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- Brand Keys has released the 24th annual Loyalty Leaders List
- Love's is celebrating National Truck Driver Appreciation Week with a 4-million-point giveaway
- After getting booted from the S&P 500 index, Kohl’s debuts new cash back loyalty program
- As White Castle prepares to celebrate its 100th anniversary, the chain has launched its first loyalty rewards program
- Whole Foods, along with other retailers, are dedicating stores to solely fulfill online orders.
- U.S. retailers are designating an October sales holiday
- Brookshire Grocery extends Appreciation Pay as a way to show commitment for front line employees
- Bain & Company found that only 9% of Americans consumers have adopted Apple Pay while 81% of Chinese consumers use AliPay. Why?
- China has decided to launch its own data security initiative in response to the Clean Network Program
- Why are airlines all over the globe launching flights to nowhere?
LOYALTY PROGRAM NEWS:
Brand Keys Loyalty Leaders 2020 Report
Quotable: “The study is a cross-category examination of brands in the time of COVID-19 and massive economic disruption. The annual survey, conducted by Brand Keys, the New York-based brand loyalty and customer engagement research consultancy, examined 1,121 brands in 109 categories this year.”
Love’s Extends Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance Deals for Professional Drivers
Quotable: “My Love Rewards members can also take advantage of deals on fresh food, snacks and drinks all September. And from Sept. 14-18 — National Truck Driver Appreciation Week — drivers can get up to 5,000 My Love Rewards points (equal to $50) with the purchase of certain products. For the first time, Love’s is celebrating with a 4-million-point giveaway. Each week, a different driver will win 1 million My Love Rewards points (equal to $10,000).”
Kohl's Launches New Loyalty Program as It Plots Turnaround
Quotable: “Kohl's loyalty program and associated personalization capabilities will be key weapons in its fight to gain market share in the years ahead. Last week, the retailer officially rolled out an updated loyalty program that will give it the best possible shot at winning new customers and gaining greater wallet share from its existing customer base over the next few years.”
White Castle® Launches Restaurant Loyalty Program, Craver Nation, and Rewards First-Time Sign-Ups with Free Combo Meal
Quotable: “The Craver Nation loyalty program, named for the iconic chain's ardent fans or "Cravers," will provide valuable discounts and special offers to customers based on their individual purchase history at White Castle restaurants. Members will receive a free combo meal with four Original Sliders, a small order of fries and a small soft drink when they sign up.”
RETAIL NEWS:
The rise of ‘dark stores’—and how they could save struggling retail
Quotable: “Located in Brooklyn and slightly smaller than a typical Whole Foods, the store is dedicated solely to fulfilling online orders. It’s the company’s first purpose-built online-only store. With longer aisles, no salad bar, and missing those checkout candy displays, the store will be used to pack up online orders, which have skyrocketed during the pandemic. Amazon, which owns Whole Foods, says its grocery sales tripled, year over year, for the second quarter of 2020.”
U.S. Retailers Are Developing an October Sales Holiday, Bloomberg Reports
Quotable: “Retailers are DIY-ing a holiday discount event in October, per Bloomberg. Welcome to online shopping, where the holidays are made up and the date doesn’t matter. By adding a (presumably) large sales event in October, retailers hope to swerve supply chain disruptions during their busiest season.”
Brookshire Grocery to extend hourly appreciation pay for retail, logistics employee-partners
Quotable: “Brookshire Grocery Co. remains committed to its frontline employee-partners by extending their Appreciation Pay to Nov. 6 as a “thank you” to their employee-partners for doing their best every day to serve customers during the COVID-19 pandemic. This Appreciation Pay is an extension of the pay increase ($1 an hour extra) that started March 24 for its more than 14,000 retail and logistics employee-partners.”
PAYMENTS NEWS:
Why Hasn’t Apple Pay Replicated AliPay’s Success?
Quotable: “Though both platforms are growing, AliPay is outperforming its U.S. peer: As of late 2019, Bain & Company found that only 9% of American consumers had adopted Apple Pay while 81% of Chinese consumers used AliPay. Given the size difference between the two countries, the difference between the number of AliPay users in China and Apple Pay users in the U.S. is staggeringly large. What are some of the factors driving this stark contrast?”
DATA SECURITY NEWS:
China Launches Initiative to Set Global Data-Security Rules
Quotable: “China is launching its own initiative to set global standards on data security, countering U.S. efforts to persuade like-minded countries to ringfence their networks from Chinese technology. Announcing the initiative on Tuesday at a Beijing seminar on global digital governance, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi cited growing risks to data security and what he characterized as efforts to politicize security issues and smear rival countries on technology matters—in an apparent swipe at Washington.”
AIRLINE NEWS:
Airlines All Over The World Are Launching Flights To Nowhere
Quotable: “Amid the chaos caused by the COVID pandemic, airlines have turned to increasingly inventive ways of keeping cash flowing into the business. For some, a rapid pivot to cargo has helped sustain the bank balance, while others have focused on repatriation flights and other passenger services. But one thing almost unique to this pandemic is the number of airlines operating flights to nowhere. Although it’s not a massively widespread phenomenon, more airlines are being added to the list by the day, giving aviation enthusiasts with itchy feet a chance to fly without the risk of travel.”
Read last week's newswire if you missed it: Loyalty Newswire – September 7th, 2020
The Loyalty Newswire is compiled and edited by the staff at The Wise Marketer.
