Tretakoff Musings

 As some of you know, I've spent over 15 years in the customer loyalty space. So, when I come across a new retail loyalty program, I can't help but see the pluses and minuses. After this many years, it's kind of ingrained. Periodically, I'll share my thoughts with you. Today, it's Kohl's turn under the scope. Let's have a look, shall we? I've divided the review up into three sections: what's good about the program, what's bad about the program, and what I'd change about it. That last one has some actual value: I charged hundreds of dollars per hour for loyalty program consulting, and had over a dozen clients, before I moved to JustAnswer FT. But, being a pandemic and all, I'm giving it away for free here. Kohl's, you're welcome. Here we go! The Good Sign up is opt in Seems odd to praise Kohl's for this, but in department store loyalty, this is a rarity, and a smart one. It means the customers who are opted in are already prime...

Wow. Been a while! Guess that's what happens when you join one of the fastest growing companies in the hottest spaces. :-) Ok, time for a few updates and minor rants: The company I started with two great folks, Loyalty Lab, has been acquired by Tibco . I'm delighted for them, as it's a great partnership to ensure the ongoing growth of Retail CRM. It was seven years of long hard work, but I could not be more pleased for everyone there. Well done, guys! My company, TownHog , has taken off. We are now reaching 6 million people daily , and are at just under 50 people, while being present in about 20 cities. It's been an absolute rocket ride, and it keeps going up. So much fun, and two new partner launches upcoming! My travels have slowed down a bit, but I expect to be back in NYC quite often now, with so many partners there. United continues to lavish affection on me... I've learned the incredible value of StreamTransport , some software that allows you to pull dow...

Disclaimer: I am in the business of helping loyalty programs thrive. With all of the loyalty programs out there, it seems bizarre that so many companies still use physical cards. There's good reason, of course: the barcode on the card is read by the point of sale system (POS). But the average American's wallet only has 6-8 slots, total: after license, credit cards, ATM cards, and the other essentials, there is rarely room for another. If you have an iPhone, you might be in luck. A new free application, called WalletZero , allows you to simply enter in the number on your loyalty card. If it's a card that features a barcode, it generates it on the large iPhone screen, allowing it to be scanned right off the screen at POS. The app knows many of the most common programs, and even allows you to enter ones for those that are not necessarily barcoded. Lots good about this app, but definitely some improvements could help. First, it relies on the developer to add more programs; I...

In my business, I tend to work with a lot of online marketers. I also tend to work with a lot of companies who look at loyal customers, and focus on ways to keep them loyal. So, when I come across a particular example in my personal life of one that does both so badly, I have to point it out. Today's example is a company called Haggar. I know, you're thinking "the people that make those expandable slacks my grandfather wore?" Yes, them. About 10 years ago, they invested heavily in a new brand image: hipper, cheaper, and good quality. They opened a ton of factory outlet stores, while bringing the new lines into retailers like Mervyn's, JC Penney, etc. And thus the modern Haggar was born: a mix of casual clothes and traditional suits at extremely low prices, with modern styling. 5 or 6 years ago, I used to commute 120 miles each way to work. I know, sounds insane, but I loved the company, and the commute started in Marin County, CA, and ended in Monterey, CA: now, ...

Loyalty Lab is on the move, heading to the legendary 111 Sutter St., home to one of history's greatest literary detectives, Sam Spade. Talk about a building steeped in tradition, this one is practically dripping with it. As the Fat Man from the black bird's tale once said, "These are facts, historical facts, not schoolbook history, not Mr. Well's history, but history nevertheless." View Larger Map See you in the funny papers.

Publishing this in both of my blogs. Two very interesting things this week happened that illustrated how two consumer electronics companies view being loyal to their customers...with surprising differences. The first is Palm . Now, I'll preface this by saying I have been a very loyal Palm user for many years. I was entranced by the Palm III, years ago, and I have stuck with it: A Palm V, a Palm Vx, Handspring Visor, Handspring Visor Prism, VisorPhone, Tungsten T, Palm TX, and now my Treo 680. Through them all, I have always marveled at Palm's singleminded focus on usability and features: I have looked at alternatives every time, and settled on Palm's offering. Yet there's no denying that Palm has clearly lost any shred of a leadership position: the Danger devices, the ever improving (but still painful) Windows Mobile, and now the iPhone have all eclipsed Palm's innovation. Heck, even the new Blackberrys are getting in on the act. Palm's answer? The Foleo , which...

Believe it or not, I actually contribute to another blog for my company, the Loyalty Dogs Blog . I tend to put sporadic entries in, but the comments from Mark, our CEO and one of my co-founders, are actually extremely insightful and well stated. Charles' comments are incredibly helpful, as well. If you're looking to see another side of me, come run with the Dogs.

Loyalty Lab recently moved offices to 100 Pine St, on the 21st floor. I've mostly worked in low-rises on the Peninsula; our last office was the 7th floor. But this is a GREAT view of the city. Located in the heart of downtown, we see the Bay, the other buildings, and can see the icons of San Francisco, such as the Ferry Building and Transamerica pyramid. My office is wonderful, looking down on the Tadich Grill, a favorite restaurant of mine, and one of the oldest in San Francisco. From my desk, I can catch a glimpse of Coit Tower and still hear the cable cars, 200 feet below. A welcome respite from the cramped quarters we've had for some time. The strange thing about the building is the noise and vibrations from the elevators. Years ago, I visited a company in the Twin Towers in NY, and was struck by the din from the passing elevators, and the vibrations of the winds and elevators. It's eerie, being up so high, and feeling shakiness, especially in San Francisco, but it'...

Hey, I'm not saying I'm ready for Canton, or even Vegas, but I'm proud to say that this year's Loyalty Lab Fantasy Football season came to a pretty satisfying conclusion: Yep, after finishing close to the top the last two seasons, this year the Superbowl was mine. Maybe it was the incentive of having $250 on the line, or maybe I, like my 'Boys, was finally desperate enough for a winning season, but most likely it was a combination of my competition and luck. Want proof? The 3rd place winner, the Exurbanites, was a member who hadn't touched his team since his draft. In the end, it came down to Loyalty Lab's two Russians, and this one came out on top. My powerhouse players this season were Peyton Manning of the Colts (at least he can win a championship in fantasy football), Maurice Jones-Drew of the Jaguars (who? Wasn't Fred Taylor supposed to be the top back?), Marion Barber III of the Cowboys (all he does is score touchdowns), and the sleeper of Marqu...