Synchrony Bank Set To Use Big Data To Help Retailers Target Cardholders With Offers
By Christine Kern, contributing writer
Credit Card Firm will use analytics to help retailers clinch deals.
Credit Card Firm Synchrony Financial has announced that it will launch personalized pricing and other mobile offers for shoppers through the “Next Best Offer” project, which analyzes data about a consumer’s shopping habits in order to present relevant discount or loyalty offers that will help the retailer (Synchrony’s customers) clinch the deal.
Next best action marketing is a consumer-centric marketing paradigm that assesses data from consumers in order to determine how best to make the sale. The next best action is determined by the customer’s interests and needs on one hand, and the marketing organization/retailer’s business objectives on the other.
Among Synchrony’s retailer clients are WalMart, Lowe’s, ToysRUs, JCPenney, and Ashley Furniture Home Store.
The Next Best Offer program will crunch the customer data and send offers to their email or mobile phone. Cardholders may also receive discounted pricing if their transaction data demonstrates that they visit a particular store frequently.
Retailers are already leveraging big data in a number of ways to boost sales and improve customer satisfaction ratings, but this program would help utilize big data in a whole new way.
There has been no formal announcement of the program yet, according to Taking Charge blog, and it is still unclear what types of offers might be created or how often they would be extended, but the Wall Street Journal reported that the data driving the offers is robust.
Synchrony has access to approximately 3,500 data points on individual cardholders and uses that data to analyze what they buy, how often they shop and where they look for new merchandise. The data also can reveal more personal insights, like hobbies and personal preferences, what kinds of products customers prefer, and price points.
"You swipe one of our cards, we collect a lot of data," boasted Synchrony's chief technology officer Greg Simpson in an interview with the Wall Street Journal's Kim Nash. Simpson also disclosed that Synchrony will be looking at data culled from other "more diverse sources," but didn't elaborate on what kinds of sources the issuer will use.
One reason this proposed rewards program is so significant is the sheer numbers of cardholders involved. Synchrony Bank partners with dozens of major retailers to offer store-branded credit cards, including Wal-Mart/Sam’s Club, ToysRUs, Ashley Furniture home Store, JC Penney, Gap, T.J. Maxx, Stein Mart, Men’s Wearhouse, LensCrafters, Belk, Dick’s Sporting Goods, American Eagle Outfitters, and others.