GiftCard Partners Blog

Everyone's walked into (and presumably grabbed a coffee from) a Starbucks at least once. In many American cities you can't stand on a street corner without seeing that Mermaid logo somewhere in your 360 degree view. Starbucks has led the way in a lot of areas including employee compensation, employee training and consumer experience. Starbucks cares so much about consumer experience that they offer a full feedback loop with consumers and their app is so well designed that it has made them a (if not the) leader in mobile payments. The Starbucks app combines mobile payments and their loyalty program enables them to get consumers through the line faster, reward them for repeat purchases and streamline the consumers' checkout process. Starbucks is the mobile payments ideal, as it exists to enhance a consumers' experience at the point of sale. Setting aggressive goals to almost double their mobile payment transaction this year is what makes Starbucks an example for mobile payments across the board. Since consumers are so attached to their cell phones, bringing the check out process to their device is a great way to ensure the revenue potential skyrockets.
For more information on Howard Shultz' view on mobile payments head over to Bloomberg Businessweek.

In the bustling world of consumerism, one demographic holds a significant sway over household purchases, brand loyalty, and repeat business: moms. These influential decision-makers not only drive a substantial portion of household spending but also play a crucial role in shaping brand perceptions and driving repeat purchases. To harness the full potential of this demographic, brands must prioritize engaging moms with tailored strategies that foster brand loyalty and drive long-term growth.

Achieving customer loyalty is no doubt one of the biggest challenges our clients face…it’s a moving target. Not only are consumer needs evolving by the day, but retail marketing is impacted by new consumer technologies, for online and brick-and-mortar buying. We have a general picture of how technology is effecting our brand content flow, buying experience, and rewards and loyalty – we are consumers ourselves and we participate in one or all of these brand experiences every day. But how are these technologies effecting our clients? They are retailers and merchants who partner with us to promote their gift cards in programs such as customer loyalty, engagement, and rewards. They are on the front lines of technology evolution, retail marketing, and customer loyalty and engagement and their challenges are multiplied by selling in the B2B marketplace. Check out the
Ten Ways Technology Can Enable Customer Loyalty Infographic posted on the Huffington Post online. 

E-gift cards have become a popular choice in the B2B world as both an incentive and motivational tool. These virtual gems bring together the power of flexibility and convenience.

It’s a social world out there!  And loyalty programs are firmly embracing the concept of social loyalty, an extension of loyalty programs that supports customers’ actions on social channels. As a marketing and incentive engagement company, are you including a social loyalty component in your loyalty program offerings?