As banks compete with each other to retain customer loyalty, they come out with innovative reward schemes, including exchange of reward points for purchase of merchandise of the customer’s choice from partner outlets.
The private sector IndusInd Bank Ltd has gone a step further by launching an online store — www.themorestore.in — from where its customers can redeem their reward points for purchase of merchandise from an online catalogue. It has tied up with Onemi — a catalogue-based retailer and retail E-commerce company — for this purpose.
In a filing with the stock exchanges, IndusInd Bank said as part of an “overall rewards enhancement strategy and with a view to further drive online purchasing convenience for its customers” the bank had launched the online store. The bank’s customers could redeem their reward points for purchase of items from an online catalogue from the site. The bank claimed that it was “India’s first rewards redemption platform integrated into an online market place”.
The release said the online store offered three options — redemption, shopping and redemption+shopping. Customers could redeem their reward points across both debit and credit cards against more than 200 products listed in the catalogue. They could also shop for products across categories such as lifestyle, health & beauty and gadgets. With `redemption+ shopping’, they could purchase products using their reward points and by paying the differential amount on their debit/credit cards issued by the bank.
The bank claimed that the facility was aimed at providing a one-stop online solution that would consolidate online spends. It would draw new customers into online transactions apart from offering an online catalogue redemption option. 'Onemi', the a catalogue-based retailer, with whom the bank has tied up, offers flexible payment options and offers products ranging from mobile phones/ home appliances to ACs, electronic goods to beauty products.
IndusInd said it had “gone through a rigorous process” to select the best brands and the customers were “assured of variety, quality and fabulous deals on the same”.
Anil Ramachandran, Head, Retail Unsecured Assets - Credit Card & Personal Loans, IndusInd Bank, described the move as a novel e-commerce solution.
Abhijit Bhandari, MD, Onemi, hoped the new initiative would provide customers an “exceptional user experience”.