Diving Into Shopping Data: Mars Rewards Loyalty With New Program
Mars, Inc. is launching a loyalty experience, giving consumers a way to earn rewards every time they purchase eligible Mars products.
The company has partnered with loyalty platform Fetch, which works directly with CPG brands to reward consumers via a consolidated, streamlined app.
In order to earn rewards, consumers must download the Fetch app — available on the App store or Google Play store — linking e-receipts from brands to accumulate points for eligible purchases and redeem them for rewards like gift cards.
[Read more from our sister brand RIS: How Fetch Rewards Is Turning Loyalty Upside Down to Bolster Data Strategies]
“Mars Wrigley admires Fetch’s unique connection to consumers through a future-defining digital platform,” said Anton Vincent, president, Mars Wrigley North America. “This partnership helps accelerate our digital leadership while growing one of the world's most iconic brand portfolios bringing M&M’S, Snickers, Twix, Skittles, and gum brands such as Extra, Orbit, and 5 Gum to consumers exactly how they snack and consume today.”
The relationship will provide Mars with insights and measurement capabilities, said Patrick Burke, chief revenue officer, Fetch. “Fetch is about creating moments of joy for consumers, and there’s never been a more important time for brands to lean into technology that provides meaningful, personalized experiences.”
Mars joins other brands who have partnered with the loyalty provider, including Unilever, L’Oreal, Kimberly-Clark, PepsiCo, General Mills, Sargento, Albertsons Cos., Kodiak, Pernod Ricard, E. & J. Gallo, Molson Coors, and more. Through the partnership, Mars can tap into a network of 17 million monthly active users who are submitting 8.5 million purchase transactions daily.
General Mills previously said this type of partnership is a win/win scenario with consumers. KC Glaser, senior manager of e-commerce, loyalty, and rewards at the company, told CGT that their goal in launching a rewards program is to help consumers — who are confronted today with a challenging grocery environment — by providing access to their products across all brands.
“From a General Mills perspective, we get to build relationships with these consumers and learn their behavior by diving into this data-rich experience,” he said during the initial partnership announcement. “As a result, we’re growing our first-party data library, and we gain category exclusivity, allowing us to own our categories within the app.”
Editor's Take
Brands have been looking for ways to form stronger relationships with their consumers, finding roadblocks when retail partners accrue the majority of insights and hold an increasing level of influence by leveraging those trending behavioral shopping patterns to improve their own business practices.
While partnering with a company such as Fetch introduces yet another party into the relationship, it gives brands another avenue through which they can reward customers for continued purchasing, and increased access to the first-party data they are searching for.
Loyalty is taking on an entirely new shape. No longer is it based solely on tiered rewards structures. More than ever, brands are looking to get closer by leveraging interactive experiences that place consumers in the shoes of the brands they love.
Take for, for example, gamified loyalty through metaverse experiences. Lucky Charms, owned by General Mills, launched an AR-based gaming experience that rewards engagement. Brands like Doritos and Nike have launched similar initiatives. But do these interactive experiences allow brands to gather the valuable first-party data that rewards program provide? Or are these efforts primarily working toward strengthening brand recognition?
The concepts of loyalty and personalization have completely transformed. What will loyalty look like in the next five, ten, fifteen years?
