Retail and ecommerce

I had the pleasure of representing Experian Data Quality last week at the Demandware XChange conference in Las Vegas. As many people in the tech world know, Demandware has seen massive growth over the last few years and brought an astounding 700 retailers, 300 partners and 200 employees to the conference this year. I spent the first two days connecting with other LINK Technology and Solution partners as well as learning about Demandware’s plans for joint marketing and promotions to drive additional revenue and referrals.

It seems that every time I go into a store today, I am offered a loyalty card. From one of my favorite local restaurants to my shoe store VIP program, I feel like I am getting a host of emails and points at every turn. Statistics support my theory: according to a recent Experian Data Quality study, 91 percent of organizations use loyalty programs.

Why did they become so prevalent? Today’s consumer is more empowered than ever before and driving major change within business. In the era of Yelp, digital channels and a 24/7 shopping cycle, organizations have less control.