Imagine receiving money, just for moving your body.
Did you get out of bed and walk to the kitchen? Did you go outside to get the mail? And for those more active folks, did you take a walk through your neighborhood, hike a trail, or jog a few miles?
Did you engage in any movement whatsoever today? And, would you like to be rewarded for this physical activity?
The new sMiles app is doing just that, paying users Bitcoin for the very things they already do, every day. While the focus of this app is primarily on incentivizing users to be healthy through exercise and movement – where the greatest number of bitcoin can be earned – it also rewards users for playing virtual games, online shopping, or responding to surveys or other tasks from sMiles sponsored partners.
While this app is still in development, some features have yet to be activated, such as the cashback shopping rewards, and the in-game options are limited to chess and chess puzzles. As it continues to evolve, expect to see more ways to earn Bitcoin in the months to come.
How Does It Work?
The setup process is quite simple. From your iPhone and Android, download the sMiles app, create and confirm your account using your email address and then…get moving.
The sMiles app integrates with the Health app on the iPhone, and presumably, a similar integration occurs with the Android phone, although the website did not specify.
By mirroring your Apple Watch to your iPhone, you can track and view your activity, sats balance, and the leaderboard stats from your Apple Watch. Either way, keep your smartphone or Apple watch on your body to track, build, and view your activity and earn Bitcoin.
How Much Do I Earn?
Before you get too excited about building up your Bitcoin account at a rapid pace, let’s set expectations. sMiles rewards user activity with fractions of Bitcoin called sats.
There are 100 million sats in one Bitcoin. And if you’re wondering how many sats are earned for steps or game playing or engagement in sponsored partner tasks, keep wondering, as that isn’t clearly spelled out on their platforms. What they do say is that sMiles reward amounts vary based on location and market Bitcoin/$USD exchange rates.
Feeling discouraged to even bother with using the app? Hold up, consider this:
First, if you have been reluctant to purchase Bitcoin on your own, here’s an easy way to get started. There is a finite quantity of Bitcoin, only 21 million, and sMiles is offering an easy way to get in on Bitcoin and to own what could become more prevalent as an alternate form of currency.
Secondly, if there’s an appeal to earning free money for the things you already do on your own, then this might be the app to download and use.
Thirdly, chances are you might inadvertently increase your level of physical activity. Maybe your competitive nature kicks in and you want to see if you can beat last week’s earned steps and sats, or maybe you challenge your friends to see who can be first to a particular step or sat milestone. More frequent physical activity and building connections through friendly competition is the upside. The free money is the bonus. Or the other way around.
So why is the primary focus on encouraging physical activity?
Healthcare costs and the quality of an individual’s health can be greatly impacted by preventative measures, such as physical activity. As the sMiles explains, “There is scientific consensus on the tremendous health benefits of simply walking 30 minutes a day. It greatly reduces the most common medical conditions, including strokes, heart disease, sleep apnea, hypertension, and many others.”
So that is your fourth reason – improving your health – and it’s really the most important one.
Lightning Network
sMiles operates on the Lightning Network which enables second-layer Bitcoin transactions.
Transferring earned Bitcoin out of the app and back onto the Bitcoin blockchain can be accomplished easily through a Bitcoin Lightning wallet app. To send sats, create an invoice in a Bitcoin Lightning Wallet for the desired amount* available in your sMiles account balance. Then, open the sMiles app and press ‘send sats’ in the balance tab. And walla, payments are processed instantly.
*Note: There is a discrepancy in what minimum amount of sats is required to withdraw Bitcoin from the app to any Bitcoin Lighting Wallet. The website indicates 10,000 sats as the minimum, and the app indicates 1,000 sats. The bottom line, just to keep earning so the minimum doesn’t matter much.
Cashback Shopping Rewards: A Message to Partnered Retailers
sMiles is looking to achieve a paradigm shift with their rewards program and this is how it’s explained:
Consider these two scenarios: with every social media platform, app, game, or media outlet, users either pay to use a service (while retailers profit), or the use of the service is free in exchange for selling their personal data for advertising purposes. Well, that’s nice for the service provider or retailer, but how does the user benefit? sMiles is looking to change the way this ecosystem works.
In short form, the sMiles Lightning backend enables retailers and publishers to monetize through user purchases and engagement, while at the same time, reward users with Bitcoin to build loyalty between the user and retailer.
Specifically, through Bitcoin cashback for shopping – which is the best way to build customer loyalty as indicated by sMiles – retailers and publishers gain sales from the App users, and because users are rewarded with Bitcoin, loyalty between user and retailer strengths – or at least that is the hope.
Regardless of the degree of loyalty achieved, there is a built-in incentive to purchase from a specific retailer that offers cashback Bitcoin rewards. So slice it as you may, it’s a win-win for all and everyone gets a piece of the pie.
