LINE Friend Acquisition Cost Halved! "Rakuten Member Linkage" Simultaneously Completed with "Rakuten-Specialized LINE Notification Message Function" Launched

Greenwich Inc. (Headquarters: Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, Representative Director: Hiroyuki Tanaka, hereinafter "the Company") began offering a new "Rakuten-Specialized LINE Notification Message Function" on May 1, 2026 (Friday), for store operators on Rakuten Ichiba. This function enables the acquisition of LINE friends and "Rakuten Member ID linkage" simultaneously and at a low cost. To commemorate this release, we have also started accepting advance applications for a free offer of "Rakuraku LINE," a system that enables segmented distribution to acquired friends (normally 10,000 yen per month), to the first 30 stores.

**What is LINE Notification Message?**

LINE Notification Message is a service provided by LINE Yahoo Japan Corporation that allows companies to send messages to users who have not registered as LINE friends through their official LINE accounts. By matching the customer's phone number held by the company with the LINE user's phone number, purchase confirmations and shipping notifications can be delivered directly via LINE.

While conventional LINE official accounts could not send messages unless users added them as friends, LINE Notification Message makes it possible to approach customers even before they become friends. The transmission fee is 8 yen per message.

**Background of Development: Rakuten Stores' Concerns about "Email Newsletter Decline" and "LINE Friend Acquisition Costs"**

To stabilize sales on Rakuten Ichiba, CRM measures to nurture new customers into repeat customers are indispensable. However, the open rates of traditional email newsletters (R-Mail) have significantly declined, leading many stores to shift towards utilizing "LINE Official Accounts (R-SNS)."

On the other hand, Rakuten stores faced the following challenges in acquiring LINE friends:

- **Soaring acquisition costs (CPA)** Reliance on incentives such as coupons resulted in costs of approximately 150-200 yen per acquisition, making it uneconomical. - **Fragmented customer data** Even if friends were acquired, the data was not linked to Rakuten purchase data (RMS), making it impossible to ascertain who purchased what. - **Declining distribution accuracy** Only mass distribution was possible, leading to a high block rate due to unnecessary messages.

To break through these "CRM barriers unique to Rakuten stores," the Company developed a function that seamlessly achieves everything from friend acquisition to data linkage and subsequent segmented distribution.

**Three Features of the "Rakuten-Specialized LINE Notification Message Function"**

1. **Acquire highly motivated friends at less than half the conventional cost**

Through "LINE Notification Messages" such as order confirmations and shipping completions, users are naturally prompted to add friends on LINE at the moment of their highest interest immediately after purchase. The transmission fee for LINE Notification Messages is 8 yen per message.

2. **[Unique Feature] One-stop completion of friend addition and "Rakuten Member Linkage"**

The biggest feature is that "Rakuten Member ID linkage" can be completed simultaneously within the process of the user adding friends on LINE.

3. **After acquisition, link with "Rakuraku LINE" for segmented distribution utilizing RMS data**

Customer information acquired through the LINE Notification Message function can be linked with the Company's LINE distribution tool "Rakuraku LINE" and immediately utilized for sales improvement measures.

**Notes on Usage**

Please confirm the following conditions before using this function.

- The use of LINE Notification Message requires a review by LINE Yahoo Japan Corporation. The content of messages to be distributed must comply with the LINE Notification Message UX guidelines. - LINE Notification Message is a service for corporate customers. Individual business owners cannot use it. - To use this function, a LINE account for R-SNS (LINE official account linkage service) provided by Rakuten Ichiba is mandatory. - The transmission fee for LINE Notification Message is 8 yen per message.

**LINE Notification Message Function Advance Application Campaign Overview**

To commemorate the release of this function, we have prepared a special offer to allow customers to experience the entire process from "friend acquisition" via the LINE Notification Message function to "sales generation" via Rakuraku LINE.

Item | Detail ---|--- Campaign Period | May 1, 2026 (Friday) 0:00 to May 31, 2026 (Sunday) 23:59 Eligible Service | LINE Notification Message Function Campaign Content | Benefit (1): Application support fee 0 yen (Initial application support fee of 100,000 yen is free) Benefit (2): "Rakuraku LINE" unlimited use during the period (Rakuraku LINE can be used without additional fees during the period of using the LINE Notification Message Function)