Big data and technological change have enabled loyalty programs to become more prevalent and complex. How these developments influence society has been overlooked, both in academic research and in practice. We argue why this issue is important and propose a framework to refocus loyalty programs...

Customers often stockpile reward points in linear loyalty programs (i.e., programs that do not reward stockpiling) despite several economic incentives against it (e.g., the time value of money). We develop a mathematical model of redemption choice that unites three explanations for why customers...

While single-brand reward programs encourage customers to remain loyal to that one brand, coalition programs encourage customers to be “promiscuous” by offering points redeemable across partner stores. Despite the benefits of this “open relationship” with customers, store managers face...