In this week's Newswire you can enjoy a curated list of the latest customer loyalty, technology, payments, and other relevant marketing news. We include a spectrum of topics, all with the intention of keeping you informed and enabling you to star in your next big meeting.
The Loyalty Newswire makes it simple for busy professionals (e.g. YOU) to quickly digest important industry news and trending topics. Keep reading!
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- Popular Bonus Incentive Eliminated From Marriott Bonvoy
- Arko Corp. Cites “Quality Loyalty Program” as One Reason for Acquisition of Pride Convenience Holdings
- Brazil’s Nubank To Introduce Cryptocurrency as Part of Rewards Program
- Texas Born (Txb) Convenience Stores Partner With Paytronix Systems to Launch New Loyalty App
- Mukuru Includes Funeral Benefits as a Loyalty Benefit
- Circle K Partners With Green Thumb to Market Cannabis Products
- Jack in the Box Partners With Paytronix to Launch New Mobile App
- Westpac Confirms Interest in Tyro Payments
Popular Bonus Incentive eliminated from Marriott Bonvoy
In an email sent to select customers on Oct. 17, Marriott announced that it would be doing away with the long-running bonus incentive it offers hotel guests transferring reward points from Bonvoy to airline partners. The Points Guy first reported this news. As of Oct. 31, guests will no longer receive a 5,000 miles bonus for every 60,000 points they transfer from Bonvoy to the company's airline partners. Specifically, the company says it is ending the extra miles for all transfers to American Airlines AAdvantage points, Avianca LifeMiles, and Delta SkyMiles.
ARKO Corp. cites “quality loyalty program” as one reason for acquisition of Pride Convenience Holdings
ARKO Corp (Nasdaq: ARKO) announced today that GPM Investments, LLC a wholly owned subsidiary of ARKO, has agreed to acquire Pride Convenience Holdings, LLC, a leading convenience store operator in the Northeast. The total purchase price is approximately $230 million plus the value of inventory. The acquisition adds 31 Massachusetts locations to ARKO’s convenience store footprint, making it the 34th state in which it operates. “Our agreement to acquire Pride highlights ARKO’s continued focus on creating long-term shareholder value by growing our core convenience store business,” said Arie Kotler, ARKO’s chairman, president and CEO. “We believe Pride stores are top-tier assets, with a focus on excellent customer service and a quality loyalty program, and we further believe that we can add value to these assets through our operational and merchandising abilities and scale. We look forward to welcoming Pride’s employees to our Family of Community Brands and working together to enhance the business.”
Brazil's Nubank to introduce cryptocurrency as part of rewards program
Brazilian Fintech startup plans to release its own cryptocurrency as part of a new customer loyalty program. You can learn more about Nubank Rewards here. The Nucoin digital currency Polygon Technology, an Ethereum scaling blockchain developer, will provide technology and technical support for Nucoin's expansion, the firm said, adding that around 2,000 customers will be selected within the next month to test Nucoin.
Texas Born (TXB) convenience stores partner with Paytronix Systems to launch new Loyalty App
TXB is a new convenience store brand that was conceived to express its Texas roots and “Leave ‘Em Better.” TXB’s loyalty program, accessed via the mobile app, enables users to earn and save on gas purchases. For every $1 spent, rewards members earn points that can be used like cash on anything in store at any TXB location. Owned by the Kwik Chek family, Texas Born (or TXB) is a family of restaurant-style convenience stores serving fresh-made food. TXB has 48+ locations across Texas and Oklahoma and is built on the three-fold brand values of authenticity, hospitality, and integrity.
Mukuru includes Funeral Benefits as a Loyalty Benefit
Mukuru is a money transfer service company based in South Africa. The next gen fintech is on a journey to empower migrants to move money around the world. The company just launched its Mukuru Rewards Program and included a funeral benefit. Mukuru developed the new Funeral Benefit to meet one of their customers’ greatest needs and to address the high costs associated with burials. “We conducted third-party qualitative research and found that funeral cover is one of the top products identified by our customers,” says Mike Cook, head of wallet and VAS at Mukuru.
Circle K partners with Green Thumb to market Cannabis products
Circle K is partnering with Green Thumb to sell cannabis products at a limited number of stores in Florida starting in 2023. The rollout will begin with 10 locations where Green Thumb will set up its RISE Express dispensaries adjacent to Circle K convenience stores. Circle K has 600 locations in the state, so the pilot group of stores represents a small fraction of the overall footprint.
Jack in the Box partners with Paytronix to launch new mobile app
Leading burger chain Jack in the Box continues its journey of digital transformation with the announcement of a new mobile app. The app comes as part of a new ordering website and features full menu ordering, customization options, location finder, product and restaurant information, flexible delivery or pickup options, and an integrated loyalty program. The Jack Pack is the chain’s loyalty program that rewards loyal customers. Participants in the Jack Pack are able to earn and accumulate points for every order placed through the Jack in the Box Mobile App.
Westpac confirms interest in Tyro Payments
Westpac is a provider of personal, private, business, and corporate banking solutions. The leading bank is based in Sydney, Australia and has an operational presence in Asia-Pacific, Europe, and North America. Westpac is headquartered in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. In a stock exchange filing, Westpac confirmed it is “in preliminary discussions with Tyro Payments Limited to acquire 100% of the company’s issued share capital.” According to Tyro, the company is Australia’s largest EFTPOS provider of all ADIs (Australian Deposit Taking Institutions) and provides tailored EFTPOS, business lending, and banking solutions that support over 61,000 Australian businesses.
Quote of the Week
As heard at the Festival of marketing conference in London (thanks to Charlie Hills Mando Connect)
As Heinz CMO Irina Rodina noted, “Brands that resonate with customers on an emotional level will outperform non-emotionally intelligent brands.” And partner agency Carat have the evidence to back it up with their annual Brand EQ Report that looks into the emotional intelligence of brands. The results reveal a strong correlation between a brand's emotional intelligence and business performance across lots of categories.
Miss the previous newswire? Stay informed: Loyalty Newswire – October 17, 2022
The Loyalty Newswire is compiled and edited by the hard-working, customer-centric, data-driven staff at The Wise Marketer.
