storewanderer wrote: ↑July 7th, 2020, 10:57 pm
I think requiring a card will turn off a small number of customers. At this point so many stores have these loyalty cards (many of which are seemingly useless- maybe get you 1% back or something) that it isn't even about smart loyalty programs anymore it is simply about "me too" loyalty programs.
In the case of Fred Meyer they must not be getting the usage they want from the current program so by forcing people to use a card for sale prices expect to get loyalty usage up closer to other divisions.
For instance in NorCal Raleys and Save Mart both have points based loyalty. Raleys program gives 1% back rewards voucher and is a Dunhumby program and mails out coupons and does digital coupons and really functions very similar to the Kroger Rewards program (the coupon mailers look the same even) or going way back the old late 90's ASC Lucky Rewards Program. I have little clue what Save Mart's program does since I didn't enroll in it since I shop there so little. Neither store requires the loyalty card for sale prices and Raleys card was out for years before I finally signed up for it (I actually signed up to see how it worked since I saw some Kroger-looking loyalty mailer coupons on the floor one night, but with Raleys logo on them). Save Mart does sometimes run in-ad coupons that you could either take from the ad or clip to your rewards account I guess and may do some kind of points based thing too.
I do appreciate going to stores where there is no loyalty card. It speeds up the checkout process.
What needs to be taken into consideration though is the fact that stores with a similar merchandise offering such as Walmart and Target do not require a card for sale prices. Kmart really started pushing Shop Your Way in their stores....look at where they are now.
I will readily admit that there are certain aspects of WinCo that I do not like, but at the same time, the concept of low prices without having to resort to cards, apps, coupons, and other gimmicks has resonated with people. Fred Meyer currently is competitive with WinCo in some areas, and a big part of why they are constantly busy has to do with not requiring the card. And most of those sales are on the grocery end as they continue to screw up the offerings on the GM side.
As stores resort to adding self-checkout and eliminating cashiers, I really don't want to stand in a long self-checkout line when people forget their cards and have to screw around with their cell phone to find their phone number to punch in due to the fact that many people these days readily admit that they do not even know their own phone number.
We'll see what happens with this...I will voice my opinion to Fred Meyer if the card requirement becomes reality. While I think Kroger does for the most part operate the food side of Fred Meyer well, they do not have a grasp of the one stop shopping concept Fred Meyer is known for.