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"Offermatic is launching today to provide consumers with a more automatic way to earn deals and discounts. The rewards come in the form of instant rebates, discounts and points targeted to users based on their credit and debit card transactions.\nNew users will need to link a debit or credit card to get started, but once they do they'll start earning points and become eligible for rebates and deals that the service sends via e-mail. Essentially, users need to provide the startup with direct access to their spending history \u2014 a big barrier to entry for some \u2014 so that Offermatic can serve up rewards.\nOnce a user links a card, he or she will be sent e-mail offers for instant rebates, which are then automatically applied once the user clicks to activate the deal and makes a purchase. This method eliminates the need for coupons or vouchers, but one downside is that these rebate offers are credited to your debit or credit account typically 14 days after the initial purchase. \nYou also earn points for transactions or on-site behaviors \u2014 like signing up, adding a card or referring friend \u2014 that can then be used to redeem merchant gift cards or better discounts.\nOffermatic uses a cost-per-acquisition (CPA) model with its clients, who are able to target their customers with customized offers based on spending history. It's these hyper-targeting capabilities that the startup believes will help improve conversation rates; clients reportedly saw conversion rates as high as 14.5% in initial tests.\nOn the data collection side of things, Offermatic asserts that your account and purchase history are anonymous and encrypted. Privacy and safety concerns, however, will still likely limit the startup's ability to get users to link their credit or debit accounts.\nThe startup does, however, offer a different spin on deals and loyalty programs; it's an approach that will likely appeal to big brands and merchants who are seeking to influence and verify purchase behavior. Currently, Offermatic has roughly 75 offers running concurrently from merchants including Target, Walmart, Home Depot and Starbucks. \nThe startup has raised $750,000 from Kleiner Perkins Caulfield &amp; Byers, Bessemer Venture Partners and private angel investors. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nImage courtesy of Flickr, tom.arthur"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://mashable.com/2010/12/07/offermatic/>