When most people think of shopping companions - such as browser extensions that help customers save money - they immediately picture cashback rewards or coupon finders. Shopping companions like browser extensions are often seen as tools for finding cashback or coupons. But what if they could do much more - helping users unlock more value from benefits they already have?
Here at Wildfire, we’ve reimagined what a shopping companion can do, and recently launched Benefits Amplifier in our loyalty and rewards platform. With it, our shopping companions not only help customers save money with cashback and coupons, but also deliver benefits and help customers realize value from existing card or loyalty program benefits, across every stage of their online shopping journey.
Many consumers fail to take full advantage of all their card or program benefits, such as rental car insurance, extended warranties, or dining rewards. In fact, according to a report by CarTrawler, only 12% of people who rented a car in the past year used their loyalty program for booking, highlighting the low utilization rates of extra card and program benefits.
Wildfire’s Benefits Amplifier solves this by delivering contextual, real-time reminders of these benefits at exactly the right moment as a customer shops online.
For instance, imagine a shopper booking a car rental online. At the checkout page, the Benefits Amplifier feature in the shopping companion could remind them that they should use a specific credit card that includes free Loss Damage Waiver (LDW) insurance. This eliminates the need to purchase additional coverage, which helps the shopper realize more value from holding the card. And the more benefits a shopper utilizes from a given card or loyalty program, the more loyal they are to the issuer or program.
This kind of contextual, in-the-moment guidance empowers customers to save money by activating existing benefits, while increasing engagement with their loyalty program or card.
As loyalty program engagement declines, Wildfire’s shopping companion connects card and program benefits directly to the shopping journey, making them easier to use and more valuable to customers.
A customer searching for concert tickets might receive a notification about early access perks tied to a certain credit card or their bank, while a traveler booking a flight could be reminded of bonus miles or travel insurance available through their loyalty program.
By integrating communication about these features into individual users’ shopping journeys through the shopping companion, Wildfire helps loyalty programs become more relevant in customers’ day-to-day lives. This not only drives higher engagement but also builds long-term loyalty with the card or program delivering the benefits.
In essence, the shopping companion helps companies add value for their customers whenever they shop online.
Wildfire’s shopping companions do more than help customers save - they strengthen relationships between consumers and companies, including financial institutions. By reminding customers of program and card benefits at the moment they need them, our Benefits Amplifier feature encourages ongoing loyalty program benefit utilization and card usage.
For financial institutions, this means not just driving short-term purchase volume but building deeper, more meaningful connections with their customers, and providing a frictionless way for users to activate benefits from across their loyalty offerings.
Because Benefits Amplifier is effectively a dedicated new channel for relevant communications to customers, it can also be used to message the customer about key company priorities. For a financial institution, this could mean customer acquisition via credit card product enrollment.
Through this lens, Benefits Amplifier could be used to upsell card products at contextually relevant moments during an online shopping journey.
Wildfire’s shopping companions represent a new chapter in driving brand loyalty. With Benefits Amplifier, they’re no longer just tools for saving money. They’re also trusted guides, helping users make the most of every purchase while strengthening their loyalty to the brands and programs that deliver the most value.