Greg Grunberg is not only a celebrity, but also now apparently a hardcore programming geek. More famously known as Matt Parkman, the man who can read minds on the popular TV series Heroes, Greg Grunberg is now trying to retail an iPhone app that he has created himself. 

The iPhone app is known as Yowza! and it is meant to scan the location a user is in. The scan is done using the iPhone's inbuilt GPS system. Once the scan is complete, a user is presented with a list of special offers and coupons that are available in shops and stores in their immediate vicinity. The coupons can then be redeemed in the appropriate stores, where the barcode can be scanned right off the surface of the iPhone. 

Basically Yowza! is what is known as a coupon aggregator app. The only difference lies in the coupons being directed to the app by location; this is an important distinction however, making the app exceedingly relevant in a real time scenario. It is possible to set the radius of the app; some of the choices are 1 mile, 5 miles and 15 miles respectively.

Another significant difference is the ability to scan the barcodes right off the iPhone. This small tweak means that there is no need for printouts and, as most people do not carry portable printers in their pockets, it means that the app is of definite practical use. 

There are a number of retailers that are participating, including giants like Target. Some of the others include Finish Line, The Container Store and Guitar Centre. Greg Grunberg also assures users that there are many other stores that Yowza! is in talks with currently. 

Smallers retailers also have the option of jumping on the bandwagon, and into the arena with bigger players. Perhaps this will be a good marketing strategy for them, as smaller stores do not have marketing budgets on the same scale as the giants. Having an iPhone app that scans in deals provides small retailers with potential two benefits – firstly, they will be able to reach a greater number of people, considering how popular the iPhone actually is; and secondly, their deals may well be better than others so there may be the possibility of increasing foot traffic to their stores. 

Even though Yowza! is not revolutionary, it still is an intelligent take on an existing idea. It will probably prove to be extremely popular, as it is practicable as well as has the distinction of having been created by a celebrity. Greg Grunberg revealed that he got the idea in collaboration with two of his Twitter friends; another powerful example of the influence of Twitter. The app is completely digital, therefore it is a ‘green’ app, with no need of printouts 

The iPhone app is all set to launch towards the end of April, and it is slated to be a free app. It will soon also be available for the Blackberry. Check out the iPhone app at its website, here.