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Thursday, Mar 28, 2024

NoHo App Aims to Lure Foot Traffic

North Hollywood businesses are building customer loyalty digitally through the new “NoHo Card” smartphone application. Launched April 11, the app features deals from more than 50 businesses, from dance and fitness classes to retail and restaurants. “NoHo is really a walkable village,” said Nancy Bianconi, chief executive of NoHo Communications Group Inc. Her company partnered with the North Hollywood Business Improvement District in 2005 to create the original NoHo Card in an effort to bring customers through businesses’ doors. “At the time, businesses weren’t getting enough foot traffic,” she recalled. “(The NoHo Card) was an economical way to do some collaborative marketing.” The NoHo Card works like other savings card programs, with a local twist. Retailers, restaurants, theaters and service providers in North Hollywood sign up to offer exclusive discounts to shoppers, who can print a card on the NoHo Arts District website, pick up one directly at participating businesses or download the mobile application from the Android or iPhone app stores. Deals run the gamut, from complimentary bruschetta with the purchase of an entree at Eclectic Restaurant to buy-one-get-one dance classes at MKM Cultural Center. Theaters have been especially supportive of the program, Bianconi said, offering as much as 50 percent discounts on tickets to select shows. The program appeals to empty-nesters, young families, tourists and the large population of young artists who have flocked to North Hollywood’s low rents and vivacious arts scene. “Fifty percent of our district’s demographic is under age 30,” Bianconi said. “We’ve become an international training center for young artists, and the card is especially useful before they’re making a lot of money.” The digital version of the NoHo Card was engineered with the youth in mind, she added. The app has more than 150 downloads so far, despite limited advertising. Though some groan at the prospect of adding yet another app to their phone, Bianconi is quick to assure them that it’s not the only way to get a NoHo Card. “We have people raving about the app, and then we have people who say, ‘Ugh another app?’” she said. “But we’ve found a way to please everybody.” – Helen Floersh

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