Mastercard OneSMART goes retail in Iceland
Reykjavik Savings Bank is to offer its customers a credit card that combines payment with real-time point of sale features such as gifts, surprise bonuses, targeted samples, loyalty points, coupons, cash back and more.
MasterCard International has announced its new OneSMART MasterCard Retail package and also the first roll-out of the programme by a MasterCard member, expected later this year. The rollout, by Reykjavik Savings Bank (SPRON), one of the leading financial institutions in Iceland, will be based on its successful multi co-brand programme called 'Ekort.' Launched in February, with nearly 200 retail partners, SPRON and its partners intends to lever their EMV investment in the programme through OneSMART MasterCard Retail. For the launch, SPRON will be working with Hagar Ltd, a leading retailer in Iceland, with 58 stores across the country.
Multifunction OneSMART MasterCard Retail is a simple but powerful chip package, providing a mass-market oriented solution that helps issuers and retailers to develop card usage. It combines payment, loyalty, and cardholder preferences management in a single point of sale transaction using MODS (MasterCard Open Data Storage) features. This single system application allows cardholders to receive on-the-spot loyalty bonuses and customised offers from participating retailers, based on preferences into which consumers opt, to store on their payment card. The card uses Welcome Real-time's XLS software solution.
According to Pierre-Francois Solere, vice president, Chip Products Management, MasterCard Chip Centre of Excellence: "Being able to leverage a cardholder's preferences to trigger real-time point of sale features such as gifts, surprise bonuses, targeted samples, loyalty points, coupons, cash back and more, makes OneSMART Retail a powerful offering in the market. It is of particular interest to those businesses looking to segment their portfolios and create memorable and pertinent loyalty programmes."
Previous success MasterCard is working in partnership with the industry and vendors, including Welcome, a leading vendor responsible for the successful Akbank MasterCard credit card. As a result of that programme, Akbank acquired a million new customers in the first 8 months and was awarded "fastest growing credit card in Europe" by MasterCard. At the same time, Akbank's merchant network grew fourfold in 2003.
Multiple uses Using OneSMART Retail merchants have the ability to:
- Offer customers surprise gifts based on previous purchasing behaviour or even birth date.
- Allow specific recognition of good customers at the Point of Interaction, using that crucial moment for communication when the cardholder is receptive to purchase information.
- Allow EMV transactions on POS/EFT-POS/ATMs and instalment features.
- Store cardholder preferences.
- Accumulate loyalty bonus points.
- Provide instant redemption at terminal (POS, EFT-POS).
- Receive customised offers at the terminal, aimed at the cardholder's unique interest based on their preferences.
- Allow the cardholder to change his preferences using kiosks or ATMs.
Some of the most pertinent Cardholder's preferences that could be stored on the card include: General information, date of birth, gender, leisure interests and hobbies, retail information, loyalty card number, focus of interest, travel information, travel agent's name, details of multiple frequent flyer clubs, hotel programme name and car rental programme name.
For additional information: · Visit Welcome Real-time at http://www.welcome-rt.com · Visit MasterCard at http://www.mastercardinternational.com