Gokis Kiosk Self-Service

Ikea Sets Loyalty Program

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Swedish home furnishings giant Ikea is rolling out a customer loyalty program in its U.S. stores, offering consumers discounts and other perks after they sign up.

Ikea Sets Loyalty Program - 2011-09-02 12:01:28 | Furniture Today

At store kiosks or online, consumers enter some basic information, including how they prefer to be reached - by text or email for instance - and they can ask to receive the annual catalog.

At the kiosks, customers instantly get their membership cards and can then present them at checkout for the benefits. That includes discounts on certain goods in each department and in the restaurant and Swedish food market, free coffee and tea in the restaurant, extra time for the kids in the Smaland supervised play area, entry into a monthly sweepstake to win a $100 Ikea gift card, and access to an "Ikea Family" website to see current promotions, tailored offerings based on their profiles and recommendations based on their purchase history.

"It's a great way to say thank you to people for coming to visit us time and time again," said Jackie DeChamps deputy store manager in Charlotte, N.C., who demonstrated the kiosk for Furniture/Today. (Watch a video on our website, www.furnituretoday.com.)

Ikea Family has been available for years in other countries where Ikea operates, including Canada, said Ikea spokesman Joseph Roth. In the United States, the retailer started implementing the loyalty program in June in its three Pennsylvania stores and currently has the program in 15 of its 38 stores, including its newest store in Centennial, Colo. All U.S stores will have it by December, he said.

"Results have been fantastic," Roth said, though he would not disclose any sales numbers or comparisons that show consumers are shopping and buying from the stores more often.

Separately, the retailer recently rolled out a picking service in its U.S. stores, giving customers who don't have the time or desire to pull their own merchandise from the warehouse the option of having Ikea do it for them for a flat $40 fee. The picking service coupled with delivery - based on ZIP code and starting at $59, down from $69 last year - gives customers more of a full-service experience starting at $99.

"It's really for that customer who wants that kind of white-glove feeling," De-Champs said. She added that she's heard several comments from customers that indicate the service has opened them up to shopping Ikea, whereas "before they may have been a little leery." She said the service shows them that there's more than one way to shop the retailer.

Ikea began rolling out the service in February and it's now available in all U.S. stores, Roth said. While the United States is the first market to have it, "other countries may be evaluating" adding it, he said.

Ikea Sets Loyalty Program - 2011-09-02 12:01:28 | Furniture Today

mobile phones to collect redeemable loyalty points off of Subway products

Subway using 2D barcodes in conjunction with mobile phones. Subway intends to follow-up on this campaign by releasing a more dynamic iPhone application at a later date. Link..
Heineken, the beer manufacturer, recently employed similar barcode technology in an ad campaign. Other companies, like the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Papa John's International Inc., are also hopping on the bandwagon, as mobile-scannable barcodes are proving adept at reaching consumers directly.

KIOSK Case Study - Loyalty Cards for Dave and Busters

New case study released on Dave and Buster deployment. In 2006, the company began evaluating self-service automation of gaming card sales within their 48 stores.

Link to casestudy & pdf

In order to realize an attractive ROI, the kiosk initiative would have to eliminate the personal attendants required for the function and replace the dated Micros workstation terminals they operated. Equally important, Dave and Busters sought the line-busting benefit and self-service control options to improve the customer’s experience in their locations.

With custom hardware requirements, they turned to KIOSK Information systems for solution design, integration, and volume manufacturing. With 200 kiosks successfully deployed, Dave and Busters has automated 98% of their 48 stores, putting them solidly on track to their deployment goal of $1M in annual labor savings.

Unique hardware elements included:

# Power Card dispenser
# Credit card reader
# Bill acceptor / dispenser
# Touch screen
# Receipt Printer