Implementing A Loyalty Program For Shoppers

The Directory of US Card Issuing and Program Management Platforms I mapped 19 of the platforms that issue and process cards in the US market, because from the outside they all describe themselves the same way and the differences that matter are buried in license structure, network access, and who actually holds the BIN. This guide sorts them into five categories and profiles each one across license type, networks, card types, features, and regional coverage. It ships with a companion Excel file so you can compare every platform side by side and filter on the dimensions you care about. I built it for anyone choosing an issuing partner, migrating a live program, or running competitive diligence on this market. Every data point comes from official sources and public disclosures as of June 2026, and where something is not disclosed I mark it that way instead of guessing. What this guide covers This deep dive profiles 19 card issuing processors, BaaS providers, sponsor banks, and full-stack platforms operating in the US, each across six structured dimensions: license type and issuing jurisdiction, card network membership, card types supported, key platform features, and geographic coverage. Every profile is built from publicly available information and official company documentation as of June 2026. Where data is not publicly disclosed, I mark it as Not disclosed. Companies: Marqeta Lithic Highnote Qolo Galileo Financial Technologies Unit Treasury Prime Synctera Lead Column Cross River Increase Green Dot Corporation Pathward i2c Inc. CoreCard Software, Inc. Fiserv Q2 Stripe

It’s a psychological battle and it’s quietly reshaping how Indians behave. While researching loyalty programs in India, I realized something striking: We’ve moved from “earn points” to “pay upfront, save daily.” And that changes everything. The Problem with the Old Loyalty Model: Order 10 times → Get 1 free Earn points → Wait months to redeem Do the math → Usually walk away Customers lost patience. Complexity killed loyalty. Enter: Subscription-Based Loyalty Swiggy One: ₹149/month Free delivery on every order Instant savings. Zero friction. Zomato Gold: Upfront fee VIP restaurant perks Exclusive dine-out offers No tracking. No waiting. No wondering. Why This Works (Psychologically): Instant Gratification → We feel the benefit on Day 1. Sunk Cost Effect → "I’ve paid for this — might as well order more." Friction Removal → No mental math, just value every time. Habit Formation → Swiggy = routine. Zomato = occasion. The principle? Replace delayed rewards with upfront commitment + daily value. What can your business learn from this?

Consumers are so value-seeking they are willing to accept & do things that would've been unimaginable 2-3 years ago. One of the most destructive arms races in ecommerce was the rise of free shipping & free returns. This is a huge financial & logistical burden, but merchants felt they had to offer it in the pandemic ecomm boom to stay competitive. But fast forward to today and consumers are much more willing to change behavior to save cash, including accepting slow delivery. Speed of delivery has fallen from the #1 preference driver in 2022 to #5, with cost taking the top spot. This story extends beyond shipping. Consumers are pinched, and they’re doing all kinds of things to save. That includes: → Holding Off → Trading Down → Stocking Up → Hunting for Deals The tricky bit for businesses is how to meet that expectation for value without aggressive discounting (which risks cannibalizing revenue, conditioning customers to expect more deals, and tarnishing the brand). The winning playbook comes down to thoughtful, transparent value exchange. Letting consumers choose a cheaper & slower option (or framing it as a discount, like Amazon often does) is one form of that transparency. Ultimately, the best way to structure transparent value is a good loyalty program. Through loyalty, customers can take a wide range of actions (both transactional & non-transactional) to earn future value. And valuable perks like shipping & returns can be given out more strategically, or even unlocked as one-time rewards instead of an evergreen promise. Times are tough, and spend is tight. But loyalty can & should be a primary way to change behavior, deliver value, and steer your business based on changing market signals. If your program isn’t meeting the moment, we at Talon.One are here to help… 

Premium (paid)-based loyalty programs are increasingly popular. Think AMAZON PRIME, Walmart+, or RH Grey. With free points-based loyalty programs, consumers might sign up for a dozen programs or more, but for premium loyalty programs, customers are choosier, often paying for just one program in a category. Here are 5 benefits of a premium loyalty program: 1/ Increased Value Over Time → By getting members to commit early, they indicate preference early in the relationship. Since they have already invested, they are more likely to spend more over time 2/ Preference → Customers often start with premium loyalty programs when facing an ongoing problem, making you their first choice before exploring other options. 3/ Community → Direct communication builds a community. Members are more willing to engage, support each other, and bring in others. 4/ Average Order Size (AOS) → AOS is higher for premium members than nonmembers. In addition to more frequent purchases and the cost of the program itself, you also enjoy bigger spending at the point of checkout 5/ Returning Revenue is More Profitable → It's cheaper to keep a customer than to attract a new one. +++++++++++ 👋 I'm Robbie, I'm a consultant, author, and speaker covering all things subscription businesses. +++++++++++ 🛎 Tap the bell under the banner on my profile to catch the next post. ++++++++++++

Your CFO doesn’t care about engagement scores. But they will care about ELTV. Because most HR metrics fall flat in the boardroom. They don’t answer the one question every exec is trained to ask: What’s the ROI? That’s why we’ve been chatting a lot about a newer model than traditional HR metrics: Employee Lifetime Value (ELTV) Just like CLTV helps Marketing justify CAC, ELTV puts People investments in business terms. 💡 ELTV = Revenue per Employee x Average Tenure It’s imperfect, sure. But it gets us closer to fluency in the language of the business. Then take it a step further: ELTV / CAC = ROI on People Where CAC = recruiting + onboarding + comp + retention 3:1+ = strong ROI Anything less? You’ve got a churn or performance issue to unpack. This resonated with me big time when I participated in a People Ops as a Product cohort. But it didn't fully sync for me until after multiple sessions Daniel and I had with Jessica Z. on the topic. She reframed People Ops not as a service function… But as a growth lever with its own unit economics. Game-changer. Want a quick and dirty way to start? → Take your total revenue → Divide by FTE (that’s your rev per employee) → Multiply by average tenure → Now calculate CAC and divide What’s your ELTV:CAC ratio? If it’s not 3:1+… ask why. If it's negative, dig deeper. And remember there's no silver bullet. Just like I can't tell you if a 3 point Likert scale is definitively better than a 5 point Likert scale... Or whether eNPS is better or worse than eSat question as an engagement metric... ...I won't claim ELTV will be the end all, be all for all businesses. But I guarantee you that you'll learn a lot going through the process of calculating your company's ELTV (and maybe cutting it by manager 😬). Even if it's just a one-time exercise it will be eye opening!! We’ve dissected all of this in MPL Build - our tactical series on People Ops as a Product. 🔗 If you're looking for more details, subscribe in the comments 👇 HR Leaders - what business centric People metric(s) are you experimenting with? #PeopleOpsAsAProduct #ELTV #Huertanomics #MPLBuild #HRTech #BusinessMetricsForHR

This isn’t a loyalty launch. It’s Lazada quietly telling the market where SEA commerce is heading next. Lazada rolling out a tiered membership programme across six Southeast Asian markets isn’t about perks, free shipping, or discounts. It’s about one thing most people still underestimate in SEA: "Retention is now more valuable than reach". For the last decade, SEA ecommerce was built on: - acquisition - campaigns - GMV spikes - subsidies That phase is ending. The e-Conomy SEA 2025 report is clear: the region has entered its monetisation and optimisation era — where growth comes from repeat behaviour, not just first orders. From the trenches, this Lazada move lines up with three shifts happening right now across SG, MY, TH, ID, VN and PH: 1️.  Marketplaces are competing on habit, not traffic ECDB and Forrester data both show that once consumers default to a platform for everyday purchases, price becomes secondary. Tiered membership is how platforms: - lock in frequency - surface higher-margin SKUs - stabilise demand outside mega-campaigns This isn’t “loyalty marketing.” It’s behaviour design. 2️.  Platforms are moving upstream — from sellers to systems Earlier, we saw Shopee allocate billions into SME enablement for 2026. That wasn’t charity — it was supply-side discipline. Lazada’s membership move is the demand-side mirror of the same strategy: - better buyers - more predictable orders - cleaner cohorts - higher lifetime value Together, these moves signal that platforms are now engineering both sides of the flywheel. 3️.  SEA consumers are ready for this — but only if value is real DataReportal and National Retail Federation research show SEA consumers are not anti-membership — they’re anti-empty membership. They reward: - faster fulfilment - clearer returns - exclusive access - consistent experience Not points for the sake of points. That’s why tiering matters. It aligns benefits with actual behaviour, not just sign-ups. What this means for brands and retailers in SEA If marketplaces are shifting from GMV to member-centric economics, brands need to rethink how they win inside these ecosystems: - You don’t optimise just for campaigns anymore - You optimise for repeat, rank, and retention - Your product, pricing, fulfilment and creator strategy now determine whether you benefit from the membership flywheel — or get buried by it   Bottom line: Lazada’s tiered membership isn’t about loyalty. It’s about who owns the daily shopping habit in SEA. And the next phase of competition won’t be louder. It’ll be stickier. Disclaimer: Views are my own and based on publicly available insights from Retail Asia, e-Conomy SEA 2025, ECDB, Forrester, NRF, Cube, DataReportal and on-ground operator experience. This does not represent any employer, marketplace or partner. #ecommerce #onlineshopping https://lnkd.in/g97vcxiX

82.6% of Click's sales came from one thing. Not paid ads. Not foot traffic. Not even their pharmacy offering. ClubCard! (Source: Eyewitness News, 23 Oct 2025) Let me break down what just happened, because this is a masterclass in loyalty economics that every exec should be studying. The numbers that matter: → 14% profit growth in a year where most retailers are in survival mode → 12.6 million active ClubCard members (up from 12.1M just 6 months ago) → 82.6% of total sales driven by loyalty members → 30 years of compounding customer lifetime value That last one; That's the insight everyone's missing. Here's what Clicks actually built: Most brands think loyalty = discount. Clicks built something different: a behavioral data moat wrapped in everyday utility. They didn't just give points. They studied purchase patterns, personalized offers, and created an Affinity programme with partners that actually matter to their customers. The result; Members who've been scanning that card since 1995. Think about that ROI curve. CEO Bertina Engelbrecht said it perfectly: "When you have the kind of loyal customer base that we have, that augurs very well for your continued growth." Translation: Predictable revenue. Lower acquisition costs. Premium customer intelligence. The kind of moat that makes competitors scramble to "upgrade" their own programmes. Why this matters now: In a market where consumers are squeezed, brands that own the customer relationship win. Not the loudest. Not the cheapest. The most trusted. ClubCard isn't a discount card. It's a 30-year trust deposit that's now paying compound interest. What's replicable here: ✓ Make value immediate, not aspirational ✓ Use data to personalize, not just segment ✓ Pick partners strategically (their Affinity model is brilliant) ✓ Play the long game — 30 years of iteration beats copying competitors Massive respect to Bertina Engelbrecht , Melanie Van Rooy Craig Small , Mamusa Stulweni , and your colleagues You've built the kind of loyalty architecture that finance teams love, and marketing teams wish they had. The real question: If 82.6% revenue concentration from a loyalty programme is your STRENGTH and not a risk — what does that tell you about the power of owning customer behavior?

Loyalty Programs Are No Longer Just Rewards—They're the Heart of Hospitality Growth. There was a time when hotel loyalty programs were simple. ✔️ Stay more nights. ✔️ Earn more points. ✔️ Redeem a free stay. Today, they're much more than that. The world's leading hospitality companies have transformed loyalty programs into powerful business ecosystems that drive customer retention, direct bookings, premium experiences, and long-term brand value. Here's how some of the industry's biggest players have evolved: 🏨 Marriott International – Marriott Bonvoy More than just hotel stays—it connects luxury, premium, select-service, and long-stay brands under one umbrella. Members can earn and redeem points across hotels, experiences, dining, shopping, and partnerships. Elite benefits such as room upgrades, lounge access, late checkout, and exclusive experiences encourage repeat business. 🏨 Hilton – Hilton Honors Digital-first experience with mobile check-in, digital key, and personalized offers. Flexible points redemption and milestone rewards keep members engaged. Strong focus on convenience, technology, and guest recognition. 🏨 Hyatt – World of Hyatt Smaller footprint but highly regarded for meaningful elite recognition. Focuses on personalized luxury experiences rather than simply rewarding volume. Wellness brands and unique lifestyle collections strengthen emotional loyalty. 🏨 Accor – ALL (Accor Live Limitless) Expanded beyond hotels into dining, entertainment, concerts, sports, and lifestyle experiences. Members can use rewards across multiple touchpoints, creating year-round engagement. Positions itself as a lifestyle membership rather than only a hotel loyalty program. 🏨 IHG Hotels & Resorts – IHG One Rewards Introduced milestone rewards that let members choose benefits based on their travel habits. Added confirmed suite upgrades, food & beverage rewards, and flexible perks. Designed to make members feel valued throughout their journey—not just after accumulating points. The Biggest Shift? Hospitality has moved from transactional loyalty to emotional loyalty. Today's travelers expect: ✨ Personalization ✨ Digital convenience ✨ Recognition ✨ Flexibility ✨ Exclusive experiences ✨ Lifestyle benefits beyond hotel stays The result? ✅ Higher direct bookings ✅ Increased guest retention ✅ Greater lifetime customer value ✅ Reduced dependence on online travel agencies (OTAs) ✅ Stronger brand differentiation in an increasingly competitive market In today's hospitality landscape, the most successful loyalty program isn't the one with the most points—it's the one that creates the strongest relationship with the guest. Because loyalty is no longer earned only through rewards. It's earned through memorable experiences. #Hospitality #CustomerLoyalty #BrandStrategy #GuestExperience #MarriottBonvoy #HiltonHonors #WorldOfHyatt #AccorALL #IHGOneRewards #RevenueManagement #HospitalityLeadership #TravelIndustry #HotelManagement #BusinessStrategy

I’ve Long Wondered Why More Banks Didn’t Follow BofA’s Rewards Playbook PNC just announced TotalRewards, a new relationship‑based loyalty program spanning banking, lending, and credit cards 👇. - Tiered rewards structure based on combined deposit and investment balances (Silver/Gold/Platinum) - Enhanced credit card rewards, savings rate boosts, and fee‑avoidance tied to relationship depth - Cash rewards on certain lending products (mortgage, home equity, auto), not just rate discounts - Automatic Silver‑tier status for eligible military members, regardless of balance 💡 PNC game changer. If the TotalRewards structure looks familiar, it’s because it closely mirrors the Bank of America Preferred Rewards framework, long held up as the gold standard in enterprise bank loyalty. It is also a reminder that these programs take years to design, test, pilot, and roll out. By the time TotalRewards launched, Bank of America had already evolved its approach with BofA Rewards, extending entry level membership regardless of balance. The takeaway is not criticism. It is how quickly the competitive bar can move relative to bank build cycles. That said, this is still a meaningful step for PNC, which prioritized building something durable for the bank and meaningful for customers. 💡💡Cash rewards on lending. Most banks express lending benefits through rate discounts or fee reductions. PNC’s decision to pay some of that value in cash, specifically for auto and home equity loans, makes the benefit more visible and positions lending as an active contributor to loyalty. PNC isn’t replacing rate discounts but is adding cash rewards on top, enhancing the value for customers without changing the underlying economics. 💡💡💡Recognizing the military. Automatically granting Silver status to military members is uncommon among large banks. Rather than offering parallel fee relief, PNC embeds recognition directly into its rewards hierarchy, signaling relationship value. It will be interesting to see whether this becomes a visible part of PNC’s marketing or remains a quieter design choice.

I've bought 35+ companies in last 5 years. The pattern is obvious once you see it: Some businesses print money. Others barely survive. The difference comes down to one metric: how much each customer is worth over time. Whether you're building to sell or building to keep, here's how to make your customers worth more: Step #1: Know what your customers are actually worth Most people think in "monthly revenue." Winners think in "lifetime value." Formula: LTV = Average Order Value × Purchase Frequency × Customer Lifespan Bad business: • Customer pays $100 • Buys once • LTV = $100 Great business: • Customer pays $100 • Buys monthly for 3 years • LTV = $3,600 36x difference. Same price point. Same customer. Different business model. Step #2: Calculate your LTV:CAC ratio This tells you if you're building something profitable or just treading water. LTV:CAC = Lifetime Value ÷ Customer Acquisition Cost The breakdown: • Less than 3:1 → Burning money • 3:1 to 5:1 → Healthy • 5:1+ → Printing money If you spend $100 to get a customer worth $300, you're barely profitable. If you spend $100 to get a customer worth $800, you're building an asset. Step #3: Keep customers longer If customers stay 2x longer, LTV doubles. Simple math. • Nail onboarding: They bought based on a promise. Deliver that promise in the first 7 days. • Increase stickiness: Integrate into their workflow. Example: Dropbox becomes sticky because your files live there. • Monitor usage proactively: If someone hasn't logged in for 14 days, reach out before they cancel. Real example: Client of mine tracked their customers on LinkedIn. When someone changed jobs, they reached out to both the old team AND the new company. Retained both. Step #4: Get customers buying more often • Usage-based pricing: Basic tier = 5 visits/week. Premium = 10 visits/week. • Add complementary products: What do customers buy before/after using you? Sell that. • Shift to subscriptions: $5,000 one-time project = $5K LTV. $500/month for 3 years = $18K LTV. Step #5: Increase what they spend Implementation fees: Charge for onboarding/setup (standard in B2B) Upsells at purchase: "Customers who bought X also need Y" Premium tiers: Basic/Pro/Enterprise. Same product, different support levels. Step #6: Pick ONE lever and execute for 90 days You just learned three ways to increase LTV: 1. Keep customers longer 2. Get them buying more often 3. Increase spend per purchase Don't try all three at once. Pick the one with highest return for least effort. Execute. Measure. Move to the next. That's how you build a business worth buying. Or better yet, a business worth keeping. -DM P.S. Want to know what your business is actually worth? I built a valuation calculator that shows you exactly how investors would value your company based on these metrics. Comment "VALUE" and I'll send you the calculator plus the breakdown of what makes businesses sell for premiums. My gift to you 👊