RewardExpert 
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July 6, 2020 
There’s no doubt that it’s sweet to save money, anytime, anywhere. And shopping online is no different. After all, how many times have you added an item to your cart, and then hunted around for discount codes, only to come up empty handed? Now, a company called Honey is making it easier to save money online.
Honey’s technology scans the internet to help shoppers find the top discounts at thousands of stores, automatically adding discounts and promo codes. Janine Kamwene, the director of communications at Honey, spoke to RewardExpert about the sweet shopping experience Honey provides.
From Pizza to Honey
Los Angeles-based Honey was started by George Ruan and Ryan Hudson in 2012. “George and Ryan started Honey because they thought saving money should be easier. Retail technology was getting smarter and more sophisticated all the time, yet nobody seemed to be thinking how this technology could be used to pass value back to the consumer,” said Kamwene.
The idea came to Hudson while he was trying to find a promo code to order pizza online. From there, the two friends teamed up and created the technology that powers the Honey online shopping platform today, helping customers save more than $1 billion collectively. “What brought George and Ryan together was not their love of coupon clipping or shopping, it was the idea that, if you do it right, savings can be created on both ends of the transaction to create value for all,” she said.
Find the Best Coupons
The flagship feature of the Honey online shopping platform is the browser extension. Like all of the Honey tools, it is 100% free. Once downloaded, the tool will scan thousands of sites online in order to find the best coupon possible. It will then apply the coupon code, essentially automating the coupon process for online shoppers. It works with more than 30,000 retailers and has broad reach.
“Honey opens up instant access to exclusive savings, deals, rewards and discovery, all powered by the collective knowledge of Honey’s community of online shoppers,” said Kamwene. The extension works with some of the biggest retailers in the world including Amazon, Macy’s, Best Buy, Nordstrom, Nike and others.
Track Prices with Honey
Another major feature is the Droplist function. If you’ve ever found an item online and then said I’ll wait for a lower price, this is the tool for you. Droplist allows shoppers to select a price they are willing to pay for an item. The technology will then watch the item’s price and notify the shopper when the target price is hit.
Shop Better on Amazon
Similar to the Droplist is the Amazon Best-Price Detection feature. The tool allows buyers to compare costs from different sellers, including shipping and Amazon Prime eligible benefits. The price history feature will also monitor fluctuations in price. “Using crowdsourcing help from other members, Honey can tell when and where members have seen price fluctuations on a specific item on certain sites within 30, 60, or 120 days,” said Kamwene.
The New Frontier
Honey is not limiting its discounts to shopping. It has been expanding into online travel booking, as well. Its tool can compare prices with popular websites like Booking.com, Priceline and others. “Exclusive hotel deals can be unlocked when members use the extension,” stated Kamwene.
Rewarding Members
On top of it all, Honey offers a rewards program for frequent users called Honey Gold. Points can be earned from participating sites and then converted into gift cards. Stated Kamwene, “It’s savings on top of savings!”
Hitting the Sweet Spot
With all these features, Honey executives believe the company hits the sweet spot for online shoppers. Kamwene cites the benefits, including ease of use. “We designed it that way so that everyone – from expert couponers to coupon novices – can find the best price or savings with one click,” she said.
Honey’s Future
Honey has big plans for the future. The company just launched a mobile app called the Honey Smart Shopping Assistant. “The Honey Smart Shopping Assistant lets you browse, discover and buy from your favorite stores in one place – eliminating the need to use multiple shopping apps, so you only have to checkout once,” explained Kamwene. The company also plans to keep on growing, adding to its 3 office locations, more than 165 employees and more than 10 million users. To start saving with Honey today, visit https://www.joinhoney.com/.
