Retailers Expand Customer-Loyalty Programs

RISING FOOD AND oil prices combined with a downward spiraling economy has spurred consumers to spend less time shopping and more time managing their bank accounts.

Immediate rewards

Make sure to sign up for any free loyalty program you're offered, even if you aren't a frequent customer. As soon as the day you sign up, you could start reaping the rewards of your membership. Wyndham Hotels and Resorts recently expanded its Wyndham By Request program (which tracks member preferences for everything from a free welcome snack to pillow softness in order to ready their room before arrival) to include third-party loyalty program TripRewards.com. Guests now receive free high-speed internet and long-distance telephone calls on their first three stays, and also earn 10 points per dollar spent on room rates and in-room charges. Other programs are allowing members to accrue reward points and bonuses more quickly than they did before. In late February, all-business-class airline, Eos, announced it would begin offering up to 11,250 points per New York-London flight, nearly twice its previous offer of up to 7,500. With 80,000 points, members earn a free one-way ticket.

Targeted deals

Loyalty clubs often offer members access to exclusive sales and coupons such as inviting them to "friends and family" sales events. Now retailers are taking it a step further by targeting their regular shoppers with customized incentives based on information like their personal shopping habits. Barnes & Noble, for example, regularly notifies shoppers via email when books by authors that they've bought in the past go on sale. And Old Navy recently began sending out "Birthday Month" deals offering members $10 off a purchase of $50 or more as long as they make the purchase during the month of their birthday.

Souped-up membership cards

Although the average household has a dozen loyalty memberships, almost half of all consumers carry just one or two store membership cards with them, according to Consumer Reports. Knowing how hard it is to become the one card that shoppers carry religiously, retailers are getting creative with the way their cards work.

Manufacturer rewards

Retailers aren't the only ones clamoring for consumers' attentions during these tough economic times. Manufacturers are also courting faithful customers, offering discounts via their e-newsletters and rewards programs. Beer giant Miller Brewing, for example, recently launched a loyalty program that offers rewards points to frequent customers. All members have to do is enter the code listed on specially marked bottles or cans on the company's MillerHighLife.com to redeem for merchandise (a backyard BBQ pit, for example, will set you back 31,000 points). Auto makers are also rolling out a variety of bonuses to drivers who stay loyal to their brand.

Point-earning partnerships

Retailers want to be front and center with customers, even if they aren't purchasing their products, says Michael Gatti, executive director of the National Retail Federation's Retail Advertising and Marketing Association, a trade group. That has led to a growing number of partnership programs between retailers and online shopping portals, where consumers earn points from one retailer that they then can use to shop at another. Earlier this month, Jet Blue announced a partnership with Points.com, a program that allows consumers to swap points among loyalty programs, as well as purchase or donate points and miles outright.

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