Thanks for a great post on loyalty programs. Have you seen any examples of programs for shopping malls where the stores have different cashier systems, but still manage to track what the customer shops and provides relevant offers and information?

Check out AppCard. It was invented by creator of instant messaging and is backed by the chairman of Google, Co-founder of Yahoo, ad first investor in Facebook. Essentially they offer the deep data analytics that huge companies use for a fraction of the price. All point of sales systems can tell you what people purchased and how much. But, what they can’t tell you is who bought what. With this type of data, it personalizes the marketing process, drives more business, and each campaign can be measured for success because 100% of the data is captured.

As a matter of fact, John, I work for a company called FiveStars that has worked on many projects just like what you're describing! You should take a look at our company and reach out if you'd like for us to tell you more!

Thanks for your thoughts, Jon! I don't have a strong example of the type of loyalty program you mention, but definitely see retailers of all sizes moving toward a customer-focused shopping model that tailors individual customer experiences around personal preference based on historical purchase patterns. Today's customers thrive on personalization, which helps drive lasting loyalty.

I'm curious as to why ShopYourWayRewards (Kmart/Sears) didn't make this list? This loyalty program pretty much tops all of your listed ones above, every single one! Normal is 1% back but most times you have opportunities to gain bonus points (up to 30%) and generally don't have to wait for specific dates (although they do have those). But the best part is you can use your points on the VERY NEXT TRANSACTION. They even offer surprise points which can be used IN CURRENT TRANSACTION. You don't have to wait for a minimum, or a "humungous" $5 coupon...seriously, most of the loyalty programs you listed are average at best.
How did you miss this gem of a program? To date I've gotten 2 Kindle Fire HD's, 2 Nexus 7 tablets, a small air conditioner, a Toshiba laptop, a 3yr Warranty for my 55in Sony Bravia tv, clothing, candy (yes, sears sells candy), and various misc items, all through ShopYourWayRewards (honestly, I'm not fond of the name). Currently I'm sitting on $73 that I can use at anytime, but I'm building that up for a Galaxy Tablet.

If you have a good reason for ShopYourWayRewards (yeah, i really don't like that name) being left off your list, I'd like to read it.

In regards to comment deletion, we work hard to keep our community a positive and constructive place to discuss loyalty and engagement, and remove comments that don't adhere to our guidelines. Thanks for understanding, and we do want to continue to hear your thoughts.

Hi there, and thanks for sharing your thoughts. We took many points into consideration when selecting our top programs, and unfortunately could only select 10 out of many wonderful loyalty initiatives retail brands offer. It thrills us that so many big retailers are putting customer loyalty at the top of their priority lists, and will definitely consider these points for our 2014 roundup!

If you guys are interested in rewards such as soundbars, TV's and T shirts, sign up for the Vizio reward program. It is the simplest way to get points and redeem for prizes. So far i have got soundbars in just some months since i have been doing the tasks which is valued up to $ 300+ here is the link sign up or at least try it. i'm sure you won't regret it. Goodluck ! https://rewards.viziofanzon...

Just came across a social networking website that really helps boost savings when you shop. The premise is that you get rewards points for every dollar you spend. After you shop, you receive details about the items you purchased. You can then share these details out to facebook, google+ or pinterest. If anyone purchases items by clicking on your tagged photos or your purchase shares, then you gain rewards off of their purchases as well. If you combine this with rewards from credit cards and make sure you pay those credit cards in full … then you can really gain some significant savings. The website is:

http://www.etwib.com

Great Article....i know loyalty has definitely helped me with my business. We adopted a loyalty program about one year ago, buy getting our own loyalty mobile app. Best thing i ever did! I now have customers coming in bringing friends to shop just so they can collect their "Denim Dollars". The last 3-4 years have been tough in our market, but we have now seen almost a 20% increase in sales, which is directly due to our app. Mobile is no longer the way of the future, it is the things consumers are now on more then any other device. I did alot of research into this before selecting the company that developed my app. The companies i looked at were: Vicinity, Appcard, Perka, Belly(Terrible-worst of the bunch), Lyoness...While Belly was terrible, the others had some good and some bad features...But in the end i decided to go with Mass Mobile Apps. They produced a custom app for me, with tons of GREAT tools, and a built in loyalty program. Their team actually worked with us to make sure our program was successful. I would definitely recommend them... www.massmobileapps.com

Check out Glamhive.com too...we offer a ubiquitous rewards program, shop at any of our 450 retail partners, and if you already belong to tjeir rewards program, you can double down.

I'm researching loyalty program providers for our company. Any idea who's the company that manages Nordstrom's loyalty program. It looks like it's exactly what i'm looking for. Simple gift vouchers for X amount of points.

Thanks Ashley for your sharing and in-depth analysis on Retail Loyalty Programs. I look forward to read more inspiring articles from you.

Brian again Dreamforce 2014, presentation by Salesforce and Lyoness Bit.ly/LyonessSalesforceLyc...

Ashley, We're coming on strong....Lyoness / Lyconet...watch video then call me for your free membership. Bit.ly/LyonessSalesforceLyc... from your friend in marketing. Brian Kaplan Ind. SME Certified Consultant/ IBR, Lyconet Marketer

Learn more at TheSolutionPack.com
4 million members , 250,000 points of acceptance, and Lyoness MasterCard Launched Nov 8th,2014

Free Membership www.PuyallupLoyaltyMerchant...

thanks for sharing such an useful post. keep on helping us to gain knowledge. do check the link below it may help you a lot. http://www.pointclub.com to earn some great rewards.

While Starbucks does have the best loyalty program out there with its sleek user experience, it's not easy for small coffee shops or businesses to do the same. App development is a large investment, one that many small coffee shops don't have the budget for.

Check out something like Level Up app. It has a version of a reward program, where after a number of purchases, the customer gets $5 back for future expenditures. A small coffee shop I used to go to used Level Up. There may be other technical downsides to this app, but I'm sure there may be other mobile applications to check out that may benefit you.