Popular Carrot app – a unique public engagement platform for the Ontario government
TORONTO, July 6, 2017 /CNW/ - Just a year after launching and less than three months after becoming available in Ontario, the Carrot Rewards app is proving to be a true game-changer for public policy promoters. More than 1 per cent of all Canadians and more than 200,000 Ontarians are already actively using Carrot as their daily wellness guide.
The free app is proving to be a simple, effective and engaging method that aims to influence public behaviour in important areas like health and wellness, financial literacy and environmental literacy. By harnessing two of our most intense social habits -- our attachment to smart phones and our deep love of loyalty points – the app constantly rewards Canadians with their favourite points, including frequent flyer miles, movie points, grocery points and gas points, nudging us daily towards living healthier lives. Users earn points just for downloading it; they earn more points each time they refer a friend to it; and they then earn points just for learning from it (through informative quizzes or videos), as well as allowing it to track their daily steps and for achieving personalized step goals each day.
Led by Toronto-based Carrot Insights, the app was co-created through a multi-sectoral partnership with national charities including the Heart & Stroke Foundation, Diabetes Canada and YMCA, and select loyalty partners SCENE, Aeroplan, Petro Points, Drop, and More Rewards. It is supported with funding from the Public Health Agency of Canada and the British Columbia Ministry of Health, with involvement of the BC Alliance for Healthy Living Society. It was launched in March 2016 in British Columbia, where more than 3 per cent of residents use it every day. Shortly after, Carrot launched in Newfoundland and Labrador, with an even more remarkable public participation rate of 5 per cent. And recently, it was made available in Ontario, where the total population of users has already reached 200,000 (fully 1.5 per cent of this province's population).
"We are proud to be touching so many lives in our home province, so quickly," says Andreas Souvaliotis, Founder & CEO of Carrot Insights. "Ontarians are embracing Carrot even faster than we've seen elsewhere -- and the impact, in terms of potential behaviour change, is truly remarkable. We are inspiring so many of our fellow citizens to be more physically active and to learn so much more about their health and wellness."
"Ontario is happy to support the Carrot Rewards app," says Dr. Eric Hoskins, Ontario's Health Minister. "It's an innovative platform that encourages people to be active and eat healthy. Our government is committed to help Ontarians manage their own health through the use of new, user-friendly digital tools like this one."
The Public Health Agency of Canada is contributing to the creation of the platform and the initial download and referral rewards while each participating province contributes to the rewards provided for its residents.
The Carrot app is available for free download from the App Store on iPhone and Apple Watch and Google Play Store on Android, For more information, visit www.carrotrewards.ca.
SOURCE Carrot Insights
Onsite Media Contact: Katie Skinner, [email protected], 647-525-6148
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