Citi's 2G Credit Cards, Point-of-Sale Rewards
Buttons with corresponding LED lights on this smart card allow users at checkout to choose to pay either with rewards or credit. Pressing an orange button on the right of the card with an "R" in its center, with "Request Rewards" printed immediately to its left, flips on a small orange light above the tab, signaling that a payment will be made from redeeming rewards in points or cash back. Pushing a circular blue button on the card's left side with the letter "C" in its middle turns on a blue light above, signifying that "Regular Credit" will be used to pay.
Why it stands out: Citi listened to card customers who said they wanted more point-of-sale choice and control, and gave it to them, using existing merchant infrastructure. Terry O'Neil, evp of Citi's North America credit card division, says Citi 2G gives card members "a seamless redemption experience anywhere credit cards are swiped today."
Bling Nation FanConnect
Known for NFC-enabled stickers that turn cell phones into mobile wallets via community bank debits or PayPal's payment system, Bling Nation is now adding social networking capability. With the help of Merchant360 to supply targeted rewards and discounts, BlingNation gets in the viral marketing business by allowing customers to choose to "like" merchants on Facebook while still at the point-of-sale. Merchants can use FanConnect to track buying behaviors. Text messages encourage BlingTag users to connect to Facebook at blingnation.com, where they can opt-in to join FanConnect.
Why it stands out: Bling Nation is using Facebook to make rewards go viral. Soon FanConnect users can share rewards with Facebook friends, and businesses can reward consumers who "like" them with points or discounts at checkout, says Meyer Malka, Bling Nation's founder and co-CEO.
Cardlytics Merchant-Funded, Debit History Rewards
Cardlytics offers merchant-funded rewards to debit card users in the form of discounts based on their transaction histories. Cardlytics takes data feeds from the banks they work with and analyzes the debit card activity (and more recently, the credit card transactions) of online banking customers. The Atlanta-based firm then matches retail merchants up with customers based on their purchase behaviors. Cardlytics pitches merchants into offering loyalty discounts to customers who spend, for example, $100 a month at Staples. That discount could come as a loyalty rebate aimed at keeping the consumer coming back to Staples, or from a competitor like Office Depot wanting to acquire the customer.
Why it stands out: Line-item prompts may prove stickier than banner ads. And it's in the sweet spot: "The banks are not paying for it, the merchant is," says Ron Shevlin, senior analyst at the Aite Group. "Looking at actual transactions, merchants reach consumers in a much more efficient way." Despite interchange regulation, Shevlin says debit card rewards will still proliferate, because banks must still compete for transaction revenue. "They're just going to focus more on merchant-funded programs."
Clovr Media's Merchant-Funded Mobile Rewards
Waltham, Mass.-based startup Clovr Media enables card issuers to send text-based rewards based on the transactions of bank customers that opt in to the program. Users click on CLO-enabled Web-based ads, whether on their PCs or smartphones, and then link the offer to the credit or debit card they agreed to use. The offer's acceptance is affirmed via text message. Card accounts are credited with discounts after the purchase, with confirmation coming via text.
Why it stands out: Clovr offers merchant-funded rewards targeting customers based on their purchase histories, but gets banks and merchants one step closer to location aware, POS targeting by making its card-linked offers mobile. "We're enhancing the billions of ads already delivered via the existing Web ad business model," says Tom Burgess, Clovr's CEO.
