Let's Talk Loyalty

Sustainability is both an urgent and an important focus for businesses, and one that loyalty marketers can play an important role in supporting. But how?

In today's podcast, we're joined by Isobel Finlayson, Sustainability Lead for Mando Connect to share their ideas, insights, research and suggestions on practical ways that loyalty marketers can help.

We showcase some examples of global best practice in sustainability led by loyalty professionals, with examples in both retail and aviation, and we discuss eight specific tactics you can consider implementing to leverage the power of your loyalty programme to address this critical concern for both consumer and companies alike.

Show Notes:

1. Mando Connects
2. Isobel Finlayson
3. Mando Connect’s White Paper Download
4. Sustainability article and exclusive research for The Wise Marketer
5. Mando Connect’s Million Tree Pledge

Not enough time and attention is devoted to understand the incredible value that loyalty programmes are driving indirectly for organisations – building the brand in less obvious ways than we typically measure when we’re calculating the ROI of our initiatives.

But yet, these indirect benefits can be extremely valuable in the ways they impact the buying decisions that customers make!!

This is a key insights from today's conversation with Collin Larijani who has over 12 years of experience working with Epsilon, building solutions across all marketing domains.

Collin joined me today to reflect on some of the top trending topics that are emerging from the “loyalty labs” that Epsilon is running across APAC, including the power of both zero party data and first party data for organisations.

Collin also shares his belief that loyalty professionals are perfectly positioned to lead within their organisations – using the power of their data, customer focus, and insights to become more visible and more helpful as both the heart and mind of the business.

I hope you enjoy listening to my conversation with Collin Larijani from Epsilon!

Show Notes:

1. Epsilon
2. Collin Larijani
3. Let's Talk Loyalty with Epsilon: Complimentary Loyalty Lab

Payback is widely respected as one of the most innovative companies in Germany, with over 80 million members in six international markets and an impressive redemption rate of over 95%!

In this short show, we summarise the highlights of our interview with Payback's CEO, Bernhard Brugger, showcasing their remarkable achievements over the last 20 years.

Learn how Payback grew from a simple multi-partner program to its current positioning as a global marketing technology and services company.

Show Notes:

1. Payback
2. Bernhard Brugger
3. #94: Global Coalition Loyalty Insights with Payback's CEO Bernhard Brugger

In the Asia Pacific region, pioneering brands lead the way for digitally-demanding consumers by personalizing their experiences using big data and artificial intelligence.

Dan Cantorna, Vice President of Data, Insights, and Technology for Collinson in Asia Pacific, joins us in this episode to share his fascinating insights on some of the digital and loyalty innovations emerging from the region.

With so many global brands looking to Asia to understand the consumers of the future, this conversation offers an insight on what to expect from loyalty members and the consumers of the future.

This episode is sponsored by Collinson.

Show Notes:

1. Dan Cantorna
2. Collinson

Yuu Rewards is a leading loyalty program launched in Hong Kong in 2020 which prides itself on its innovative digital-first strategy.

Created initially as a coalition programme, Yuu Rewards has proven to be a compelling proposition for the digitally-savvy consumers that Asia is renowned for.

Now two years old, I’m today joined for a second conversation about Yuu Rewards by COO Mark Sage, who explains how the programme has grown, offering compelling new services, and is now firmly established as a market-leading super-app with numerous new and exciting benefits to users – such as industry-leading ecommerce capabilities at its core.

In this conversation, we also discuss the power of *collectibles* as a tool to build consumer loyalty and engagement both online and offline.

Show Notes:

1. Yuu Rewards
2. Mark Sage
3. Yuu To Me
4. Yuu To Me Ad
5. #61: Yuu Rewards, Hong Kong's New Coalition Programme

Time Stamps:

02:29 - Mark’s favorite loyalty program

05:43 - The most significant change in recent months.

09:40 - Yuu Rewards' technical evolution journey over time.

19:35 - Using collectibles to engage consumers both online and offline

33:20 - Mark's thoughts for future industry trends

In January 2020, Google announced that it would no longer support third-party cookies for users of the Chrome browser.

What sounded like a massive challenge for marketers who've relied on them for many years, may in fact result in incredible growth and opportunity for loyalty marketers.

In today's short summary episode of Let's Talk Loyalty, we review our conversation on this huge topic with Elliott Clayton, Senior Vice President of Media for Epsilon in the UK.

Elliott explained why it is such an exciting time to work in loyalty marketing, and how loyalty marketers can help their brands embrace the cookie-less future.

Show Notes:

1. Epsilon
2. Elliott Clayton
3. #92: The Increasing Importance of Loyalty in a Changing Media Landscape with Epsilon

Del Taco is the world's second-largest Mexican fast-food restaurant chain, and its loyalty program is playing a vital role in its popularity and growth.

In this episode of Let’s Talk Loyalty, Erin Levzow joins us to share her industry-leading insights and ideas from their "Del Yeah!" program which has already won prestigious awards - including B2C app of the year and the Gold Award for Loyalty Strategy.

Learn how Del Taco has created such a compelling mobile app featuring Del Yeah! Rewards to truly attract and retain its customers.

This episode is sponsored by Cheetah Digital.

Show Notes:

1. Del Taco
2. Del Yeah! Rewards
3. Erin Levzow

Time Stamps:

03:00 - Erin’s favorite Loyalty Program

10:15 - Del Taco's Context

11:22 - Del Taco’s Loyalty Program Concept

17:30 - Membership figures for Del Taco’s programs

18:34 - Pareto Principle perspectives

22:40 - Erin's knowledge gained while working in Las Vegas

31:03 - Replatforming Del Taco’s program

34:53 - Del Yeah Rewards' future priorities

40:15 - Del Yeah Rewards Perspective on Metaverse

David's Bridal is a US-based retailer that specializes in wedding gowns, prom gowns and formal wear, and offers an extraordinary collection of beautiful outfits for all of life's magical moments.

Already operating over 300 store locations in various countries as well as online, in 2020, David's Bridal stores created an industry first with the launch of their Diamond loyalty program, designed to leverage the buying power of the bride's family and friends to help the happy couple earn a honeymoon of their dreams!

Kelly Cook, EVP, Chief Marketing and IT Officer for David's Bridal, joins us on this episode to explain this genius idea, the insights that inspired it and its incredible performance so far.

Show Notes:

1. David’s Bridal
2. Diamond Loyalty
3. Kelly Cook

Time Stamps:

03:55 - Kelly’s Favorite Loyalty Program

06:03 - Role of Content as a Loyalty Driver

09:44 - Diamond as a Crowdsource Loyalty Program

11:53 - How did Kelly persuade the Senior Leadership Team to support the program?

29:15 - David's Bridal Lessons Learned During the Launch of the Diamond Program

As one of the most exciting loyalty markets in the world, South Africa boasts plenty of compelling concepts and innovative ideas - and this summary show discusses one of the most exciting to date!

Ros Netto, Customer, CRM & Loyalty Specialist and Head of Customer Care for Real Foods Group in South Africa, shares her insights from the launch of South Africa's first restaurant and fast-casual dining subscription program for their market-leading chain called Kauai.

Listen to learn some of the challenges and solutions they learned in this short summary episode of Let's Talk Loyalty.

Show Notes:

1. Ros Netto
2. Real Foods Group
3. Kauai
4. #90: Subscription Innovation Driving Restaurant Loyalty in South Afric

Sheetz Inc. is one of North America's fastest-growing convenience store chains, already operating over 600 locations.

In this episode of Let’s Talk Loyalty, we were delighted to share the impressive role that loyalty initiatives play in Sheetz business strategy, in a conversation with Director of Brand Marketing, Nicole Auman .

Nicole discusses some of the company's recent major insights and achievements, including a new subscription service, her insights on the compelling role that their app is playing as a direct digital connection to their customers and of course, their store teams who serve as ambassadors of the program with customers.

This episode is packed with insights on how Sheetz is driving its business forward by leveraging technology and data to delight its members.

Show Notes:

1. Sheetz
2. Nicole Auman