Shoppers are always seeking a deal, yet their media consumption and habits have changed over time. The creation of Target Cartwheel fundamentally challenges a centuries-old retail dynamic. The idea shifts the traditional balance of control, disproportionately in favor of the retailer, towards the customer. Target Cartwheel enables a mobile-based way for Target's guests to discover, share, and save on the items that matter most to them, not just the merchant. No longer is the customer limited to a one-time coupon on a product that few people want. With Target Cartwheel, guests can save at least 5% on thousands of items they want – again and again. The breakthrough development was the creation of unique barcodes for every guest using Cartwheel. The unique barcode enables all offers to follow the guest on every trip; it's the last item scanned to give her the most savings. It’s particularly a breakthrough for Target, who can now make marketing incredibly personal by knowing specifically what she wants to buy before she walks into the store.

Target Cartwheel is a first of its kind retail app that gives shoppers control over their savings, and identifies their purchase behavior via a unique barcode, helping Target learn more about their most valuable guests over time. While mobile coupons exist, this is the first product to incorporate multiple offers into one unique barcode. Knowing that milliennals shop at Target, Cartwheel was created as a mobile-centric application that was user friendly and integrated with Facebook, a place where guests spend a lot of time. The app was developed and is hosted internally by Target, with a team of engineers, product marketers and merchants all working together on design functionality. The Target point of sale system was completely overhauled in 1600 stores three years ahead of schedule to account for Cartwheel’s mobile barcode scan, enabling a seamless redemption process for Cartwheel users. Additionally, hundreds of servers were also acquired to store what would become every guest's shopping list…before they made their purchases. When a user adds a Cartwheel offer to her list, a Facebook open graph story is created (X added X to her list on Target Cartwheel). When the user’s barcode is scanned in store, Target’s POS recognizes the offer and automatically applies the discount. This results in a second open graph story on Facebook where a guests’ savings also become story-eligible. All of this happens while the app updates to reflect offers redeemed and total savings from the trip. The initial alpha launch (May 2013) had full barcode functionality, and enhancements have been made in beta to improve response time between Target’s servers and app updates, allowing a real-time tally of savings.

Target has outlined Cartwheel as a core business driver, with the first six months of activity leading to well over $100 million in incremental sales attributed directly to Cartwheel. Target is continuing to invest in the development and promotion of Cartwheel. Enhancements to the app experience include mobile barcode scanning (for in-store use), UX improvements, in-app personalization, improved speed, and connection to products on Target.com. Other retailers are taking note of the experience and working quickly to replicate the new consumers behavior uncovered by the Cartwheel experience.