Geofencing

Geofencing creates a virtual boundary around a physical location. When a customer with your loyalty card on their phone enters that boundary, it triggers an action — typically a push notification on their lock screen. The notification might say 'You are near — your loyalty card has 7 stamps' or 'Today only: double stamps on all orders.'

For brick-and-mortar businesses, geofencing is one of the most powerful features of digital loyalty cards. It turns proximity into a prompt. A customer who walks past your cafe during their lunch break receives a subtle reminder that they are close and that their loyalty progress is waiting. This is not intrusive marketing — it is context-aware communication.

Geofencing through Apple Wallet and Google Pay is particularly effective because it does not require the customer to have a dedicated app open. The notification surfaces natively through the operating system, appearing alongside messages and calendar alerts. The radius is typically set between 100 and 300 metres, depending on the business location and surrounding density.