jill moserSVP Offer, Loyalty master Cardtold Karen Webster that we are entering a new era of hyper-personalization, where context matters.
Of course, loyalty programs have been around for decades.As Webster pointed out, the grandfather may have been Neiman Marcus. The InCircle program made the company the first luxury retailer to introduce a loyalty program in 1984. Airline reward programs exist almost everywhere.
But by and large, these programs are not, and still are not, personalized. In reality, accumulated rewards and spending power are just a way to offset other purchases.
Moser recently said that when it comes to personalization and loyalty, “you can’t have one without the other.”
Loyalty is not built in one transaction, she said, but takes time and is actually the result of continued engagement over many years. Forward-thinking companies have an opportunity to make that happen because customers trust their banks and they trust their favorite merchants.
Yesterday’s success may not work out
But failure can be costly. It is no longer acceptable for retailers to do the same thing they did yesterday and rely on what has worked in the past. Cookies (ads and targeting types) alone are not enough, and simply serving offers based on the few recent purchases associated with a card will not lead to success.
That’s because consumer expectations are changing. They expect personalization. Mastercard’s own research shows that 70% of individuals expect “an even more personalized experience tomorrow than yesterday.”
PYMNTS Intelligence data shows: Less than half of shoppers feel that the offers they get from merchants are “very relevant” to their needs, while more than 40% of shoppers would rather work with a company that offers better personalization. I’m thinking of switching. Millennials interact with merchants in-store and across digital channels, making them one of the cohorts most likely to jump ship to a new provider.
More than half of Mastercard customers are willing to be presented with an offer, even from a merchant they’ve never shopped with before, Moser said. They are willing to shift their wallets and spending to new retailers that deliver on the promise of offering relevant and timely products.
Moser said cookies are on the way out anyway (Google will stop tracking third-party cookies starting this year), and sales are being used to enhance card-related benefits and create personalized loyalty campaigns. He said merchants need to rethink their digitalization efforts and where they spend their money. , and also attract new customers.
He said Mastercard leverages artificial intelligence (AI) and uses generative AI to help customers curate personalized offers based on a 360-degree view of transaction, zero-party, and first-party data. It is said that they have started using it.
Thanks to Mastercard’s scale, the company helps merchants “hit the right time at the right time.” …We have relationships with over 80 million merchants,” she said, “and we process that many transactions multiple times every day.” By understanding how people behave (even when influenced by social media), sellers can use their marketing dollars more efficiently. Beyond the commitments associated with the card, consumers are happy with the experience itself as they choose to redeem their cash back, travel points, or a variety of other options.
Moser said AI “can deliver the predictive engagement that customers are looking for.”
