Brand loyalty is increasingly becoming a thing of the past.
Today consumers are more price and value loyal, particularly in the consumer packaged goods and retail markets where there's high market saturation and low switching barriers. Plus they are more informed than ever, and are more motivated to find a product or service for the best possible price without feeling as if they've compromised on quality.
For years rebate programs have helped retailers entice potential customers while helping them avoid price discounting wars with competitors.
Today, more and more brands are turning towards prepaid MasterCard, prepaid Visa cards, and other forms of branded money to promote rebates in order to drive store purchases and eliminate time-consuming processes and overhead associated with traditional rebate methods such as cheque processing.
Prepaid Visa cards are a proven incremental sales driver offering wide consumer acceptance and compelling branding opportunities.
Consumers love being rewarded, provided it's instantaneous, relevant, and of value to them. Prepaid cards are attractive because they're a cash-equivalent incentive: funds can be spent immediately, anywhere credit card payments are accepted, including online and around the world.
Plus prepaid cards eliminate the need for customers to deposit cheques and wait for funds to clear, and are more tangible than other price-based incentives.
Kelloggs uses prepaid cards as part of their consumer rebate and rewards programs.
That's great. But why should companies looking for new rebate solutions care?
Besides being loved by consumers, companies prefer prepaid card programs because:
- They are cost effective to deploy and have a clear and compelling ROI
- They let you see where promotional dollars are spent and give you visibility into ongoing card activity and redemption rates
- A branded online activation site extends promotional opportunities online and allows for better data capture
- They are flexible and fast: cards can be purchased and inventoried for future usage, or mailed immediately from fulfillment
- They are easily administered: card ordering, funding, and management is enabled using Conductor, Berkeley's online client portal
Remind Consumers Who's Rewarding Them
Prepaid cards aren't just a way to disburse rebates, they're a branding opportunity. Include your company's logo and custom design front and centre to add that extra brand recognition to your prepaid cards, and open up opportunities for ongoing and reloadable card programs.
The prepaid card's carrier (the paper that the card is attached to) can also be customized to include a promotional or personal message. Each time a customer uses that prepaid card they will be reminded of where they received it from and will associate your brand with a positive purchase experience.
