Gift and loyalty cards go contactless
Wednesday March 30, 2005
Two
companies have now announced contactless card or keyfob-based gift
and loyalty solutions, highlighting two growing trends: that toward
RFID-based technology and the increasing popularity of gift cards.
Both Smart Transaction Systems (STS) and ViVOtech have entered the
arena of contactless gift and loyalty systems. The move toward the
contactless transaction is more important than it may at first seem:
not only is it more convenient and novel for the customer, but it's
also quick. In fact, when used in combination with high-speed broadband
transaction processing technology, contactless transactions can
be faster than any other type of transaction, including cash. This
makes the use of loyalty programmes and gift cards much more feasible
in low-ticket fast-turnover businesses such as fast-food outlets
and sports venues. This article is copyright 2005 TheWiseMarketer.com.
Ideal
solution
STS
says that its gift and loyalty programmes are now compatible with
the latest technology in smart cards. The new "contactless"
smart cards, key tags, and "smart stickers" need only
be passed in front of the card reader to complete the transaction.
The stored-value or loyalty card does not even need to be handed
over to the clerk.
According
to Ray Clopton, president of STS: "This is an ideal solution
for any organisation that wants to give their customers a very fast
and convenient way to complete multiple types of stored-value card
transaction, including gift and loyalty programmes. We're seeing
a great deal of interest from organisations ranging from coffee
shops to sporting venues and food service companies that run corporate
and college cafeterias."
The
new offering is compatible with the STS system that is already being
used by thousands of merchants. The cards can access both a cash
value and a loyalty/reward point balance at the same time. STS has
built contactless smart card capability into all of the core products
and services that it offers. This includes VeriFone and Hypercom
credit card terminals, as well as several PC-based and integrated
POS solutions supported by STS. The company has taken an open-systems
approach, and supports contactless readers from multiple manufacturers.
STS customers may choose between the new contactless cards or traditional
magnetic-strip cards. The two options are interchangeable within
the STS system.
Turnkey
system
ViVOtech
is offering a turnkey "Contactless Gift and Loyalty solution
in Box" for Independent Sales Organisations (ISOs) and Acquirers.
The components include a self-branded ViVOfob in various form-factors,
the ViVOpay reader which enables existing legacy systems to accept
contactless card payments and access to the ViVOplatform software
package which delivers integrated loyalty and prepaid functionality.
ISOs
can easily set-up loyalty, prepaid programmes for merchants using
the ViVOplatform, and administer them with minimum effort. The built
in automation system will take care of awarding points, redemption,
etc. The complete offering is designed to work with legacy systems.
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