Business for supplier MediaTree has taken off by delivering emailed rewards for the homebound.

The promotional products that supplier MediaTree Rewards (asi/70303) offers the industry aren’t tangible, but they are lucrative. The Parsippany, NJ-based firm has been in the digital rewards business since the mid-2000s – back when downloading custom ringtones for your flip phone was totally hip.

MediaTree offers various digital rewards from a variety of brands and retailers for the promotional products industry

There isn’t much demand for premium ringtones anymore, but the company has carved out a niche with its gift card programs and digital rewards. Business has always been steady, says Bill Grassmyer, owner/founder of MediaTree. But in the last few weeks, due to stay-at-home orders and self-quarantining going on across the nation in response to the coronavirus pandemic, MediaTree’s business has “just exploded because now everyone is at home.”

“Distributors are looking at items they can offer while at home,” Grassmyer says. “Our product fits the bill because it can be emailed.”

The company does print physical gift cards, but most people have been opting to go fully digital with rewards sent directly via email. The other benefit is how quickly these digital gifts can be delivered. Turn time is within 24 hours, since there’s no physical product that needs to be created and shipped.

MediaTree also can deliver on two of the big things people want when they’re stuck at home: food and entertainment. The supplier has a gift card product that allows people to pick from all the national retailers that deliver food, including GrubHub and Uber Eats, Grassmyer says. The supplier also offers digital movie rental vouchers.

One quick glance at social media over the last few weeks demonstrates the obvious: many people have extra time for catching up on movies and TV. In fact, half of Gen Z and millennials and 49% of Gen Xers said they would be watching more online movies due to self-quarantining during the coronavirus pandemic, according to research conducted by tech company Morning Consult with The Hollywood Reporter. About a third of Gen Z and millennials were likely to rent movies via streaming services during the COVID-19 outbreak, according to the same Morning Consult report. And with restaurants’ dining rooms mostly closed, takeout service has become the only way to get a break from cooking at home all the time.

In recent weeks, a lot of companies have been incorporating MediaTree’s digital rewards as part of employee-related gifts, to motivate and reward workers who may be working remotely for the first times in their careers. “To be able to provide a meal for a family, if a company can do that, it’s a nice thing to do,” Grassmyer says.

A lot of distributors have been sending out digital gifts as self-promos. “They’re looking for a way to reach out and connect with their customer base in some way and just provide a little bit of joy,” Grassmyer says. “A lot of them are doing it because they want to be helpful.”