We just crossed into November and, according to some, also officially crossed into the holiday season. To retailers and the organizations that support them, November is a heady mix of anxiety and complexity with a sprinkling of hope on top. For those in the customer loyalty space, the holiday season is often where the proof of your efforts over the past two quarters are laid out for all to see. November then, is largely about anticipation.
Today’s Loyalty Digest is tracking some very forward-facing companies and developments as well. Here’s what we’re following:
GFX Cross-Loyalty Network Officially Launches, Rewards Members with Registration Incentives
As more proof that the intersection of loyalty and blockchain is closer than you think. GFX is now live in-market. Let’s pay close attention to this offering as it could portend what to expect in this space.
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How CVS’s 9,800 stores will boost its Prime-style membership program
We’ve written about CVS’s loyalty program here before (Exhibit A) and that post was particularly popular with our readers. In this latest development, CVS continues to push into new loyalty territory with a new membership-based strategy.
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Cineplex piloting paid Scene loyalty program in Edmonton theatres
In more paid-tier loyalty news, Canadian cinema operator Cineplex debuts a robust new program designed to round out their customer / viewer experience in some interesting, and creative ways. We spoke with the program creators recently and will be publishing that conversation soon. Stay tuned!
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7 things we learned at Groceryshop
There are several pockets of intense innovation in the loyalty space – grocery is one of them. In this wrap-up piece from SupermarketNews, we get a quick view to some of the more interesting developments.
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Radisson breach affects hotel loyalty card holders
Data fraud happens. This past week Radisson Rewards posted a notice that their member data had been breached impacting a “small percentage” of their roster. The good news, if there is some, is that the incident appears not to have compromised any of their credit card or password information.
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Powerful data privacy legislation drafted by Democratic senator from Oregon
Speaking of data protection, this past week new legislation was introduced in the U.S. that would mandate GDPR-like protocols – and penalties – to organizations doing business there. To be sure, lots of people have anticipated that the U.S. would at some point implement their own version of GDPR but this, at least to our knowledge is the first attempt at that legislation.
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Cost of consumer disloyalty rises to £147.2bn
According to the Unfaithful Consumer State of the Nation report from Webloyalty and GlobalData Retail, price is understood to be the number one factor affecting loyalty (and disloyalty), while 58.5 per cent of consumers said staff rudeness would lead them to defect, alongside 45 per cent citing poor quality items as main factor.
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What Psychology Education Can Teach Marketers About Audiences
This is a great little reminder of some key areas of psychology that marketers would do well to pay attention to. Of particular note are these nuggets: Highlighting flaws. Building consumer trust by addressing product shortcomings rather than hiding them. Re-positioning competition. Without bashing the competition, reframing how consumers view competing products and brands.
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7-Eleven is testing new ‘scan-and-go’ technology
Amazon may have gotten the lion’s share of press with Amazon Go but there are a small handful of dynamic retailers creating their own “cashier-less” environments.
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Amazon waives $25 minimum spend to offer free Christmas deliveries for all U.S. customers
Speaking of Amazon, holiday shoppers in the U.S. just got an early gift in the form of free shipping.
Mike Giambattista is Editor in Chief at The Wise Marketer and is a Certified Loyalty Marketing Professional (CLMP).
