Rewards and Loyalty programs have become a strategic necessity across many industries, evolving beyond simple rewards into powerful tools for engagement and retention. In commerce, they primarily focus on identifying consumers and understanding their shopping behaviors. In financial services, however, the customer is already known as KYC processes are necessary, making loyalty programs less about data collection and more about deepening engagement, increasing usage, and strengthening long-term relationships.
The challenge for consumer-centric financial service providers—such as retail banks, card payment providers, and FinTech or digital wallets (EMI-powered apps)—is to offer added value, especially for services with low margins where revenue primarily comes from volume (such as payments).
Therefore, implementing a loyalty or rewards program aims to:
✔ Boost customer retention
✔ Cross-sell financial products
✔ Drive increased usage of a service
✔ Differentiate from direct competitors or alternative channels
✔ Convert nutral feeling to positive and turn users to advocates
Whether the program offers cashback, points, experiences or a gamified rewards scheme, the principles remain the same. Onboarding must be seamless, the perceived value must be compelling, and the user experience should be exciting.
The SMASH framework, along with SMASH Rewards and SMASH Promote/Engage, tailored for the financial services indutry, delivers custom rewards and loyalty programs that capture consumer attention and align with your business model, objectives, and technology landscape. From strategy to execution, we help you create simple, exciting, and impactful programs.