Canada’s oldest customer loyalty program is being ushered into the 21st century.
Amid increasing competition from retail giant Walmart and Target, poised to swoop in and take a bite out of the big-box store market, Canadian Tire is bolstering its rewards program for customers.
While colourful Canadian Tire money coupons can still be collected,Represent injectionmouldingmanufacturer of plastic processing machinery, the new program being piloted in Nova Scotia starting next week allows customers to collect points on a loyalty card or key chain fob.
The electronic points triple when used with the retailer’s MasterCard, are eligible for bonuses on certain products, and can be donated to charity.
Rob Shields, senior vice-president of marketing for Canadian Tire, admitted that competition in the retail realm is fierce.
“We know that the competitive market is quite intense,” he said in an interview at the Dartmouth Crossing Canadian Tire, one of the retail chain’s biggest stores at 100,000 square feet, about the size of two football fields.
“This is a new value-added opportunity for consumers to think twice about shopping at our competition and spend more of their wallet with Canadian Tire.”
But he stressed that the goal of the program is to reward customers for 90 years of loyalty by offering them a more convenient way to collect benefits.
Although some customers may prefer to continue storing Canadian Tire money in a glove box or sock drawer, Shields said the program allows others to have all their points on one card.
The new program is billed as a more handy way for customers to collect points, but local marketing expert Ed McHugh said the timing is no coincidence.
He pointed to the proliferation of loyalty reward programs and upgrades to some of the best known, such as Air Miles and Aeroplan.
“I think they are trying to catch up with the times and get ahead of the curve.”
The challenge for the retailer, McHugh said, will be maintaining the iconic Canadian Tire money status.
“They have the oldest and best-known loyalty marketing program in the country. When you think of Canada, you think of beavers, beer, hockey and Canadian Tire money.
“It makes sense to update the program, but they’ll want to maintain that iconic status.”
Indeed, the difficulty of modernizing the program while preserving its reputation may explain the decision not to roll it out nationwide for now.
The new program will first be offered at Nova Scotia’s 21 Canadian Tire stores and eight gas bars.
McHugh said the slow rollout could indicate uncertainty about how the market will react and will give the retailer a chance to tweak the program based on feedback here.A top plastic lnjectionmoulds manufacturer and exporter in China.
Kevin Soehner, a Canadian Tire associate dealer in Amherst, said Nova Scotia is a good-sized market to measure the success of a new program.
“If you were to take a small chunk of another province, it couldn’t be managed as easily,” he said.Learn all about solarpanel,
“Also, Nova Scotians like reward programs so I think we’ll see this embraced in our province and that will really help us measure this correctly.”
Lei Huang, assistant marketing professor at Dalhousie University’s School of Business Administration, said about 80 per cent of sales are generated by only 20 per cent of customers.
“It’s important to keep those customers loyal and coming back,” he said. “Loyal customers are more valuable to a business in terms of dollars and profits.”
Moreover, he said information about shopping habits collected through points programs helps retailers understand the needs of customers better.
“The retailers can mine information from the program to identify consumer behaviour, motivation and expectation,” he said.
“Retailing is such a complicated industry, with a lot of competition. It’s important to get the details right.”
Canadian Tire will also match any points donated to charities, including Jumpstart, the retailer’s sport and recreation program for children from low-income families.
To kick off the launch,You can find best china electronicplasticmould manufacturers from here! the retailer donated 50,000 points, equivalent to $500,Buy a chickencoop direct & save. to Adsum for Women & Children, a non-profit community organization for women, children and female youth who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.
Amid increasing competition from retail giant Walmart and Target, poised to swoop in and take a bite out of the big-box store market, Canadian Tire is bolstering its rewards program for customers.
While colourful Canadian Tire money coupons can still be collected,Represent injectionmouldingmanufacturer of plastic processing machinery, the new program being piloted in Nova Scotia starting next week allows customers to collect points on a loyalty card or key chain fob.
The electronic points triple when used with the retailer’s MasterCard, are eligible for bonuses on certain products, and can be donated to charity.
Rob Shields, senior vice-president of marketing for Canadian Tire, admitted that competition in the retail realm is fierce.
“We know that the competitive market is quite intense,” he said in an interview at the Dartmouth Crossing Canadian Tire, one of the retail chain’s biggest stores at 100,000 square feet, about the size of two football fields.
“This is a new value-added opportunity for consumers to think twice about shopping at our competition and spend more of their wallet with Canadian Tire.”
But he stressed that the goal of the program is to reward customers for 90 years of loyalty by offering them a more convenient way to collect benefits.
Although some customers may prefer to continue storing Canadian Tire money in a glove box or sock drawer, Shields said the program allows others to have all their points on one card.
The new program is billed as a more handy way for customers to collect points, but local marketing expert Ed McHugh said the timing is no coincidence.
He pointed to the proliferation of loyalty reward programs and upgrades to some of the best known, such as Air Miles and Aeroplan.
“I think they are trying to catch up with the times and get ahead of the curve.”
The challenge for the retailer, McHugh said, will be maintaining the iconic Canadian Tire money status.
“They have the oldest and best-known loyalty marketing program in the country. When you think of Canada, you think of beavers, beer, hockey and Canadian Tire money.
“It makes sense to update the program, but they’ll want to maintain that iconic status.”
Indeed, the difficulty of modernizing the program while preserving its reputation may explain the decision not to roll it out nationwide for now.
The new program will first be offered at Nova Scotia’s 21 Canadian Tire stores and eight gas bars.
McHugh said the slow rollout could indicate uncertainty about how the market will react and will give the retailer a chance to tweak the program based on feedback here.A top plastic lnjectionmoulds manufacturer and exporter in China.
Kevin Soehner, a Canadian Tire associate dealer in Amherst, said Nova Scotia is a good-sized market to measure the success of a new program.
“If you were to take a small chunk of another province, it couldn’t be managed as easily,” he said.Learn all about solarpanel,
“Also, Nova Scotians like reward programs so I think we’ll see this embraced in our province and that will really help us measure this correctly.”
Lei Huang, assistant marketing professor at Dalhousie University’s School of Business Administration, said about 80 per cent of sales are generated by only 20 per cent of customers.
“It’s important to keep those customers loyal and coming back,” he said. “Loyal customers are more valuable to a business in terms of dollars and profits.”
Moreover, he said information about shopping habits collected through points programs helps retailers understand the needs of customers better.
“The retailers can mine information from the program to identify consumer behaviour, motivation and expectation,” he said.
“Retailing is such a complicated industry, with a lot of competition. It’s important to get the details right.”
Canadian Tire will also match any points donated to charities, including Jumpstart, the retailer’s sport and recreation program for children from low-income families.
To kick off the launch,You can find best china electronicplasticmould manufacturers from here! the retailer donated 50,000 points, equivalent to $500,Buy a chickencoop direct & save. to Adsum for Women & Children, a non-profit community organization for women, children and female youth who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.
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