Episodes
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A&W Restaurants was founded in 1919 as a root beer stand in Lodi, California, to welcome the troops home after World War I. As America’s oldest franchise restaurant chain, today, there are nearly 450 locations across the U.S. and another 450 in Asia spanning four markets.
The chain is 100% franchisee-owned. The brand ensures franchisees have a voice in company decisions that will affect their businesses, and franchisees are represented by the National A&W Franchisee Association (NAWFA). A&W works collaboratively with franchisees on everything that happens in their restaurants—particularly on brand and marketing initiatives. The brand engages franchisees to ensure that anything new that’s launched—whether it’s products or advertising and marketing programs—is there to support profitable same-store growth as well as new restaurants being established.Betsy Schmandt, President and COO of A&W Restaurants, oversees all revenue at A&W Restaurants, driving aspects of the business, operations, training, marketing, innovation, and franchise development, as well as technology and legal. It’s a broad scope, but Schmandt affirms it’s wonderful to be a part of a great American brand with 105 years of experience.
Mark Johnson, CEO of Loyalty360, spoke with Schmandt about A&W’s new enterprise reporting and analytics solution, connecting with customers on an emotional level, and next generation customer loyalty.
Watch the full interview here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7lQLjA5FJP8
Read the feature on Loyalty360: https://loyalty360.org/content-gallery/in-depth-exclusives/a-w-restaurants-building-customer-loyalty-through-data-driven-insights-and-personalization -
Addtowallet.io offers a mobile wallet marketing platform that lets brands create, manage, and distribute digital offers and pass them on to Apple Wallet and Google Pay. Traditional coupons, loyalty cards, gift cards, and event tickets can be made visible and accessible to customers no matter where they are—dynamically updated in real-time and tracked from inception to intent-to-purchase to redemption.
After the Addtowallet platform was built, the company realized that there were not many marketers active in the digital wallet channel. The company saw an opportunity for marketers and brands to start learning about the technology as the team at Addtowallet believes the digital wallet channel is the next place for marketers to focus.
Mark Johnson, CEO of Loyalty360, spoke with Steven Douglas, Founder and CEO at Addtowallet, about how the wallet channel offers marketers the opportunity to personalize loyalty efforts and how customers’ interactions with coupons in their digital wallets can reveal an intention to buy.
Watch the full interview here: https://www.youtube.com/live/Pf5HRlPoMJ0?si=kOjYh7GZqWdwBozq
Read the article on Loyalty360 here: https://loyalty360.org/content-gallery/daily-news/loyalty-live-addtowallet-on-how-brand-marketers-can-harness-the-power-of-digital-wallets -
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Founded in 1982 in Minneapolis, MN, Great Clips, Inc. counts more than 4,400 salons in the U.S. and Canada. The brand is 100% franchisee-owned and is the largest salon brand in the world, employing over 28,000 stylists. The brand prides itself on fast and convenient walk-in haircare services and allows online check-in to minimize the time customers spend in the waiting room.
Just prior to the 2024 Super Bowl, Great Clips and mobility manufacturer Kawasaki partnered in a campaign featuring Kawasaki’s RIDGE® side x side while tapping into the power of a legendary haircut.
Mark Johnson, CEO of Loyalty360, spoke with Lisa Hake, the Vice President of Marketing and Communications at Great Clips, about the fun promotion with Kawasaki, collecting zero-party data, and building a path to loyalty.
Watch the full interview here: https://youtu.be/er1rcH8OJhs -
A part of Xponential Fitness, a large global franchise group of boutique fitness brands across verticals including pilates, barre, cycling, rowing, dance, yoga, and more, Pure Barre is a barre-focused franchise boasting over 600 wellness studios across the U.S. and Canada. Thousands of members of all fitness levels enjoy Pure Barre’s low-impact classes every day in support of strength, cardio, and flexibility goals. A standout in barre and fitness boutiques, Pure Barre ranks in Entrepreneur Magazine’s Franchise 500 List each year.
Mark Johnson, CEO of Loyalty360, spoke with Caroline Linton, CMO of Pure Barre, about forming strategic partnerships, leveraging the power of fitness challenges to increase engagement, and the brand’s recently launched ClassPointsTM program on the Pure Barre app.
Watch the full interview here: https://youtu.be/oQh4WCAE_lw -
The brainchild of Adam Breeden (All Star Lanes, AceBounce, and Flight Club) and brothers Steven and Dave Jolliffe (Topgolf), Puttshack is a high-tech mini golf concept where technology has been injected into the traditional game to make it even more exciting and fun. The 9-hole mini golf games feature Puttshack’s proprietary TrackaballTM technology, and each game takes approximately 30 minutes, depending on how busy the course is and the number of people playing in the group. While reservations aren’t required, walk-in groups will be served on a first-come, first-serve basis.
The Puttshack experience is enhanced by food and beverage options, and guests can enjoy bar and restaurant areas when visiting. At present, the brand counts 14 locations in the U.S. and 18 locations worldwide, with more locations under construction.
Mark Johnson, CEO of Loyalty360, spoke with Susan Walmesley, Chief Marketing Officer and Chief Operating Officer of Puttshack, about the brand’s popular Ace Puttman campaign, the Puttshack Perks program, and leveraging data in support of personalization.
Read the full article on Loyalty360 here: https://loyalty360.org/content-gallery/in-depth-exclusives/puttshack-engaging-and-educating-customers-with-a-whimsical-brand-ambassador -
In 1965, a mail-order veterinary supplies business named UPCO was founded in San Diego, California. By 1979, it became Petco, and in 1980, the first Petco store located outside of California opened in Tigard, Oregon. Petco’s significant growth began in the late 1980s after acquiring two pet supply chains, WellPoint and the Pet Department. The purchase not only expanded the footprint of the company but more than tripled the brand’s store number from 40 to 130. In the early 1990s, Petco opened its first East Coast stores, and by 2001, Petco.com was launched. In 2013, the company opened its first Petco stores in Mexico, with one in Mexico City and another one in Guadalajara.
Today, Petco is a successful pet health and wellness company, reflecting nearly six decades of providing thoughtful customer service to “pet parents” and their beloved pets. The brand has created an environment in which customer loyalty is built through the emotional connections nurtured by in-store employees.
Mark Johnson, CEO of Loyalty360, spoke with Justin Tichy, Chief Operating Officer for Petco, about growing into a health and wellness company, building emotional loyalty with pet parents, and fostering an environment of engaged employees.
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Capillary Technologies is a managed SaaS solution powering 500+ loyalty programs with its best-in-class loyalty technology platform and expert services. Founded in 2012, Capillary has a strong global presence across the United States, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East, working with 400+ brands like Tata, PUMA, Shell, Petron, Domino’s, Kanmo Group, and Marks & Spencer. The platform’s suite of products—Loyalty+, Engage+, Rewards+, Insights+—are all AI-powered and sit on top of a powerful consumer data platform that has touched more than a billion end customers.
As part of the Loyalty Expo Speaker Preview Series, Loyalty360 interviews presenters who will lead dynamic sessions at this year’s Loyalty Expo in Orlando, Florida, from June 4–6.
Mark Johnson, CEO of Loyalty360, spoke with Don Smith, Chief Consulting Officer at Capillary, about the upcoming session he will lead in June. The session will address the mechanics of customer loyalty programs and what metrics to tap into when measuring customer loyalty efforts.
Read the article here: https://loyalty360.org/content-gallery/daily-news/capillary-s-2024-loyalty-expo-session-understanding-the-mechanics-of-customer-loyalty-programs-and -
Capillary Technologies is a managed SaaS solution powering 500+ loyalty programs with its best-in-class loyalty technology platform and expert services. Founded in 2012, Capillary has a strong global presence across the United States, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East, working with 400+ brands like Tata, PUMA, Shell, Petron, Domino’s, Kanmo Group, and Marks & Spencer. The platform’s suite of products—Loyalty+, Engage+, Rewards+, Insights+—are all AI-powered and sit on top of a powerful consumer data platform that has touched more than a billion end customers.
As part of the Loyalty Expo Speaker Preview Series, Loyalty360 interviews presenters who will lead dynamic sessions at this year’s Loyalty Expo in Orlando, Florida, from June 4–6.
Mark Johnson, CEO of Loyalty360, spoke with Don Smith, Chief Consulting Officer at Capillary, about the upcoming session he will lead in June. The session will address the mechanics of customer loyalty programs and what metrics to tap into when measuring customer loyalty efforts.
Read the article here: https://loyalty360.org/content-gallery/daily-news/capillary-s-2024-loyalty-expo-session-understanding-the-mechanics-of-customer-loyalty-programs-and -
SheerID is an identity verification company serving commerce brands and working with globally recognized names like Walmart, Target, Nike, T-Mobile, AT&T, Spotify, and YouTube. The SheerID verification platform is built on a foundation of 200K+ authoritative data sources, which power instant consumer verification, establishing whether a person is part of a particular community — e.g., a college student, teacher, member of the military, etc. — or a profession like fitness instructors.
Retail brands work with SheerID to provide exclusive offers and rewards to select groups — i.e., Target’s back-to-school program designed to engage educators. Brands leverage SheerID’s service to ensure that the people responding to offers and redeeming rewards are truly members of the specific “community” a brand desires to reach. SheerID’s verification engine works in the background and performs a lookup of the customer record to confirm if access to the reward should be granted.
Today, brands are using SheerID’s solution much more for loyalty use cases to collect valuable first-party data while providing special offers. Mark Johnson, CEO of Loyalty360, spoke with Bill Schneider, VP of Product Marketing at SheerID, about the company’s verification platform, customer data privacy, and how marketing to people based on the communities they identify with is a powerful strategy for driving engagement. -
With a clientele spanning across the U.S. and Canada, nventive specializes in crafting impactful mobile, web applications, and software solutions that increase engagement and enhance the user experience for brands. From strategy to delivery, nventive’s approach seamlessly blends creativity, technology, and strategic thinking.
The core of nventive’s work involves developing custom web and mobile applications, and within the loyalty sector, the company works frequently with coalition programs. Because those programs tend to be more complex, the integrations are vast, requiring nventive to develop many solutions around that vertical.
nventive works in other sectors as well — manufacturing (productivity), financial, retail, and more. Working within these distinct industries allows nventive to glean the best practices across trades and apply them to a specific vector. The company also advises clients and works with existing programs to maximize the experience on mobile platforms.Mark Johnson, CEO of Loyalty360, spoke with David Hamel, Vice President of Strategy, CX and Design at nventive, about creating a rewarding experience for the customer, the role of micro-interactions in personalization, and leveraging evolving technologies.
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Ansira is an independent, global marketing technology and services company with clients across B2B, B2C, and B2B2C industries that leverage the company’s suite of proprietary technology platforms across website, media, and channel partner marketing. Ansira guides clients operating in distributed ecosystems to connect with their customers, fostering brand loyalty by seamlessly integrating digital and physical experiences from the enterprise level to the hyper-local level. Recommending best-in-class products, Ansira also works with clients to strengthen loyalty efforts. Loyalty, incentives, and rewards all fall within the company’s integrated loyalty practice.
Mark Johnson, CEO of Loyalty360, spoke with Sukumar Muthya, EVP of Integrated Loyalty at Ansira, about integrated loyalty, how brands can go beyond loyalty mechanics, and ensuring reward complexity is kept to a minimum. -
Rodney Strong Vineyards was founded in 1959 when Rodney Strong chose Sonoma County in California as the ideal place to produce some of the best-known wines in the world. Three decades after its founding, Rodney Strong Vineyards’ management shifted to the Klein family, and today, their leadership continues the tradition of developing premium wines while prioritizing sustainability efforts.
Vineyard location is critical, and land is carefully selected. At present, the brand owns 12 estate vineyards in Sonoma County, and Rodney Strong itself is right in the middle of the Russian River Valley.
The marketing team at Rodney Strong Vineyards is involved in everything from advertising to strategy to social media, packaging, and brand creation. Marketing also works closely with sales and hospitality. Initiatives not only include luxury events drawing wine lovers to Sonoma but also promotions designed to highlight Rodney Strong’s commitment to sustainability.
Mark Johnson, CEO of Loyalty360, spoke with Erica Odden, VP of Marketing for Rodney Strong, about the brand’s sustainability sweepstakes, meaningful customer engagement, and creating an environment for emotional loyalty to flourish.
Read the full article on Loyalty360 here: https://loyalty360.org/content-gallery/in-depth-exclusives/rodney-strong-sustainability-efforts-engage-consumers-and-cultivate-emotional-loyalty -
From its humble beginnings as a hardware store in a small North Carolina town, Lowe’s grew to become one of the largest home improvement retailers in the world. The company counts nearly 300K associates, encompassing 1,700+ home improvement and outlet stores in the U.S. With more than 16M customer transactions every week, the brand celebrated $86.4B in 2023.
Mark Johnson, CEO of Loyalty360, spoke with Amanda Bailey, VP of Customer Marketing and Loyalty at Lowe’s, about building a tiered approach in the brand’s MyLowe’s Rewards program, applying personalization within customer loyalty, and engaging millennial homeowners.
Read the full article on Loyalty360 here: https://loyalty360.org/content-gallery/in-depth-exclusives/lowe-s-home-improvement-a-tiered-rewards-program-designed-to-engage-diyers-and-attract-millennials -
As brand marketers seek to comprehensively understand and use the customer data they’ve collected, one of the first considerations centers on integrating a customer data platform (CDP) into their martech stack or better leveraging the one already in place. While a CDP houses disparate data gathered by various technologies used in an organization, unless a clear process of persona-building, establishing customer journeys, and purpose-led engagement is prioritized, brands can fall into a pattern of trying to engage customers solely through transactional loyalty efforts — which might leave them left behind in a competitive marketplace.
TCS Digital Software & Solutions offers software solutions that activate artificial intelligence (AI) across various industries, domains of customer engagement/experience, sustainability, and smart enterprises. TCS Customer Intelligence & Insights™ (CI&I) for retail is an integrated software solution that combines intelligent loyalty, real-time customer data platforms (CDPs), and AI-driven customer analytics.
Mark Johnson, CEO of Loyalty360, spoke with Suman Mahalanabis, Head of Product Management, TCS Digital Software & Solutions, and Padmashwini Raghunathan, Product Manager, TCS Customer Intelligence & Insights™ for retail and Loyalty Management, Digital Software & Solutions. The three discussed how a CDP supports a brand’s customer loyalty efforts, customer data privacy and responsible AI, and key personalization initiatives.
Read the full article on Loyalty360 here: -
The Coca-Cola Company’s global initiative, the ‘Best Coke Ever?’ debate, is using artificial intelligence (AI) to create a truly unique experience for consumers and Coca-Cola fans. One of the key elements in the campaign includes allowing Coke Zero Sugar to “speak for itself” to engage consumers through visual and auditory experiences. Partnerships with social media influencers and leveraging platforms like TikTok are additional components in the global icon’s efforts to increase brand love and attract the next generation of Coca-Cola fans.
In this podcast, Mark Johnson, CEO of Loyalty360, spoke with Oana Vlad, Senior Director of Global Strategy for The Coca-Cola Company, about the brand’s global initiative — the ‘Best Coke Ever?’ debate, leveraging AI as a vehicle to create unique consumer experiences, and measuring success in a campaign with many components.
See also: Coca-Cola Launches AI-Powered Holiday Cards -
As today’s brands continue to seek ways to improve their customer loyalty programs, marketers and loyalty professionals are challenged to provide enhanced experiences and authentic personalization that can lead to greater brand affinity. Emotional loyalty is not built overnight; brands must commit to knowing their customers and preferences, leveraging the knowledge in the right way at the right time. This can be accomplished through customer data insights prioritizing personalization.
Ernst & Young (EY) operates in over 150 countries, working through four integrated service lines — Assurance, Consulting, Strategy and Transactions, and Tax. The organization offers loyalty program services, partnering with brands so that they can cultivate deeper emotional connections with customers. EY’s loyalty programs are designed to enhance customer retention and engagement, increase sales and encourage frequency, facilitate heightened brand awareness and referrals, and provide greater insights into customer data.
EY’s research concluded that 87% of consumers are at least somewhat comfortable sharing data. However, when EY surveyed corporate decision makers that have control over loyalty budgets and programming, personalization and data management capture were lower priorities for investment among companies. EY reports less than half — around 42% — said that they were focused on personalization and customized touch points.
In this podcast, Mark Johnson, CEO of Loyalty360, spoke with Patricia Camden and Michael Anders, Loyalty Leaders for EY, about the state of customer loyalty, why personalization is the number one thing brands must focus on today, and how traditional loyalty programs focused on frequency and volume are giving away to more nuanced approaches that consider a customer’s entire relationship with the brand. -
The first Melting Pot restaurant, established in 1975 by businessmen Bruce Knoechel and Roy Nelson in Maitland, FL, offered a simple menu of only three items — Swiss cheese fondue, beef fondue, and a chocolate fondue dessert. In 1979, with the support of two siblings, Melting Pot employee Mark Johnston opened another location in Tallahassee, followed by a third restaurant in Tampa in 1981. In 1985, brothers Mark, Mike, and Bob Johnston purchased all rights to the Melting Pot brand from the original owners.
Now a chain of franchised fondue restaurants, Melting Pot counts close to 90 locations across the U.S. and one Melting Pot restaurant in Canada.
In this podcast, Mark Johnson, CEO of Loyalty360, spoke with Ana Malmqvist, CMO for Front Buner Brands, about the importance of personalization in a customer loyalty program, leveraging data from multiple integrated technologies to better understand customer data, and focusing on innovation to create an enhanced customer experience.
See also: Restaurant Brands Elevate the Customer Experience by Offering At-home Meal Kits--
Quick-fire Questions:
What is your favorite word?
Energy.
What is your least favorite word?
Leverage.
What excites you?
Growth.
What do you find tiresome?
Process.
What is your favorite fondue?
Alpine.
What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?
Diplomat.
Who inspired you to become the person you are today?
My mother.
What is your favorite book recommendation to make to colleagues?
The Da Vinci Code.
How do you want to be remembered by your friends and family?
Present. -
In 1963, Consumer Value Stores was founded in Lowell, MA, providing customers with health and beauty products. The company name changed to CVS by the end of its first year in business, and by 1967, pharmacies began to appear within its stores. The brand focused on healthcare, and huge growth followed through multiple acquisitions and the establishment of new locations.
In the early 2000s, CVS Pharmacy launched ExtraCare®, its first loyalty program, and experienced much success in the loyalty space. By 2018, the brand acquired Aetna, and this development supercharged and accelerated CVS’ goal of helping customers with health and wellness goals. CarePass® — the brand’s premium program — was launched in 2019, driving loyalty efforts and creating more convenience for shoppers, and in December 2023, the brand scaled same-day delivery nationwide.
Mark Johnson, CEO of Loyalty360, spoke with Zach Dennett, Vice President of Loyalty, Omnichannel and Hispanic Formats, CVS Health, about the brand’s premium customer loyalty program tier, customers engaging with the brand digitally before shopping in-store, and how the customer experience should be personalized, but not overtly obvious.
Read the full article on Loyalty360 here: https://loyalty360.org/content-gallery/in-depth-exclusives/cvs-pharmacy-evolving-customer-loyalty-programs-and-creating-a-more-convenient-customer-experience -
Mark Johnson, CEO of Loyalty360, spoke with Mladen Vladic, General Manager, FIS Loyalty Engagement Solutions, about looking at the holistic enterprise value of the consumer, the value in looking inside the organization to determine friction at touchpoints, and the challenges and opportunities in customer loyalty in the year ahead.
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Customer expectations continue to evolve, and when considering a purchase — a big ticket item or even a smaller one — they often look for flexibility in payment options. Merchants and retailers operate in an increasingly competitive space, seeking to create a better customer experience to win greater loyalty and frequency while also increasing sales. The customer/merchant relationship does not have to be one of opposition. There are solutions that can benefit both.
The Connected Commerce and Strategic Growth division of Citi Retail Services is designed to reimagine point-of-sale (POS) lending. The team conceptualizes how finance products can be integrated with merchants’ POS systems and how to make it easier for merchants to connect with Citi. The information is leveraged when building products and merchant connection points, enabling customers to access relevant lending products when checking out or buying merchandise.
Indeed, Citi’s research revealed that both consumers and merchants are looking for multiple payment options at the checkout. In fact, 90% of surveyed consumers agreed that retailers need to offer various payment options at the POS. Designed for consumers and retailers, Citi Pay® products help consumers understand the monthly cost of a product. Instead of focusing on the total transaction amount, they can assess purchases based on the associated monthly payments. This process helps consumers determine how the product or the purchase best fits into their budget.In this podcast, Mark Johnson, CEO of Loyalty360, spoke with Terry O’Neil, Head of Connected Commerce and Strategic Growth for Citi Retail Services, about the future of POS lending, the strategic partnerships Citi’s formed to enable Citi Pay®, and how merchants shouldn’t underestimate the power of an embedded payment product in building customer loyalty.
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