The Loyalty NewswireFebruary 17, 2025

This week’s Customer Loyalty and Digital Marketing News

From the Editor

If you attended NRF earlier this year, you may already be fatigued by large conference events. Many people we hear from are placing higher value on smaller, high-touch events with strong content and the opportunity to have candid conversations with their peers.

One such event is coming up at the end of this month. It’s Leaders in Loyalty 2025: Unlocking the Habit Loop – Crafting Loyalty through Consistent Actions and Precision Strategy. This exclusive event, presented by ebbo, will take place on February 28th, 2025, at the beautiful Pelican Grand Beach Resort in Fort Lauderdale, FL. Futurist Sam Rad is the headliner of this powerful one day event. You can learn more and register here.

There is a massive volume of news in Loyalty this week. Enjoy this global roundup.

Stay. Loyal. Always.

Managing Editor, The Wise Marketer

Global News Roundup

Fast Casual Dining Chain Sweetgreen Relaunches its Sweetpass Loyalty Program

Sweetgreen, the US based fast-casual chain launched its Sweetpass loyalty program in 2023. Structured as a two-tiered loyalty program that included a free component as well as a $10 monthly membership option with additional perks, CEO Jonathan Neman told investors last year the program hadn’t meaningfully moved the needle on overall transactions.

Using insights from Sweetpass and Sweetpass+ users, Sweetgreen is rolling out a new loyalty program designed to reward guests for every purchase. SG Rewards launches in select markets on February 17 ahead of a nationwide debut in April. The program has a focus on giving members more control over how they earn and redeem perks.

Selfridges Introduces Loyalty Program

Luxury department store retailer Selfridges has announced a new loyalty program “Unlocked” that allows customers to collect digital “keys,” or points, for shopping; visiting The Cinema at Selfridges; dining at one of the restaurants such as The Fount or Din Tai Fung, and using the beauty services at Selfridges such as By Dr. Vali. Customers will be able to collect digital keys at Selfridges in London, Manchester, and Birmingham.

“I’m really excited about how the recognition of time spent with us will help to bring the ever-expanding Selfridges universe to life for our customers,” said Leonie Foster, chief operating officer at Selfridges.

Spade Partners with Bilt to Enhance Bilt Member Experience

Spade, the “fastest and most accurate” provider of real-time merchant intelligence for the card ecosystem, announced a partnership with Bilt, the loyalty program for home and neighborhood, to help enhance Bilt’s reward offerings and user experience with enriched transaction data.

Spade will help provide granular merchant details to enhance Bilt’s member app and web experiences and support Bilt’s rewards ecosystem. Spade’s merchant intelligence platform leverages a proprietary, ground-truth database covering nearly 100% of card-accepting merchants in the United States

Your Invitation to Leaders in Loyalty 2025 – Feb 28 in Fort Lauderdale, FL

We are excited to invite you to Leaders in Loyalty 2025: Unlocking the Habit Loop – Crafting Loyalty through Consistent Actions and Precision Strategy. This exclusive event, presented by ebbo, will take place on February 28th, 2025, at the beautiful Pelican Grand Beach Resort in Fort Lauderdale, FL.

Join industry leaders and loyalty experts for a day of insightful discussions, actionable strategies, and networking opportunities. We’ll explore how the power of habit can shape customer loyalty and how to use consistent actions combined with precision strategy to build long-term relationships. Register Here!

Circle K Picks Up Hutch’s C-store Chain

Circle K Stores Inc. acquired the convenience and retail gas assets of Hutchinson Oil Co. Inc. In all, the transaction added 20 Hutch’s convenience stores and travel centers in western Oklahoma and southern Kansas to Circle K’s network.

Hutchinson is a third-generation, family-owned and operated business that was founded by Ross Hutchinson in 1969. His son, David Hutchinson, assumed the role of president in the 1990s and focused the company’s efforts on expanding the Hutch’s brand by building large c-stores and travel centers with amenities that catered to both the passenger vehicle and professional driver customers, according to Matrix Capital Markets Group Inc.

Want Email Performance Benchmarks? We Have Some Here

Everyone is hungry for benchmarks. How else do we know how to measure our performance vis a vis the broader marketplace? A recent benchmark report by GetResponse reveals trends in email performance that will give you some guidance:

Open Rates: Retail emails have an average open rate of 19.8%, with subject lines playing a critical role in customer engagement. Retailers who refine their subject lines see a marked improvement in engagement.
Click-Through Rates (CTR): Retail emails achieve an average 2.6% CTR, with clear, relevant calls to action being crucial for turning email engagement into actual sales.
Timing Matters: Emails sent on weekdays, particularly Tuesday through Thursday, see the highest engagement rates, showing that timing is a top priority.
Mobile Optimization: With 60% of emails being opened on mobile devices, optimizing emails for mobile viewing is now essential for ensuring customer satisfaction and minimizing drop-offs.

You can access the full report here.

Quill & Expedia Group Announce New Partnership to Give Customers Exclusive Travel Benefit

Quill, a leading online supplier for business supplies and solutions, has partnered with Expedia Group to offer an exciting new way for customers to use Quill Rewards points on travel and adventures. Quill Travel powered by Expedia® adds an exclusive travel benefit to Quill’s existing portfolio of 1,200+ rewards including gifts, gift cards, coupons, QuillCASH™, and more.

Quill customers can now use points to book more than 900,000 properties, 500+ airlines, 100+ car rental companies, and thousands of activities worldwide at Travel.Quill.com.

LotusFlare Selected to Power Cross-Border Telco Rewards Program

LotusFlare, a provider of a cloud-native digital commerce and monetization platform for communications service providers (CSPs), announced its role in designing, developing and supporting the world’s first cross-border telco rewards program. Singtel, AIS, Globe, HKT, Optus, Taiwan Mobile, and Telkomsel have partnered to launch a unique international rewards program to enhance customers’ travel experience.

The rewards program represents significant progress in the telco industry, setting a new customer value and convenience standard. Benefits include easy access to perks through various telco apps, enhanced travel convenience, and curated local experiences.

What’s the Future of Streaming Stick Roku?

Third Bridge is a primary research business servicing private equity firms, credit investors, hedge funds, and strategy consultants. Current analysis of Roku shared these highlights.

Roku remains a dominant player in the U.S. connected TV (CTV) market, competing closely with Amazon. While its hardware penetration is strong, the CTV landscape is evolving, with major players like Apple, Google, and Samsung investing heavily in their own ecosystems. Analysts have projected Roku’s revenue to grow in the low-to-mid-teens over the next 12-24 months, but the outlook remains cautious.

Many advertisers still prioritize platforms with premium content libraries like Netflix, Disney+, and Amazon Prime Video. Additionally, the growing competition from short-form video platforms, such as TikTok and YouTube Shorts, is diverting consumer screen time away from traditional streaming. Roku’s ability to secure ad dollars amid these challenges will be a key test of its strategy.

Roku’s ability to maintain market share will depend on how well it differentiates its offering, particularly in the software and ad-tech space. Its focus on a cost-effective, consumer-friendly experience has been a key driver, but as streaming habits shift, Roku will need to lean further into its platform business to remain competitive.

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