A different way to collect stamps. FIT BUT students are developing a digital benefit app

A benefit app created by students of the Faculty of Information Technology at BUT, designed to help small businesses and customers alike. This is Věrka. The project began as a competition idea within student activities at the university, but quickly grew into an emerging startup full of energy and ambition.

It all started with a lost card. “I noticed that many businesses in Brno have some kind of loyalty program in the form of paper cards. So I began collecting them, because I like free stuff,” laughs Matyáš Krejza, a student at the Faculty of Information Technology at BUT. “But a few times I lost an almost completed card, and at that moment I realized – why doesn’t a mobile app exist for this?” he says, adding that this is how the idea for Věrka was born – a mobile app that would function as a digital loyalty card.

Matyáš approached his classmates from IT – Oliver Ulrich and Dominik Huml – with his idea. Together they agreed that the concept had potential and started working on the platform design. “At first we focused on the technical side of the project, but soon realized we had started from the wrong end. We needed a business plan,” explains Oliver, adding that market research, analysis of similar existing solutions, and a financing strategy were just as important as product development.

They also had to reach out to their potential clients – owners of Brno businesses – to see if they would even be interested in such a service. “We wanted to discuss what they liked or disliked about paper loyalty cards, and how the new Věrka service could make their business life easier. Out of 40 businesses contacted, only two spoke to us in detail,” says Matyáš with mild disappointment. But the three-student team did not give up.

Although they did not initially achieve major success among Brno businesses, they gained support at the university through the BoosterChallenge, which supports technical development of student projects, and also in the university competition BUT Student Entrepreneurship Award, where they impressed the expert jury. Eventually, with Věrka, they reached the finals and took second place. “We want to thank BUT for creating such opportunities for students,” say the project authors with gratitude. “It’s also great that the support continues even after the competition. Mr. Sláma from knowledge transfer reached out to us, saying he liked our project and wanted to help us kick-start it,” they add.

Digital stamps as a modern eco-friendly solution

The service works on a fairly simple principle. Customers download the Věrka mobile app and in businesses that use the digital benefits system, they simply tap their phone on an NFC card to collect a point. Once they collect the required number of points and fill the card, they receive a special coupon and can redeem their reward, just like with a paper card. “There is still that feeling of physical activity in the form of collecting stamps. At the same time, if a coupon has a deadline, the app notifies the user when it’s about to expire,” explains Matyáš, adding that this motivates customers to revisit the business.

The goal of the Věrka project is to replace paper loyalty cards with digital ones, which will make it easier for small businesses to manage their loyalty programs and help customers clearly track what benefits they can use at their favorite places. “The main advantage of a digital loyalty program is not only that people always have a mobile app at hand, and it’s more sustainable than constantly printing paper cards, but also that we can collect user data and improve our services,” explains Oliver. This also allows businesses to adjust rewards based on their popularity.

The team agrees that they want to keep the platform as flexible as possible, enabling participating businesses to set various reward options within their section. They also emphasize that besides being a benefits program, Věrka is also a valuable marketing tool, since clients will be able to enter the app and publish their updates via notifications.

The student app heads into Brno businesses

Although it sounds like a fairly simple idea, the Brno tech students faced a number of challenges during the app’s development. They tackled the technical side of the project, database security and backups, and even issues with releasing the app for iOS, Apple’s operating system. “There are a lot of phones in the world, and each is unique. If you make an app for one, it doesn’t mean it will automatically work on another brand, so everything must be checked and made as universal as possible,” explains Oliver.

According to the project authors, however, the biggest challenge came from the NFC cards. It wasn’t easy to find the right balance between cost and security. “The final step is actually very simple, but getting there is complicated,” says Dominik, noting that the last step they must solve is proper verification of tapping the card.

Currently, only a prototype of the Věrka app exists, serving as a tool for presentations and approaching potential clients. The team, however, is intensively fine-tuning the final details and preparing the entire project for the launch of a full version. “We have agreements with two businesses that will use Věrka at the start – Kafotunel in Vinohrady and the cat café Pelíšek,” says Oliver, adding that businesses will be able to use the service on a subscription basis.

After launching the app, the students plan to gather feedback and continue improving Věrka with new features. “In the future, we’d like to include options like purchasing gifts, or even bringing Věrka to Brno’s Christmas markets,” outlines Matyáš. According to the IT students from Brno University of Technology, the best ideas are those that truly make people’s everyday lives easier – and that is exactly what Věrka delivers.

Author: Lenka Hubáčková