Pokémon Go has exploded in popularity since its July 6 release. The augmented reality game has already surpassed Twitter in daily users and Facebook in engagement, say tracking firms SimilarWeb and SensorTower. The app’s growing ubiquity has also clicked with businesses, who see it as a way to lure customers and build connections.
Pokémon Go uses smartphones’ location technology to pinpoint the player in the real world and then uses their cameras to overlay Pokémon characters that players are trying to catch onto their actual environment. The game’s virtual landscape includes gyms, where players are “trainers,” in the parlance of Pokémon Go, and Poké Stops, where players can collect various items used in the game.
As the game inhabits the real world, it can offer businesses increased exposure to its players. Businesses near a Poké Stop—the game’s algorithm places Poké Stops at “monuments,” but its definition of a monument can be pretty liberal, from fountains to popular parks or restaurants—already benefit from the area’s attraction to players, but the game gives them the option of boosting that traffic by purchasing lures. Generally costing a dollar or less, lures can be dropped on a Poké Stop to lure Pokémon to the area, in turn drawing players who can become customers as well.
Queens, New York, pizza restaurant L’inizio Pizza Bar told the New York Post that its business spiked 75 percent after spending $10 on Pokémon lures. Culver City, California, ice cream shop Coolhaus launched a promotion offering a free cookie to customers who showed them a picture of a Pokémon caught at their location. Businesses without nearby Poké Stops are also finding ways to take advantage of the Pokémon craze. Smoketown Helicopters in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, is advertising Pokémon Tours to help players catch Pokémon from the air. The game’s developer, Niantic, says that sponsored locations will be available soon.
Forbes has delved deeper into Pokémon Go’s opportunities for local marketers. Click here to read more on its findings.