This week's Customer Loyalty and Digital Marketing News
From the Editor
The Loyalty Summit CXM is coming up in just 2 weeks and we hope to see you there. Here’s some trivia for you: The event hotel - Beverly Hilton - has a long-time pet policy that allows up to two pets per room, each weighing up to 75 pounds. As result of the LA fires, the Wall Street Journal says LA’s poshest hotels have been taken over by displaced LA residents and their pets, including the Beverly Hilton. Wise Marketer will be there, and we are packing some dog treats to accompany the laptop and customary business gear. See you there – this will be fun.
As you browse through this week’s Global News Roundup, you will find new research from Antavo and SAP Emarsys, details on how Ulta Beauty is delivering personalization on Adobe’s platform, and then some disappointing news about more FFP devaluations.
Our best to everyone in this wonderful industry. Stay. Loyal. Always.
Managing Editor, The Wise Marketer
Global News Roundup
- [Global] Antavo has released its Global Customer Loyalty Report 2025
- [Global] Great entrepreneurs deliver beyond expectations but never overpromise
- [Global] The Top Ten US Data Privacy Developments From 2024
- [Global] Crowdfunding Market Accelerates Toward $5.43 Billion Milestone as AI-Driven Platforms Thrive
- [Global] Plusgrade and Flying Blue Launch 'Subscribe to Miles' Service
- [US] Consumers spent a total of $924 billion with credit/debit cards issued by Bank of America, Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo in the closing quarter of 2024
- [US] The Future of The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's Open Banking Rule
- [UK] Gen Z shoppers are set to drive £2.5 billion in spending during the January sales
- [UK] Top loyalty “red flags” with Gen Z shoppers includes treating personal data irresponsibly
Ulta Beauty and Adobe Revolutionize Personalization in the Beauty Industry
Ulta Beauty is redefining the way brands connect with customers across digital and in-store channels by leveraging advanced tools like Adobe Real-Time CDP and insights from over 44 million loyalty members. According to Kelly Mahoney, SVP of Customer Marketing at Ulta Beauty, the brand is fully committed to personalization. "Our insights show that beauty is deeply personal. With Adobe as our partner, we’re tapping into data and insights to deliver joyful, meaningful interactions that inspire brand love and keep our customers coming back.”
Ulta Beauty accounts for 95% of Ulta sales and the company says the integration of Adobe Real-Time CDP has enabled the company to deploy detailed customer audience segmentation and automate personalized content delivery in real time.
CRMC Webinar Series Jan 29: Bath & Body Works “Driving Success & Impact Through Customer & Associate Advocacy”
The CRMC Webinar series is kicking off on January 29, 1pm ET with a great brand and a topic you don’t want to miss. Join Simone Pace—Head of Brand & Customer Strategy at Bath & Body Works—and Sean Claessen—Chief Strategy Officer at Bond— as they explore how the specialty retailer drives program success and business impact from a deep commitment to both associate and customer feedback, wants and needs.
A relentless sense of reciprocity, clear-eyed execution, and a strong sense of customer desire governs all decisions about the program, and larger customer engagement and loyalty experience. This type of loyalty appeals to all senses, makes sense to customers and makes dollars and cents differences for the brand. The webinar is coming up next week and you can register here.
Air France / KLM Flying Blue Announces Program Devaluations, Just Not in Those Words
Air France-KLM Flying Blue has increased the cost of saver-level redemptions to Europe and beyond by approximately 20% on average, but it promises 30% more seats at the lowest saver pricing to compensate. That’s a nice attempt to spin what we recognize as a devaluation, i.e. “Your travel redemption will cost a lot more points, but hey, you will have more opportunity to burn miles faster.”
Pardon the sarcasm but Flying Blue, the combined loyalty program for Air France and KLM, is the latest to announces an increase in the cost of redemption for FFP members. Turkish Airlines Miles & Smiles also announced that it will roll out a massive pricing devaluation Feb. 16, which will see redemption rates increase by up to 100% with a new per-segment pricing structure.
B2b Program Highlight: Google Ads Rewards
Google Ads Rewards is a partner rewards program to benefit people who run Google Ads accounts. Individuals or agencies who work in the paid search area of digital marketing and who place Google Ads, can join the program to earn points based on Ad dollars they spend for new clients each quarter.
The program is acquisition and activation focused as Google awards points for the first 90 days of new accounts only. To continue to earn, marketers and agencies need to continue to load the funnel with new ad dollars. Learn more here.
REI Struggling to Maintain its Brand Roots Amidst Financial Challenges
REI Co-op is shutting down its Experiences business. The move, announced on January 8, 2025, will result in the layoff of 428 employees, including 180 full-time staff and 248 part-time guides. The co-op made significant improvements in 2024, focusing on increasing full-price sales and managing inventory effectively. According to Eric Artz, REI’s CEO, “We’re on a journey, and we took a big step forward in 2024,” he said, indicating that REI is working towards a “durable economic model” moving forward.
In the past year, employees voted to unionize at the REI Bellingham store, asking for more respectful treatment, a living wage and adequate staffing to provide the top-quality goods and services customer expect and the composition of the board of directors is being challenged by some who believe conflicts of interest are muddying the brand mission at the outdoor retailer. This is a developing story that illustrates the challenge of retailers to balance adherence to brand promise and commitment to customer loyalty with the need to establish consistent profitability and returns for stakeholders.
New Book Published by Cristina ZILIANI
Many of you know Cristina Ziliani, PhD, Professor of Marketing at the University of Parma, Italy and the scientific director of the Osservatorio Fedeltà UniPR. Celebrating 25 years of experience in research, consulting and teaching within the Osservatorio Fedeltà UniPR (Loyalty Observatory), Cristina and her co-author have published "Loyalty Management", a unique research-based, practice-oriented text.
The new book is intended to guide marketers, business leaders and postgraduate students through the changes in marketing thought and practice of loyalty management – including omnichannel, AI and sustainability – as well as offering practical guidance on the skills and capabilities that companies need if they want to be successful at delivering essential, loyalty-driving customer experiences. You can review the table of contents and grab your own copy of this book here.
New SAP Emarsys Report Highlights the Keys to Gaining Traction with Gen Z
This new report from SAP Emarsys points out the massive opportunity brands have to a capture a portion of the £2.5 January 2025 spending from Gen Z and lists the top “red flags” “green flags” that retailers need to watch for to be successful with this important group.
With 68% of Gen Z reporting loyalty to a favourite brand they repeatedly engage with, this group presents a lucrative audience for brands that “get it right” by building meaningful connections. However, their loyalty isn’t unconditional, and brands must avoid critical missteps to stay on their radar in 2025. Download and read the SAP Customer Loyalty Index 2024 report here.
DoorDash and Ibotta Partner to Help Consumers Save On Everyday Purchases
Ibotta, which operates the largest digital promotions network in North America, and DoorDash, the local commerce platform, announced a multi-year strategic partnership to provide DoorDash customers with access to Ibotta’s industry-leading catalog of digital promotions.
For CPG brands, this new partnership creates an enhanced opportunity to reach consumers across DoorDash’s footprint of over 115,000 non-restaurant stores on its Marketplace in North America. Ibotta-provided offers are expected to be live across DoorDash’s Marketplace later this year.
Gear up for Loyalty Summit CXM February 5-6 in Los Angeles
Phil Rubin says that Loyalty is stuck and the agenda organized for Loyalty Summit CXM will go a long way to get it “unstuck” and ready for the future. A significant set of customer-focused leaders will join in the same room for two days - Presidents, CMOs and other C-level executives and more from leading global brands.
As you plan your early 2025 agenda, be sure to put Loyalty Summit CXM on your calendar. All the information you need to register is here. Wise Marketer is a media partner for the event. See you there!
SodaStream Flips the Switch on Tipping Culture with Tips for Sips
It has been widely reported that Americans are annoyed with 'tipping culture' and are leaving fewer gratuities as 2025 gets rolling. Across the country, the overall tipping average for restaurants came in at 18.8% in the third quarter of 2024, POS and services provider Toast reported. That seems a healthy number but less than the 25% that many payment terminals suggest as “average” these days.
SodaStream®, the world's leading sparkling water maker brand, is flipping the switch on tipping culture and helping consumers to stick with their goals during “Dry January.” In its newly announced Tips for Sips program, SodaStream will tip consumers the money they would've tipped a bartender for every mocktail you make at home with a SodaStream. For a mocktail of creativity, read this.
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