If you've ever fumbled around in your car, handbag, or perhaps even in the middle of the checkout line for a paper or emailed coupon, you aren't alone.
While it may be a pesky annoyance for the other customers behind you as you run through a list of potential phone numbers and email addresses for a cashier to look up your rewards program, it's probably equally as annoying for you.
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That's because with the countless rewards programs available to the modern day consumer, it's nearly impossible to keep track of the savings options and promotions at a given retailer.
Some companies have gotten clever, embedding their rewards programs into the checkout process. Amazon (AMZN) , for example, offers Prime members ways to save at Whole Foods by simply scanning a QR code on its app. Prime members who shop online with their Visa Prime Signature rewards card earn 5% back on Prime and Whole Foods purchases, which can then be used as cash back to roll into future purchases.
But few other programs are as easily navigable. From Sephora to CVS, American Airlines to IKEA, almost everyone has a rewards program designed to entice customers to spend more within a given ecosystem. But few are readily recalled at a moment's notice.
Popular retailer overhauls loyalty program
But some retailers are getting wise to this, realizing their programs are a moot point if they're rarely used – or worse yet – if they're a nuisance to customers.
CVS (CVS) recently overhauled its loyalty program, streamlining its options into a paid and unpaid tier which offers different perks to customers shopping in-stores or online.
And others are following suit. Staples, the office and school supply brick-and-mortar retailer which services wholesale accounts and busy students, announced the launch of its new rewards program, Easy Rewards, after receiving feedback from customers that its prior program was difficult to manage.
The new program is free to join for all customers and offers the following benefits:
- Earn 1 point per $1 spent on eligible purchases.
- Earn 2 or more times the points on the 3 categories customers purchase most.
- Earn points on select services, like recycling.
- Access members-only savings events and other offers
- Redeem points toward purchases.
- Easily track points and membership on the Staples app.
For a retailer that prides itself on the motto, "that was easy," the overhaul comes at a critical time when more stores are paying closer attention to consumer spending behavior and repeat buyers.
And it's been making other moves to make customers' lives easy. In 2023, it announced it would begin processing Amazon returns for customers at participating locations. It also announced recently that it would begin offering tech support and computer troubleshooting for customers confused, befuddled, or otherwise confounded by common technology issues, such as identity theft, computer crashes, and hacking.
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