Vons Loyalty Card + Foursquare Check-Ins = Pepsico Rewards

Been checking in to the gym on Foursquare? That activity could earn you a free SoBe Lifewater, the next time you swipe your loyalty card at a Vons grocery store. The chain has partnered with Foursquare so that check-in activity generates rewards, provided by Pepsico.

Linking Your Accounts

Vons is a supermarket chain that’s big in Southern California and Nevada. With the new program, Foursquare users register via a special page to link their Foursquare accounts to their VonsClub cards:

After that, Vons will automatically know about your check-in activity, including badges you’ve earned, and reward coupons will be issued based on what you do.

Earning Rewards

For example, those who’ve earned the Gym Rat badge might get a Sobe drink, Foursquare’s business development director Tristan Walker told me, when we talked about the new program this morning. People who check-in often early in the morning might receive a discount on Quaker Oats oatmeal. Currently, just signing up and making a first purchase will earn a 4-pack of IZZE drinks.

Catalina Marketing is doing the reward receipts portion of the program. Here’s how they look:

The rewards are being provided by Pepsico and involve a range of products including Mountain Dew and Lipton Tea:

More rewards may also be introduced linked to additional check-in behaviors. There’s no set list of how to earn rewards. A FAQ for the program is available, however.

Helping Stores “Know Your Name”

It’s the second loyalty card link-up for Foursquare. In January, it partnered with the Tasti D-Lite dessert chain that operates in several US states. The latest partnership is part of Foursquare wanting to help store owners “redefine what loyalty means, where the merchant knows your name,” Walker said.

“We really wanted to find a solution for retailers. How could these corporate large chains cater to the individual,” he added.

The program is now available through all Vons stores, which should include Vons-owned Pavillions, Foursquare tells me. However, Safeway stores — which in turn owns the Vons chain — are not in the system.

See related news on Techmeme. And for more on Foursquare, see some of our past articles:

• Tools For Businesses On Foursquare
• Foursquare’s Crowley Can Feel Foursquare Fatigue, Has Plans To Fix It
• Foursquare Users Get A Trophy Case & Partner Badges