Amaze Your Customers and Employees: Virtual Prepaid Debit Cards
Filed under: Consumer Promotions, Employee Incentives, Health and Wellness, Prepaid Resources, Uncategorized
Are you looking for a very cool way to implement your next employee or customer incentive program? Take advantage of a whole new way to run marketing promotions, one that attracts and rewards participants quickly and cost-effectively.
Virtual Prepaid Debit Cards
How does it work?
A prepaid account number is established and issued to an account holder. No physical card is issued. The virtual prepaid account is loaded with funds, and a standard 16 digit prepaid card number, expiration date and security value (security number on the back of the card) are emailed to the recipient. The recipient may then make purchases online or over the phone using this information.
Benefits to You:
- Easy to Implement – Immediately deliver your incentives and rewards to employees, dealers, channel partners, sales associates and affiliates.
- Speed of Delivery – Capture opportunities that are frequently lost when customers and employees have to wait for rewards to appear in the mail.
- Cost Effective – Improve ROI by avoiding the fulfillment costs associated with prepaid cards.
- Positive Impact - Instant gratification combined with strong branding will maximize your online promotional efforts.
- Endless Opportunities - Match online promotions with instant, online rewards and incentives.
Use Virtual Prepaid Cards for online surveys, consumer rebates, on-the-spot employee recognition, cross promotional tie in’s with online marketing, channel sales spiffs and much more. Imagine how successful your program will be when you amaze your recipients with instant awards.
I’d love to hear if you have every used a Virtual Prepaid Card in any of your promotions so please leave comments below. For more information feel free to contact me.
Incentive Programs: Guest Blogger – Katy Tynan
What Pigeons Can Teach You About Your Incentive Program
Why do psychologists spend so much time watching pigeons? While they don’t look much like people, a pigeon’s brain learns much the same way ours does. So the scientific study of motivation usually involves teaching pigeons to earn treats by behaving in a certain way. If you want to teach a bird to jump over a stick, you start by giving him a treat when he approaches the stick. Sooner or later he will climb on the stick, and you reward him for that. Before long he’s an expert stick jumper. In theory incentive programs in the workplace are structured the same way. Your team members achieve goals that benefit the organization, so you reward them with praise, money, or other incentives. Unfortunately the typical office is a far cry from the structured environment of the lab, and if you are not careful with the application of your reward strategy, you can end up with something called “Superstitious Conditioning”.
The story goes that a researcher automated his lab completely and then left for the weekend with the pigeons happily pressing levers and getting treats. When he returned on Monday he found his pigeons acting nutty. Some were turning in circles, others were banging their heads against the side of the boxes, and still others were pulling out their feathers. Stunned, he went to investigate and discovered that his automation had gone haywire and treats were being distributed randomly. Whatever the birds happened to be doing when the treat popped out, they started repeating and this increase in frequency made it more likely that they would be doing just that thing when the next treat appeared. Take that principle and apply it to people and you find the process that makes someone feel like they can’t close a deal unless they’re wearing their lucky hat.
As a manager you have many tools at your disposal to condition your employees to do their best. Rewards might come in any form from cash and gift cards to more intangible benefits such as flexibility or recognition. Whatever method you employ, the key to a successful strategy is consistency. If you give one person a week in Paris for landing a big client and then offer their colleague a $10 gift card, you will be buying nothing but trouble. So how can you make sure you are rewarding effectively and consistently? Here are some tips to streamline your incentive program:
1. Know Your Limits – Before you give out your first “atta-girl”, find out what type of reward structure your organization allows. Does HR have a stack of gift cards or travel vouchers you should use? Can you give vacation time if your team members put in extra hours or achieve certain goals? Make sure you don’t rock the boat by promising things you can’t deliver.
2. Tie Rewards to the Team Vision – Every team should have a stated vision that encompasses the key success metrics of the group as it relates to the success of the organization. If a team member goes above and beyond to hit a target that ties into your team vision, you should make sure to recognize it.
3. Praise in Public – Regardless of whether you are going to offer an additional tangible reward, you should make a point to recognize a team member whose actions you wish to reinforce. Send a message to the team letting them know that Bob pulled an all-nighter and saved a big client. This helps your team know what behaviors you like and want to see repeated.
4. Keep a Log – Before you reward an action, record it in a log. Include the date, employee’s name, their good deed, and what reward you gave them. This allows you to line up each incentive alongside other times you have recognized great work in your department so you can easily see whether you are being consistent or not.
At times you may want to implement specific rewards over a short period of time. For example if you have a new sales target to hit which requires every person on your team to complete five extra meetings each month, you may want to give a special gift to each team member who achieves this goal for the first three months. If you are creating an incentive program with limits, make sure you document the requirements and communicate them in advance. Rewards, especially monetary incentives, must be specific and consistently applied or you will tank your team morale instead of boosting it.
It goes without saying that if you have consequences for behavior you DON’T want to see, those should be applied with an equivalent level of fairness.
About the Author: Katy Tynan is a management coach with Personal Focus Coaching (www.personalfocuscoaching.com). She is also the author of Survive Your Promotion! The 90 Day Success Plan for New Managers, which will be released in February of 2010.
Program Messaging: Make Your Next Promotion A Huge Success
Filed under: Prepaid Definitions, Prepaid Resources, Uncategorized
Incentive, reward, and loyalty programs utilizing prepaid debit cards are about creating and reinforcing behavior. But one of the most overlooked aspects of what makes a program successful is Program Messaging. The more you reinforce your message to your participants, the more likely they are to continue the desired behavior. Studies have shown that effective communication reinforcing the desired behavior increases the likelihood that the positive behavior will be repeated.
“Incentive programs that deliver a lasting impact utilize the right message that is delivered at just the right instant and delivered multiple times. As simple as this concept is, it is rarely achieved” — Tim Sloane, industry expert, Mercator Advisory Group
“Effective employee communication is a leading indicator of financial performance…. Firms that communicate effectively are four times as likely to report high levels of employee engagement as firms that communicate less effectively.” — Watson Wyatt 07/08 Communication ROI Study
So, what is Program Messaging? Basically, it’s the ability to contact your recipients multiple times in an effort to reinforce the desired behavior and promote your program. You can build a multi-touch prepaid program by sending personalized online, phone and text messages to your card holders. When card holders check their card activity or balance by phone or online or receive a reload on their prepaid card, they can receive a personalized message from you that will greatly reinforce your program and will make sure the employee or customer understands why they are receiving the incentive.
Make sure your prepaid debit card vendor has the following options for Program Messaging for your next incentive campaign:
- Automated Email and Text Messaging
- Ability to customize the Card Holder IVR
- Ability to customize the Card Holder Website
- Ability to customize the Live Operator experience.
For more on Program Messaging and how it can help your next promotion be successful, please contact me direct at dave.cook@springbokservices.com.
Benefits of using a Prepaid Payroll Card
Did you know that an estimated 17 Million American adults are unbanked and an additional 21 Million American adults are considered underbanked? These numbers were recently posted in a report by the FDIC and in my opinion they are staggering.
What exactly does this mean? It means many of your employees do not have either a checking or savings account with a financial institution (Unbanked) or they have one but prefer to use alternative financial services (Underbanked). These employees prefer to use non-bank money orders, non-bank check-cashing services, payday loans, rent-to-own agreements, pawn shops and refund anticipation loans. These alternative financial services are much more expensive than traditional services and are costing your employees an exorbitant percentage of their hard earned money.
What can you do to help them keep more of their money? Offer them the option of using a Prepaid Payroll Card. The card is a reloadable Visa® card that is offered as a way to electronically distribute their pay. These cards can be used anywhere Visa debit cards are accepted, making them as good as cash—and better than checks.
How does this help your employee?
- Cost Savings – Eliminates costly check cashing fees. No activation or monthly fees.
- Faster Access to their Pay – Electronically loaded immediately to their card. Eliminates possible costly mail delays.
- Safety – No need to carry large quantities of cash.
- Acceptance – The card is welcome everywhere Visa debit is accepted.
- Protection – Visa’s Zero Liability Policy protects cardholders against unauthorized purchases.
- Pay Anyone – Access to an online bill pay service enables cardholders to pay bills to anyone.
How does this help you?
- Cost Savings – Reduces payroll expenses. The electronic delivery of payroll is Free to you the employer and eliminates the expense of issuing, delivering and reconciling paper checks.
- Optimize Payment Process – Avoids production, handling and distribution of checks; eliminates the time constraints and fees associated with lost and stolen checks. Use your existing payroll system to set up direct deposit to the card account instead of to a checking account.
- Security – Provides safe and efficient electronic delivery of funds.
- Environmental – Enables your company to engage in “Green” initiatives.
I can’t think of a single reason why a company would not have this available to their employees. Please let me know if you would like more information or to see if this type of payroll option is right for your company.
Springbok and National Jewish Health Partner
National Jewish Pays Participants in Weight-Management Program
National Jewish Health is adding an incentive – money – for people who are trying to shed the pounds through its successful weight-management program, FitLogix®–. And they don’t even need to lose weight to get the prepaid cards. Beginning in early January, FitLogix® participants who continue participating in the 12-month program will receive $10 prepaid cards after 6, 15, 25 and 47 weeks of participation in the program. Denver-based Springbok Services, Inc. will supply and service the debit cards.
“Our data clearly show that the longer people stay in the program, the more weight they lose. So, we decided to pay them to stay in the program.,” said David Tinkelman, Vice President of Health Initiatives at National Jewish Health. “Previous research has shown that financial incentives can significantly increase quit rates. It is more than the actual cash, however; it is the immediate recognition and reward for doing the right thing.”
The National Jewish Health-Springbok partnership reflects a growing trend among companies that are trying to reduce healthcare costs by offering positive rewards for healthy behaviors.
FitLogix® relies on customized personal coaching, Internet education and support and accountability through activity monitors and scales wirelessly connected to computers to help people lose weight. Since its inception, participants have lost an average of 7.5 pounds. Those who stay with the program the full 12 months lose an average of 12 pounds. These results have translated into health benefits as well. Healthcare claims for 1.500 FitLogix® participants dropped more than 13 percent from the previous year.
Companies, health plans and individuals can all sign up for the FitLogix®. For more information visit the FitLogix® Web site at http://www.nationaljewish.org/programs/prevention/fitlogix/fitlogix.aspx or call 1-800-934-4834.
Watch the News Report: National Jewish Health Pays You To Lose Weight
B2B Prepaid Terminology and Definitions
If you’re new to the fascinating world of B2B Prepaid, you may get lost and confused with all the terminology. I’m here to help. I’ve identified many terms that you will come across and need to understand as you make decisions on how to run your program. I’ve listed them in alphabetical order for your convenience.
Acquirer – A bank or processor that sponsors merchants for the acceptance of credit and debit card transactions.
Breakage – The unused portion of funds on a prepaid debit card at the date of expiration.
Closed Loop – Store cards or gift cards that can only be used at a single merchant or single merchant group (such as Starbucks).
Custom Card – Cards that are customized to a given companies logo, look, feel, brand or messaging.
Embossing – The raised lettering and numbering found on most debit, prepaid and credit cards.
Faux Card – A card where the front is a printed picture of the actual debit card and with generic information. The back of the card is blank with no issuing language.
Generic Embossing – Cards that are embossed with generic verbiage such as “Thank You” instead of the cardholders name. These cards are great to keep on hand for “On The Spot Rewards” to employees or customers.
Interchange – A fee paid by the merchant to the issuer in POS (Point Of Sale) transactions. This is a source of revenue for the issuing bank and/or the processor.
Merchant Category Code (MCC) – A code assigned by an Acquirer to a Merchant to identify the merchant’s principal trade, profession or line of business. This four digit code is also known as the SIC CODE.
Open Loop – Open loop or branded cards are debit, prepaid or credit cards that can be used on the “open” networks of MasterCard, Visa, Discover and American Express. The term Open is used because they can be used at a variety of merchants as opposed to Closed Loop gift or store cards.
Payroll Card – A prepaid debit card issued by an employer to their employees who don’t have a banking relationship or participate in direct deposit.
PCI - Payment Card Industry
PCI Compliance – A set of comprehensive requirements for enhancing payment account data security. This standard is intended to help organizations proactively protect customer account data.
Prepaid – Also known as stored value. Cards are pre-funded with a set dollar amount and can be either single value or reloadable.
Private Label – A card program that allows prepaid cards to be restricted in their use to a single merchant or group of merchants. They do not have the MasterCard or Visa logo on them, but it rides on their network. These cards are not embossed. The cards will only work at defined locations.
Reloadable – A card that can have additional money added or “loaded” electronically.
Replica Card – A card where the front is a printed picture of the actual debit card and with generic information. The back of the card has standard verbiage and a unique number to identify the card.
Selective Authorization – The capability to restrict where a card can be used or specifically steer clients to a single merchant, merchant category or group of merchants.
Single Value – A card that has a one-time, fixed amount of money. The card can be used until funds are depleted or until the card expires.
Slippage – The money that is still on cards that are issued but not activated for use prior to the expiration date.
Transaction - An action between a cardholder and a merchant that results in activity on a cardholder account.
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