While making an effective issuance and redemption model for nutrition incentives can seem like a daunting task, there have been many work-arounds and solutions created. Some are also currently being tested and programmed to meet the needs of interested retailers.
SNAP Incentive and produce prescription programs function differently and have a different set of requirements for implementation.
Ideally a retailer would like to have a model or program available that satisfies the following requirements:
Some retailers use an automatic 50% discount within the transaction on eligible fruits and vegetables purchased with an EBT card to provide the incentive. Incentive issuance and redemption happens in the same transaction:
Sometimes, the POS system is programmed to automatically apply the discount; in other systems, a cashier must perform a triggering action (typically entering a PLU or pressing a button on the register).
From a technological point of view, automatic discounts are often the easiest and least expensive methods to implement. Some retailers report minimal hard costs related to the POS changes which includes the value of staff time dedicated to the upgrades.
Some retailers believe their customers are best served by providing an immediate discount. Many customers will make one large purchase as soon as they receive their monthly SNAP benefits. Utilizing the savings immediately allows them to buy more of what they need without having to return to the store at a later time to redeem their incentive benefit. Another benefit is customers earn incentives based on their actual produce spending, down to the penny, which maximizes the incentives they earn and spend.
An automatic discount is also guaranteed to benefit SNAP participants only, which is important from a regulatory perspective. Other redemption methods do not require authentication to use and could in theory be redeemed by a non-SNAP shopper.
While the system is easy to use, it often hinges on cashiers’ ability to trigger the discount. Many systems require the cashier to indicate when SNAP is used. This can be a challenge for a number of reasons. First, cashiers may forget to – or not know how to – apply the discount (a real concern where staff turnover is high). Second, cashiers may not notice when a shopper is using an EBT card. They are not always aware of what form of payment a shopper is using since most simply insert a card into a payment processing machine. Furthermore, asking customers outright if they are paying with SNAP is not a good practice because there is a possibility of embarrassing/othering that person in front of other customers. Many retailers we have spoken to that implement the discount model acknowledge that there are probably many shoppers not benefitting from the incentive if a cashier does not trigger the discount.
Another concern about the discount model is shoppers may not notice they receive a discount and therefore may not be “incentivized” to purchase more fruits and vegetables. Retailers and grantees alike have wondered if the program’s intended nudge to increase consumption of fruits and vegetables was lost with the automatic discount.
This category of program implementation builds off pre-existing in-store loyalty programs. Customers receive and spend the benefits in different ways, but the commonalities in this category are:
The incentive is delivered through a printed coupon or through dollars stored digitally on an account.
When a shopper makes an EBT purchase of qualifying items and a second triggering action happens, the register prints a coupon for eligible items at the end of the transaction. Many retailers choose to print expiration dates on the coupons.
One advantage of in-store loyalty technology is the ease of use for both customers and cashiers. Store loyalty cards specifically provide the advantage of digital incentives, which relieve customers of the trouble of keeping track of paper coupons, and they can store benefits for later use. This could help families stretch their dollars throughout the month.
From a program management perspective, in-store loyalty programs provide access to in-depth shopper data. Each SNAP cardholder is tied to a customer loyalty number, in some cases making it possible to collect more transaction-level data than with other methods. Whether retailers or grantees have capacity to report on and analyze the information is a separate question.
An additional benefit, especially for large chains, is that once the in-store loyalty program is designed, it is turn-key: the technology can be used at any location that employs the same technology, for very little additional cost.
Some retailers and grantees believe that shoppers receiving and using benefits reflects an understanding of the program’s goals and the intention to increase their purchase and consumption of healthy fruits and vegetables. This could indicate that while the benefits are limited to a smaller group of shoppers (those who keep track of and use the incentive), the impact on their dietary health is more substantial. Additional research is needed to have a better understanding of shopper behavior.
In-store loyalty systems can be expensive to set up. Stores that have high-capacity IT teams – or a good working relationship with their POS vendors – are best poised to set up a system like this. Some stores do not have in-store loyalty programs, so these systems are not applicable everywhere. Customer reach may also be limited, as these programs hinge on customers signing up for loyalty accounts.
There are a couple of pitfalls specific to coupon-based store loyalty programs. First, they rely on cashiers or customers remembering to perform a triggering action (like scanning a barcode). Second, customers must “use it or lose it,” meaning they must spend every penny of the coupon in one transaction. Once a coupon is scanned, it cannot be reused. And third, a coupon is not securely linked to an individual shopper. In theory, the coupon could be used by anyone.
This category of program implementation builds off pre-existing in-store loyalty programs. Customers receive and spend the benefits in different ways, but the commonalities in this category are:
The incentive is delivered through a printed coupon or through dollars stored digitally on an account.
Stand beside coupon issuance operates in conjunction with a store’s existing in-store loyalty program. In some stores, the IT team identifies store loyalty customers who previously paid with SNAP, then designates those customers to be eligible to receive coupons. In others, the IT team identified every PLU eligible for the incentive and flagged it in their system. The combination of purchasing eligible items and paying with SNAP triggers the system to print a coupon.
One advantage of in-store loyalty technology is the ease of use for both customers and cashiers. Store loyalty cards specifically provide the advantage of digital incentives, which relieve customers of the trouble of keeping track of paper coupons, and they can store benefits for later use. This could help families stretch their dollars throughout the month.
From a program management perspective, in-store loyalty programs provide access to in-depth shopper data. Each SNAP cardholder is tied to a customer loyalty number, in some cases making it possible to collect more transaction-level data than with other methods. Whether retailers or grantees have capacity to report on and analyze the information is a separate question.
An additional benefit, especially for large chains, is that once the in-store loyalty program is designed, it is turn-key: the technology can be used at any location that employs the same technology, for very little additional cost.
Some retailers and grantees believe that shoppers receiving and using benefits reflects an understanding of the program’s goals and the intention to increase their purchase and consumption of healthy fruits and vegetables. This could indicate that while the benefits are limited to a smaller group of shoppers (those who keep track of and use the incentive), the impact on their dietary health is more substantial. Additional research is needed to have a better understanding of shopper behavior.
In-store loyalty systems can be expensive to set up. Stores that have high-capacity IT teams – or a good working relationship with their POS vendors – are best poised to set up a system like this. Some stores do not have in-store loyalty programs, so these systems are not applicable everywhere. Customer reach may also be limited, as these programs hinge on customers signing up for loyalty accounts.
There are a couple pf pitfalls specific to coupon-based store loyalty programs. First, they rely on cashiers or customers remembering to perform a triggering action (like scanning a barcode). Second, customers must “use it or lose it,” meaning they must spend every penny of the coupon in one transaction. Once a coupon is scanned, it cannot be reused. And third, a coupon is not securely linked to an individual shopper. In theory, the coupon could be used by anyone.
Some retailers link shoppers’ EBT card numbers to their in-store loyalty cards. When a customer makes an EBT purchase with qualifying items and performs a triggering action (swiping a loyalty card or entering a PIN), the benefits are stored in the customer loyalty account for later use. How shoppers spend incentive dollars depends on how the program is designed. In some cases, systems automatically apply earned produce incentives to the next qualifying purchase; other systems require the cashier to ask the EBT shopper at the transaction if she/he would like to use incentives or save them for a later shopping trip.
One advantage of in-store loyalty technology is the ease of use for both customers and cashiers. Store loyalty cards specifically provide the advantage of digital incentives, which relieve customers of the trouble of keeping track of paper coupons, and they can store benefits for later use. This could help families stretch their dollars throughout the month.
From a program management perspective, in-store loyalty programs provide access to in-depth shopper data. Each SNAP cardholder is tied to a customer loyalty number, in some cases making it possible to collect more transaction-level data than with other methods. Whether retailers or grantees have capacity to report on and analyze the information is a separate question.
An additional benefit, especially for large chains, is that once the in-store loyalty program is designed, it is turn-key: the technology can be used at any location that employs the same technology, for very little additional cost.
Some retailers and grantees believe that shoppers receiving and using benefits reflects an understanding of the program’s goals and the intention to increase their purchase and consumption of healthy fruits and vegetables. This could indicate that while the benefits are limited to a smaller group of shoppers (those who keep track of and use the incentive), the impact on their dietary health is more substantial. Additional research is needed to have a better understanding of shopper behavior.
In-store loyalty systems can be expensive to set up. Stores that have high-capacity IT teams – or a good working relationship with their POS vendors – are best poised to set up a system like this. Some stores do not have in-store loyalty programs, so these systems are not applicable everywhere. Customer reach may also be limited, as these programs hinge on customers signing up for loyalty accounts.
There are a couple pf pitfalls specific to coupon-based store loyalty programs. First, they rely on cashiers or customers remembering to perform a triggering action (like scanning a barcode). Second, customers must “use it or lose it,” meaning they must spend every penny of the coupon in one transaction. Once a coupon is scanned, it cannot be reused. And third, a coupon is not securely linked to an individual shopper. In theory, the coupon could be used by anyone.
Several programs enroll SNAP shoppers and provide them with a separate card for earning and spending digital SNAP incentives. In some cases, cards are for use in one store only, while in other cases, cards can be used at any outlet equipped with the POS system or equipment to make it operate. In these programs:
Customers can save incentives for later use, which may help them budget throughout the month. When they choose to spend the incentive dollars, they may spend down to the penny and spread out their spending over multiple transactions. Stores report seeing loyal customers return to use their benefits, and programs can track individual cardholder data over time. If a card is lost or stolen, the benefits are not lost; the customer is simply issued a new card.
These systems are expensive to set up and maintain. Some integrate with POS systems, while others operate on a separate parallel system, which can leave room for discrepancies between the POS system and the one tracking incentive dollars. As most of these card programs are in early phases of development, shoppers are limited in the number of outlets they can shop with them. In some cases the signup process can be burdensome and may deter some shoppers.
Some programs issue pre-printed incentive vouchers that cashiers already have on hand at the registers to provide to shoppers when they purchase qualifying produce. Some vouchers come in set denominations (e.g. $1, $5, and $10 increments) while others have write-in dollar amounts, allowing cashiers to specify the dollar amount a customer earned. In these cases:
Voucher systems are low-cost and easy to implement with little technology investment. For some small stores that lack sophisticated POS systems, this may be an easy low-cost way to operate a nutrition incentive program. Some grantees believe this may be the best method for a store to pilot a nutrition incentive program; it allows them to test the waters before expanding.
The voucher system hinges on cashiers recognizing the form of payment and distributing the paper incentive. While many of the incentive methods rely on cashiers’ actions, retailers have found the degree to which cashiers are responsible for explaining the program with this method is burdensome. Furthermore, the experience at the point of sale is cumbersome. EBT shoppers must self-identify, which can draw unwanted attention from others in the store. In some programs, the process is further slowed because managers must approve the issuance of the vouchers, meaning cashiers must call a manager to facilitate the process.
When customers return with the coupons, they can redeem only in the increments indicated on the vouchers. In most cases, there is no change given, so customers either use the full voucher amount or lose any remainder.
Data collection and reporting is more burdensome with this method than with others. The process may be tedious for cashiers, and the organization may have to spend hours inputting data every week (e.g. typing in serial numbers on vouchers manually).
Produce prescription (PPR) programs differ from SNAP incentive programs in several key ways.
Many PPR programs provide patients pre-printed vouchers they can redeem at participating stores for healthy fruits and vegetables. In some cases programs may issue patients several months’ worth of vouchers at each clinic visit.
Voucher systems are low-cost and easy to implement with little technology investment. Some programs allow patients to shop at both farmers markets and grocery stores with their PPR dollars, and this low-tech option allows for any outlet willing to offer the program – regardless of POS – the ability to do so. This low-tech option also does not present a barrier to participation for patients without smartphones.
One drawback of paper voucher models is that reporting must be done manually. Some grantees and retailers have indicated this might not be the best method to continue if programs want to scale up to serve more patients at more outlets.
In some PPR programs, patients purchase produce using store coupons with a barcode that the cashier scans. Patients either receive the coupons during their clinical visits, or they receive a prescription that must be exchanged for coupons in the pharmacy department. The store may operate the program as an in-store promotion: scanning the barcode provides a set dollar-amount discount on PLU items included in the promotion (fruits and vegetables).
The store coupon model is easier for patients and cashiers than the pre-printed vouchers mentioned above. It functions just like any other store coupon and the barcode is easy to scan. The program that uses the retailer pharmacy to distribute the store coupons is able to track individual PRx redemption patterns, which is a key component of robust evaluation of health outcomes from PRx programs.
In order to receive the benefit, a patient must spend at least the dollar amount listed on the store coupon. If a customer spends only $9.50 in produce and the store coupon is for $10, the coupon cannot be applied to the purchase. In some circumstances, the program design relies on an in-store promotion of certain PLUs, retailers must regularly update the list of items included in the promotion.
Several grantees and retailers indicate that this is not the best method to pursue if programs want to scale up to serve more patients at more outlets. Some believe that having an electronic benefit (either through a phone app or store loyalty card) would allow the program to grow.
