Loyalty Newswire – March 21st, 2022

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By: Wise Marketer Staff |

Posted on March 21, 2022

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 industry 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!

  • Doordash launches a gas rewards program to help drivers navigate rising fuel costs
  • IHG communicates delayed launch of its refreshed program via social media
  • Canandian cannabis company ShinyBud officially announced the launch of its loyalty program
  • International Loyalty Awards 2022 finalists revealed
  • UK government officials announce plans to manage Russian state-run gas giant Gazprom
  • A new Juniper Research study predicts the value of global credit card rewards will exceed $108 billion by 2026
  • Euroclear joins consortium of banks building blockchain-based payment system

LOYALTY PROGRAM NEWS

Doordash’s new ‘gas rewards’ program comes with strings attached

Highlight: Doordash has launched a gas rewards program aimed at helping delivery drivers mitigate the high cost of fuel. While it’s better than nothing, it’s more complicated and possibly less impactful than the fuel surcharges recently added by Uber and Lyft… Beginning on March 17th, drivers for Doordash will be able to receive 10% cashback on gas purchases, though only if they’re enrolled in the company’s own DasherDirect Visa cards. On top of that, drivers who drive a certain amount of miles per week will qualify for weekly gas rewards, ranging from $5 to $15 per week.

IHG Rewards Program Refresh Delayed By “Few Months”

Highlight: IHG announced on January 19 that its loyalty program would go through a refresh and that the new tiers would go live in March. There are less than two weeks of March 2022 left, and IHG is now communicating on social media that the launch has been delayed by a “few months,” and no exact date is given.

ShinyBud Launches ShinyBuddy Club Loyalty Program with Exclusive Member Benefits

Highlight: The Club is a point-based loyalty system that allows members to earn a point for every dollar spent at any of the Company's multi-banner locations. Loyalty points are redeemable for dollars towards future purchases from the Company's wide range of award-winning Canadian cannabis products… "Launching ShinyBud's loyalty program is both an exciting milestone and a key business initiative for the Company," said Kevin Reed, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “The Club allows us to engage customers, reward customer loyalty, and drive customer retention. In addition, we will be able to leverage the member purchase data to better understand our shoppers and their product preferences.

EVENTS

International Loyalty Awards FINALISTS 2022 Announced

Highlight: It was not possible to predict what response there would be to the call for entries for the newly named International Loyalty Awards after a two year, covid-induced lull. But the organisers are delighted to announce the biggest response ever! Not to mention a list of finalists that spans the globe and includes the largest and best-known loyalty programmes as well as smaller and relatively unknown ones. “We were stunned,” said CEO Annich McIntosh, “We knew from conversations that much work had been taking place in the background both by brands and loyalty service providers. They had used the covid pause to bring systems up to date, improve analytics and build really connected offerings, but we weren’t prepared for the high level of innovation, creativity and new thinking. The shortlisting gave those tasked with the job of cutting down the numbers a very hard job indeed.”

RETAIL NEWS

Britain prepares to temporarily nationalise Gazprom retail unit

Highlight: The UK government is preparing to step in and temporarily run Russian gas giant Gazprom's British retail supply arm, Bloomberg News reported on Monday, as companies cut ties with Russian businesses. Officials are closely monitoring the situation at Gazprom Marketing & Trading Retail Ltd, whose ultimate parent is Russian state-run Gazprom, Bloomberg reported. The unit, operating as Gazprom Energy, supplies just over a fifth of Britain's commercial gas volume and serves thousands of customers including the National Health Service.

Juniper Research: Consumer Credit Card Rewards to Exceed $108 Billion in Value by 2026, as Retailers Leverage Loyalty Benefits

Highlight: A new Juniper Research study has found that the value of global consumer credit card rewards will exceed $108 billion by 2026; rising from $92 billion in 2022. This 15% growth will be driven by an increase in adoption of co-branded credit cards by retailers to boost repeat user engagement. The new research, Digital Loyalty Programmes: Emerging Trends, Regional Analysis & Market Forecasts 2022‑2026, predicts that the global value of credit card rewards will increase, as consumers prefer a single loyalty record, instead of multiple apps or physical cards. The research recommends that merchants collaborate with loyalty platforms to access this omnichannel approach, or risk losing market share to better-connected competitors.

PAYMENTS NEWS

Euroclear joins bank-backed blockchain payment system

Highlight: Securities settlement house Euroclear said on Monday it had joined a consortium of banks building a payment system for tokenised assets in the latest sign of established institutions teaming up with newcomers in crypto tech. Belgium-headquartered Euroclear said it had bought a small stake in the three-year old consortium Fnality as it moves deeper into distributed ledger technology (DLT) or blockchain, the technology which underpins cryptoassets like bitcoin.

Did you miss the previous newswire? Stay informed: Loyalty Newswire – March 15th, 2022

The Loyalty Newswire is compiled and edited by the staff at The Wise Marketer.