To think loyalty schemes are being downgraded?

Ocado used to do 50% flash sales in the week before delivery and they were put on the grocery app daily at about the same time, sometimes dozens of items.

I had some amazing savings and purchases.

Now it's dropped to 40% with not nearly as many items and they're dribbled on over the course of days so you have to continually log in to check and take advantage of the flash sales. Which most people don't have the time to do.

I just tick the no box for emails and have never had any trouble. Are you able to explain why your email address being a secret is worth more than you getting 15% off? I’m not trying to argue that I’m right I just don’t get the issue. People talk a lot about protecting data in this way but the vast majority of people come to no harm because holistic have their email address. I would like to be able to apply logic but I much be missing something.

Nectar is already rubbish with their rewards and only getting 0.5p back per £10.

It's 0.5p per £1

I would like to see more local charities ie smaller, and a broader range. I ended up changing mine last year to Wellbeing of Women. I've just looked it up - i couldn't remember the name - and there are more choices than there used to be but still big names mostly.

My email address is worth a LOT of money to them. They’re not getting it.

You do know that if you are SO important and SO private and your email address is SO gold-plated and valuable, you could set up a secondary email address just for the purpose of getting receipts or whatever? Free of charge.

If you don’t mind people knowing stuff about you and using your details to contact you, sell g it on to other companies etc then fill your boots. Your data has ‘value’ - you are happy to sell it for cheaper prices at the supermarket. Fine.

I do mind and I understand the value my data holds for them. I won’t give it away cheaply.

Consider this, when I shop in Hollister (not cheap!), they offer me a 15% discount every time if I’ll give them my email address for an email receipt. My email address is worth a LOT of money to them. They’re not getting it.

I didn’t realise this but the whole point of this forced membership was so they could get the data to do personalised dynamic pricing.

So basically charge x customer the maximum amount they believe THEY will pay. Plus added instant price changes for demand and stock. Ie. Rush hour.

Using digital labels for instant update. And potentially in the future personalised pricing for all the stock for online shopping.

They already have it in America. The difference on a 20 item shop ordered from the same room, at the same time by 20 different people was c. 12 dollars. 20 - £1 difference per item.

We need legislation on this. Personally I want one price. For everyone. Loyalty can only include points. No price changes within a day. Only at midnight.

So? It obviously costs them to administer the donations. So they partner with their chosen organisations and allow you to choose whether you want to support RSPB, Great Ormond St, Guide Dogs, RNLI... you cannot seriously expect them to allow everyone to choose their own charity.

Their choice of charities is tiny though.

There is a charity element to the M&S rewards card, the website says that since 2020 they have raised £19.3 million for charity, and my chosen charity (Dementia UK) has received £175,410.

I mostly collect nectar points, buy to get the best value, I rotate who I shop with.

When nectar misses me, they send me 5x the points and money off. When Ocado misses me, they send me a £20 voucher. Amd when my bank is offering 8% cashback, I'm a Waitrose (own brand) shopper.
I'm only loyal to whoever is giving me something.

They will have crunched the number and analysed heaps of data to conclude that they’re likely to make more money by downgrading their loyalty schemes. And that’s what will happen, because they’ve got us where they want us. There is no more captive a market than supermarket shopper (pretty much everyone),

margins are slim and lets be honest no one really impressed these schemes

there businesses not Robin Hood re distributing wealth

the sole purpose of these schemes is tactical marketing not to reward the customer

Nectar prices are okay and you get personalised offers. I also get my petrol (full tank a week) from Sainsbury’s so it does work out for me.

Couldn’t care less about them having my data. I’ve been online shppping in various guises for 25 years + and nothing has ever happened.

Me either? Was in there yesterday, when asked if I had Sparks I just said no, it is pointless, not worth the effort to get my phone out.

I'm trying to look at it as a positive for Lidl. I'm going back to home delivery with Tesco so not going to be tempted to pick up random treats.

I used to get the 10% off and use that on a £200 shop at the start of the month..we was top 10% spenders in our local store. Not any more!

Sparks, Asda and Lidl rewards are useless now. I don't even scan mine in Asda now when I rarely go

Maybe I don't want to be identified as the person who bought 144 condoms, even though I'm grossly oversexed.

Is there anything wrong with Tesco having my data? Why are my shopping habits something that needs ‘protected’?

Same. I stopped when it was upgraded recently and stopped working on my phone. To answer your question, imv the point is to provide the organisation with free information about customer spending

The only one that seems to have got better is Waitrose with their little rewards and coupons, paying more in the first place though!

I agree M&S have butchered their loyalty scheme. It was so much more straightforward before.

If you do the Clubcard challenges you can stack up points on brands / items you already buy, it really is the best.

My nectar I convert to BA air miles but even with a few long haul flights thrown in they don’t amount to anything usable. Tips on how to make airmiles actually of value wpuld be great.

I really have no idea what the point of my sparks card is! I’ve been scanning it when I shop, but what’s the point? I can’t work it out!

I think they are just all looking at Aldi which is doing very well without the need for any sort of loyalty card. The entire retail environment has changed and so have the loyalty schemes. Consumers are more interested in cheaper prices than accumulating points.

I was never that bothered about the whole "they have your data" thing. Meh, so what if Tesco can work out I usually shop on a Wednesday and buy fat free yoghurt and diet coke.

The data was initially worth enough to them to pay you for it. Now they have conditioned you to providing it. I also suspect as cost of living has bitten, people have responded less & less to marketing/deals/clever pricing to encourage higher spending (which is what they wanted the data for).

At the end of the day if you are hard up & doing your online shop knowing you have £100 to spend and no more, you are going to be stronger in resisting the pre checkout offers etc.

I think people do get immune to marketing too. I swipe through the various add on very fast now & ignore them all. I know what I need to buy and thats what I buy.

The Asda one as turned rubbish too. I never used it as my main shop but I use to get at least £50 back via their rewards. Now I'm not even touching £3.

I find all of them very confusing and not really to my benefit. Anyway they are all just data gathering tarted up as a perk for the "loyal" customers.