UK retailer Marks & Spencer has announced plans to relaunch Sparks as a digital-first loyalty scheme that will offer instant rewards to customers.
The new version will see the scheme dish out instant rewards, a wider selection of charities to support and more personalised offers.
'New Sense Of Excitement'
Chief digital and data officer at Marks & Spencer, Jeremy Pee, said, “We’ve injected a new sense of excitement and value and made the features they love even better, while stripping out the points and tiers system they found confusing.
“It will instantly feel more rewarding, and customers can be confident that good things will happen every time they shop with us, from winning their M&S shopping basket for free on the spot, to a donation to the cause that matters most to them.”
The relaunch, scheduled for 9 July, follows the incorporation of direct feedback from over 250,000 members and pilot testing the redesigned scheme with 40,000 Marks & Spencer employees across the UK.
The new version will see the addition of 25 new charity partners, taking the total to 35.
It is one of the most popular features of the scheme and the retailer has donated approximately £7 million to charity through it since 2015.
The New Scheme
The new scheme will be hosted through an updated M&S App with all features of the relaunched scheme fully integrated online, the retailer added.
For new members, a digital version of the Sparks card is available to download from the app.
It can be stored on customers’ phone or their M&S online account and used while shopping to avail instant rewards, both in-store and online.
The retailer will also continue to offer physical cards.
Data-Driven Business
The initiative aims to establish an effective communication channel with customers to drive loyalty and engagement and offer a better shopping experience.
It will help in establishing Marks & Spencer as a data-driven business, as it seeks to unite four important data sources from across the business, including Sparks, M&S.com, M&S Bank and soon Ocado.
© 2020 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Dayeeta Das. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
