Cartera Commerce Inc. has integrated Groupon Inc.'s daily deals into its merchant network to enable consumers to earn rewards by purchasing a Groupon deal.
Consumers whose debit or credit cards are tied to a bank participating in Cartera's merchant-funded rewards program earn rewards by purchasing a Groupon deal through the bank's free Web shopping portal, Marc Caltabiano, Cartera's vice president of marketing and products, said last month.
The online shopping portal enables consumers to view deals from each merchant participating in Cartera's program.
Consumers who purchase a Groupon deal through the online shopping portal also may earn cash-back rewards, bonus points or airline miles, depending on the type of rewards program they have with their issuer, Caltabiano said.
And with the addition of Groupon, consumers now have even more incentive to shop using a rewards-based card because "they would most likely purchase the deals anyway and now get rewarded to do so," Caltabiano says.
Cartera, of Lexington, Mass., says it is working with four large banks, including JPMorgan Chase & Co., for its RealCash debit-rewards program.
Caltabiano declined to name the other participating institutions.
Cartera, formerly Mall Networks Inc., updated its platform in November to include cash-back statement rewards and local coupons.
