While S&H Green Stamps was one of the most successful coaliton type rewards program in its day, you don't hear about many in existance today. Before we jump into the why, lets define what a coalition program is:
A coalition rewards program is a type of rewards program where multiple businesses collaborate to offer a shared program to their customers. In a coalition program, customers can earn and redeem loyalty rewards across multiple businesses that participate in the program.
Customers can earn loyalty rewards by shopping or transacting with any of the participating businesses, and can then redeem those rewards for discounts, free products or services, or other benefits across the program's partners.
The goal of a coalition rewards program is to increase customer engagement and loyalty by offering a broader range of rewards and benefits than any one business could offer on its own. Coalition programs can also help businesses reach new customers and increase sales by partnering with other businesses that share similar customer demographics or interests.
Sounds good, so why aren't coalition programs widely adopted in the US?
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Competitive Landscape: Many businesses in the US are fiercely competitive, and may be reluctant to work with rivals in a coalition program. This is particularly true in industries such as retail, supermarkets and travel, where companies often compete directly with one another.
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Data and Privacy Concerns: Coalition programs typically require sharing customer data between partners, which businesses are reluctant to do and can raise privacy concerns among consumers. However, the S&H Green Stamp program is anonymous and customer information is never shared.
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Limited Success of Past Efforts: While there have been some attempts to launch coalition loyalty programs in the US, such as Plenti and Shop Your Way, these programs have had mixed success.
So why will S&H Green Stamps be Successful?
Coalition programs won't work for larger brands. They want exclusivity and fiercely protect their customer base. But the small business space is different. With business diversity and geographic focus they aren't encumbered with the same challenges faced by larger companies in fragmented markets. In fact, small businesses welcome and depend on collaboration to be successful. The problem is that small businesses don't have the right tools to faciliate a coalition program.
The S&H Green Stamp program changes that
By enabling small businesses to connect, collaborate and reward within a trusted anonymous network, the S&H Green Stamp program gives a small business ability to harness the power and benefits of a coalition program.