Loyalty and rewards

The threat that mobile would displace plastic never came to be. But the new technology — often developed by retailers and other nonbanks — nevertheless forced issuers to take stock of their own offerings.

French supermarket chain Carrefour has launched its own mobile wallet, making Carrefour Pay available to customers as part of its plan for a complete omnichannel experience.

Bank of America is giving its small-business credit card customers some of the key features of the credit card rewards it offers consumers.

Brands now have a wealth of eco-friendly card material options available to them and the right choice will serve as a convenient reminder to consumers that green values run through every area of their business, writes Andrew Toon, head of retail at Thames Technology.

As gas stations add EMV-chip card acceptance at the pump, they will also find themselves rebuilding systems for loyalty programs and special offers that were reliant on their older hardware.

Loyalty programs should enhance your brand through all your customer-facing marketing. Macy’s Star Rewards is all over their social media, stores and supporting materials. Plenti doesn’t say anything about the Macy’s brand. It only enhances the Plenti brand, writes Tom Caporaso, CEO of Clarus Commerce.

Total System Services is implementing software at Walmart and Sam's Club locations nationwide to link loyalty rewards to health care payments, while also recognizing qualified purchases from a consumer's health plan.

Even if most consumers aren't leaving their plastic cards at home in favor of mobile wallets, the very idea of using a mobile wallet is no longer cutting-edge. But a few companies go the extra mile.

A former executive at SunTrust has joined Cardlytics Inc. to help the company expand its partnerships with other banks.

“Liquid” is the best descriptor for this shift because it illustrates the continuum of pay-with-points options, writes Barry Kirk, vice president of customer loyalty for Maritz Motivation Solutions.