Welcome back to the Wise Marketer! That is, if you've been here before! Each week, our team of editors curate a list of the latest customer loyalty, technology, and other relevant marketing news. Our goal is to make it simple for busy professionals to quickly digest important news and trending topics. Show your support by joining our mailing list to gain access to exclusive content, events, promotions, and more. Or simply enjoy today's newswire!
- Southeastern Grocers promotes its private label brands and rewards program ahead of holiday season
- Velvet Taco partnered with Thanx to develop its new loyalty program plus essential guest experiences
- Happy Joe's pizza chain reveals new rewards program and mobile app with a variety of new features
- Entries to the International Loyalty Awards 2022 are open until 14 February 2022
- Spinx convenience store chain is planning a year's worth of community service activities leading up to its 50th anniversary celebration in 2022
- Vibes announces the launch of “Mobile Wallet as a Channel” which turns consumer smartphones into content channels
- JPMorgan partnered with Siemens to develop a first-of-its-kind blockchain application
- The Norwegian Data Protection Authority fined dating app Grindr 65 million kroner ($7.16 million USD) for breaching EU privacy rules
- Taiwanese carrier EVA Air forms new multi-year partnership with Points to overhaul its loyalty program
- JetBlue launches Mosaic+, a loyalty program for its most frequent fliers
LOYALTY PROGRAM NEWS
Southeastern Grocers Touts Own Brands, Rewards Ahead of Holidays
Highlight: Southeastern Grocers, the parent company of Fresco y Más, Harveys Supermarket and Winn-Dixie grocery stores, is touting its private label products ahead of the holiday season. With grocery prices at a 13-year high, the company is pitching its award-winning own brands and rewards loyalty program as a way to save on groceries… “At Southeastern Grocers, our associates and customers are our number one priority,” said Gayle Shields, VP of own brands at Southeastern Grocers. “We are dedicated to providing them with the high-quality products and services they need to nourish their families at incredible prices they can afford. By choosing SE Grocers private label products, our customers can save, on average, 20% this holiday season compared to national brands without compromising quality. With more than 8,000 top rated SE Grocers items to choose from, we know our customers will find joy in their holiday savings.”
Velvet Taco Unveils First Loyalty Program, 'The Velvet Room'
Highlight: Velvet Taco, the popular Dallas-based restaurant brand serving globally inspired tacos, announces its partnership today with Thanx, the leading guest engagement platform for restaurant and brick-and-mortar retailers… Velvet Taco’s new loyalty program, The Velvet Room, offers a tiered, visit-based program that rewards guests with unique offerings and VIP experiences without leaning into traditional discounts. The program also plays a vital role in guest data capture, which will give leadership a complete picture of their guest’s behaviors and spending habits to inform overall strategy… “A loyalty program just turns into a discount program unless we first understand guest behavior. With The Velvet Room, we are tying transactions to guests regardless of their order mode, and then trying to understand behavior,” says Cassie Cooper, Director of Marketing at Velvet Taco.
Happy Joe’s Unveils Best-In-Class App and Loyalty Program
Highlight: Happy Joe’s App provides a seamless online ordering experience and focuses on the brand’s new loyalty program – Joe’s Rewards… “We’re beyond excited to introduce our first App and loyalty program,” said CEO and Chief Happiness Officer Tom Sacco. “It’s a new and advanced way for us to bring happiness directly to our guests on one platform. By boosting our digital capabilities, we’re enhancing the guest experience with a contactless ordering process and rewards for our loyal fans. We can’t wait to gain even more repeat customers as our guests conveniently create special moments with the help of our new technology.”
EVENTS
Entries to the International Loyalty Awards 2022 Are Now Open
Highlight: The Loyalty Magazine Awards has rebranded for 2022 as the International Loyalty Awards in recognition of its global scope and stature as the most influential awards event in the customer loyalty industry. The International Loyalty Awards celebrate the world’s most innovative and memorable loyalty initiatives from across six continents. The awards recognise brands that are building lasting and profitable customer relationships and bring together the global leaders of loyalty, to celebrate innovation, creativity, and sheer brilliance. The Wise Marketer is a media partner for this event and Managing Editor Bill Hanifin will be participating as a judge for the competition. Entries are open and we encourage submissions as quickly as possible, submitted here. The closing date for entries is 14 February 2022 a mere 8 weeks away!
RETAIL NEWS
Disruptions Can't Stop The Spinx Co. from Hitting Golden Milestone
Highlight: The Spinx Co., the Greenville-based chain of modern convenience stores throughout South Carolina, celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2022, and CSNews recently had the opportunity to interview the company's founder and chairman Stewart Spinks. The chain, which has grown to 82 stores, is planning a full year of community-service activities leading up to a celebration of its anniversary on Dec. 1, 2022. "It's in the DNA of the channel to be a good community neighbor and as a local South Carolina company, it's even more important for us to do the right thing," said Spinks, who started in the convenience retail industry working for Shell before buying his first gas station from the oil company in 1972.
PAYMENTS NEWS
Vibes Launches Mobile Wallet as a Channel for Brands to Deliver Dynamic Experiences Through a Persistent Presence on Consumers’ Mobile Devices
Highlight: With this launch, Vibes enables marketing, loyalty and operations teams to accelerate adoption of mobile passes and take advantage of this untapped opportunity. Vibes’ Mobile Wallet as a Channel turns consumers’ mobile wallets into a persistent, dynamic, and personalized content channel that drives topline growth, increases loyalty and improves customer satisfaction. The company is rolling out new capabilities and playbooks to help brands easily take advantage of this emerging channel by incorporating it into their mobile engagement programs and enhancing their mobile app strategies. “Mobile Wallet creates a two-way vehicle through which brands can forge a consistent, personal connection with consumers,” said Vibes co-founder and CIO Alex Campbell.
JPMorgan develops blockchain system for Siemens’ payments
Highlight: US banking giant JPMorgan Chase has partnered with Siemens to develop a blockchain system for the German industrial group’s payments, in what the two companies said was a first-of-its-kind application. Siemens said the improved automation is needed to process the far greater number of payments it expects due to the growing popularity of payment models like pay per use. “If the business would stay the same as it is today, I would say we are fine regarding our treasury set-up. We can automate a bit and maybe we reduce costs and cash allocation,” Heiko Nix, head of cash management and payments at Siemens, told the Financial Times. “This is not the reason why we are doing this. The reason is that we are seeing a huge change due to the emerging digital business models, because we will no longer be able to forecast cash, for example.”
DATA & PRIVACY NEWS
Grindr fined $7 million for violating EU privacy rules
Highlight: Norway’s data privacy watchdog on Wednesday fined dating app Grindr 65 million kroner ($7.16 million) for sending sensitive personal data to hundreds of potential advertising partners without users’ consent — a breach of strict European Union privacy rules. The Norwegian Data Protection Authority said it imposed its highest fine to date because the California-based company didn’t comply with the EU’s tough data protection regulations.
TRAVEL & HOSPITALITY NEWS
EVA Air and Points enter into a multi-year partnership to enhance Infinity MileageLands program
Highlight: Award-winning, Taiwanese carrier, EVA Air, and global leader in loyalty commerce, Points, have entered into a new multi-year collaboration to introduce a series of member benefits that will increase customer engagement and generate additional ancillary revenue streams for the carrier via the Infinity MileageLands program… “EVA Air is glad to collaborate with Points and Collinson and to create various loyalty programs, allowing our members to accumulate miles more easily and get better value from their online purchase,” said EVA President Clay Sun. “By leveraging the 2 partners’ expertise, EVA can extend the loyalty programs into our members’ daily life and increase their engagement opportunities. We are excited about the new programs and the added benefits for our members.”
JetBlue launching new loyalty program Mosaic+ for its most frequent fliers
Highlight: JetBlue Airways Corp. is making a series of new enhancements to its TrueBlue loyalty program for Mosaic members, the program’s top earning loyalty group, including launching a loyalty program, Mosaic+, for its most frequent fliers. In addition, all Mosaic members who qualify in 2022 will be eligible for new perks that are only available in 2022 until the end of the year, JetBlue said. Mosaic+ members will receive all previous benefits, with the addition of complimentary Mint class upgrades, which the airline said is the most requested perk. To qualify for Mosaic+, customers must earn 45,000 qualifying points or spend $150,000 on either their JetBlue Plus Card or their JetBlue Business Card.
Did you miss last week's newswire? Stay informed: Loyalty Newswire – December 13th, 2021
The Loyalty Newswire is compiled and edited by the staff at The Wise Marketer.
