fostering a two-sided relationship. Beyond numbers, the team could create value for other departments with Storyly. For example, by asking about home coffee capsule machines, they were able to identify and target specific consumer segments for their e-commerce channel

What's Next

Strauss+ plans to deepen their use of Storyly with segmented Stories that aim to deliver tailored content based on the specific brands a user scans most. Additionally, they will proceed with deeper brand collaboration, expanding Storyly usage across more of the 50 Strauss brands for campaign-specific interactive content.