The Loyalty NewswireMarch 03, 2025

Global News Roundup from The Wise Marketer

From the Editor

It turns out that Seth Godin and your editor are not far apart in their thought process. In last weekend’s Wise Marketer Newsletter, we commented about the “Ides of March” and how it was time to get going with action created from strategy planning in the first quarter of 2025. Now we read Seth Godin suggesting that “March can be a chance to get down to the work we committed to do”.

Godin urges to invest 31 days into outlining, discussing, and fleshing out the strategy you want to bring to your career or your project. If you have not completed your planning, please follow his advice. Incorporate the information we share in this weekly Newswire to help you make good decisions.

Otherwise, LET’S GO and reach our goals for this year.

Enjoy this week’s roundup of Global Loyalty News.

Stay. Loyal. Always.

Managing Editor, The Wise Marketer

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CRMC Mastering Customer Marketing with Emerging Technology in Retail. Early bird pricing is good through March 10, so you have about two weeks to lock in the best offer. Register here.

Global News Roundup

Selfridges Tokenizes Time Spent in its Stores to Reward Customers

The world-famous department store brand Selfridges just announced that its loyalty program will begin rewarding members for time spent inside of their stores with digital keys. These keys will then unlock a variety of rewards, including being able to shop at the store out of hours. Selfridges has effectively tokenized people’s time as a form of loyalty.

As Selfridges explained, members can scan a unique key every time they shop or spend time at Selfridges, unlocking access to products, experiences and services in the ever-expanding Selfridges universe. The more keys you collect, the closer you’ll get to reaching the next level of Selfridges Unlocked and enjoying even more perks.

The concept of tokenizing time could innovate the loyalty industry, as well as the traditional attention economy, away from screens to in-person attention. What could this mean for the wider adoption of tokenization and blockchain in mainstream industries and how the concept of tokenization is evolving beyond just physical and digital assets?

Stay tuned as we are doing research in this area of future loyalty program development.

Ahead of Women’s Day, Almonds Ai Launches Pink Rewards to Celebrate Women

As the world gears up to celebrate Women’s Day, Almonds Ai, a channel loyalty, rewards and solutions company, introduces Pink Rewards, the world’s first women-centric loyalty reward initiative designed to celebrate, support, and empower women at every stage of life.

Pink Rewards redefines traditional loyalty rewards by offering experiences that go beyond transactional benefits. With a curated catalog of wellness essentials, professional growth opportunities, lifestyle indulgences, and community-driven rewards, Pink Rewards transforms brand engagement into a movement for empowerment.

H World launches H Rewards Millionaire programme for Ramadan

H Rewards – the loyalty programme for H World International, and one of the world’s largest loyalty programmes with over 260 million members – has launched a new competition for its guests, called H Rewards Millionaire.

During the month of Ramadan, H Rewards members are given the chance to win 1 million H Rewards points, redeemable for a luxurious vacation across Steigenberger Hotels & Resorts in Egypt. From now until March 29, 2025, guests can become H Rewards Millionaires, unlocking new experiences through loyalty points that are redeemable for a luxurious getaway at Steigenberger Hotels & Resorts.

Portillo’s Unveils First-Ever Loyalty Program: Direct to Digital Wallets, No App Required

Portillo’s, the fast-casual restaurant concept known for its menu of Chicago-style favorites, today announced the launch of Portillo’s Perks, an app-less loyalty program that rewards guests for their love of Portillo’s.

Portillo’s Perks lives in guests’ digital wallets and delivers personalized rewards based on visit frequency and ordering habits. Guests simply check in with their digital Perks card during visits to collect engaging badges and earn targeted rewards—from a welcome offer of free large French fries to free retail items and more. Learn more here.

Where’s the Beef in Portillo’s Loyalty Strategy?

Members of our CLMP™ Community are on top of their game. Some are ahead of the news, as was Steve Bocska on the topic of the new loyalty program from Portillo.

Steve wrote a thorough analysis of the new Portillo program for The Wise Marketer and it is published here. In the article, he writes that while the approach of a frictionless experience – no app downloads, no logins, no barcodes to scan – promises to simplify the loyalty experience, the removal of all friction points risks undermining the very essence of what makes loyalty programs successful.

Marketoonist Raps on Loyalty Programs

Tom Fishburne is a well-known cartoonist with a talent for communicating trends and opinions on business and culture through his cartoon creations. Loyalty programs have not escaped his sharp eye and keen wit. With talk of Loyalty Being Stuck, this cartoon hits a nerve with us. You?

Miles & More Announces Changes to its FFP beginning in June 2025

We learned through a member directed email that Miles & More is making big changes to its program, effective with bookings from June 3, 2025 onward. For flights with Austrian Airlines, Lufthansa, Lufthansa City and SWISS, the fixed mileage amounts in the Award Flight chart will be replaced with flexible mileage amounts. The miles will then be calculated on the basis of the fare selected, travel class, route, the timing of your flight and when you book – exactly the same as when you book flights through the airlines.

These changes are said to lead to greater availability on some routes and flyers will benefit from lower mileage amounts for Economy Class on some routes. In future, you’ll be able to decide whether you want your Award Flight booking to include baggage, a seat reservation or the option to rebook and you’ll be able to see all available options with the relevant mileage amount as soon as you make a booking request. Visit their website for more news.

Colorado Loyalty Programs Hit New Regulatory Bumps

Colorado businesses spent the better part of 2022 preparing to comply with the Colorado Privacy Act (“CPA”) by its effective date in mid-2023. However, many overlooked the numerous requirements that the later-enacted CPA regulations impose on loyalty programs.

The statute defines the nature of a “Loyalty Program”, specifies regulatory requirements for operating a loyalty program, and defines how member data can be collected and managed. This article has a good overview of the new requirements and suggests actions that brands can take to comply with the CPA.

PetSmart Celebrates “Treats Rewards Members Month” with Deals and Rewards in March

PetSmart is celebrating Treats Rewards Members Month, honoring its community of loyal Treats Rewards members with special perks and deals. Starting March 1, pet parents can visit their Treats Rewards account to activate offers and earn bonus points on purchases throughout the month to save even more on their favorite products and services.

This includes an offer to receive $10 back in savings (5,000 points) for every $50 spent, which can be redeemed up to five times throughout the month so pet parents can stock up on essentials, fun toys and treats. Read the full press release here.

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