BP Shares More Details on New Loyalty Program

CHICAGO -- Approximately 80 percent of eligible BP sites are taking advantage of the company's just-launched Pump Rewards loyalty program, and BP says it expects more sites to follow.

"More and more are signing on every day. It's just a matter of getting the technology to them," company spokesperson Scott Dean told CSNews Online. "I think 80 percent is just the beginning."

After much anticipation, BP Products North America Inc. officially launched Pump Rewards on March 3. BP had been talking to its branded marketers for well over a year about the program, according to Dean. The new loyalty platform enables BP customers to earn cents-per-gallon rebates and redeem them at participating BP stations for an instant rollback on gas prices.

Of the 80 percent now participating in Pump Rewards, the majority of sites were part of a BP-funded and -managed deployment of the technology; this effort took place over the course of last year. The Pump Rewards solution is software-based, with the technology being a combination of elements provided by VeriFone Systems, Gilbarco Veeder-Root and BP, Dean explained.

On March 3, the technology was activated and the Pump Rewards program came to life. (A pilot program was conducted ahead of the launch). Launched alongside the new BP Visa with Pump Rewards card and the new proprietary BP Card with Pump Rewards -- both from Chase -- the new rewards program lets holders of these cards earn cents-per-gallon rebates on their card purchases and then redeem available rebates instantly at the pump when fueling at participating BP stations.

BP Visa with Pump Rewards cardmembers earn 15-cents-per-gallon rebates for every $100 spent at a BP station, as well as 5-cents-per-gallon rebates on virtually all other purchases. Users of the BP Card with Pump Rewards earn 5-cents-per-gallon rebates for every $100 spent at BP.

The new BP cards do not require cardmembers to wait for monthly statements or reach specific spending thresholds before they can redeem their rewards. Once a purchase is posted to their account, cardmembers can redeem their available rebates as of 8 a.m. EST the next morning by swiping their card at a participating BP station and watching their per-gallon price lower instantly at the pump.

They may also choose to redeem a $15 statement credit for every $1 in cents-per-gallon rebates earned with the BP Visa with Pump Rewards, or a $3 statement credit for every 20 cents in rebates earned with the BP Card with Pump Rewards, according to the company.

Moving forward, eligible sites will be able to install the Pump Rewards software themselves using a do-it-yourself (DIY) toolkit that BP has made available. "While we call it DIY, we have made it very easy for sites wishing to have BP Price Rollback functionality," Dean pointed out.

For example, sites can call the BP Business Service Center (call center) with questions regarding software upgrades and to order installation test cards. There is also "a wealth of material" available on the BP portal outlining installation minimum requirements and guidelines, according to Dean.

"We expect more sites to upgrade on their own over time. Some sites have pumps or POS (point-of-sale) [systems] that need to be replaced to support Price Rollback," he noted.

BP also plans to expand the program beyond its credit card holders. Later this year, the company will roll out several other initiatives that branded marketers can use to leverage the technology, Dean said. These will include the ability to distribute one-time-use rebate cards and digital codes that can be entered directly at the pump for cents-per-gallon rebates. In addition, BP will produce third-party direct and bulk promotional cards that its marketers can personalize for their own site-specific offers.

"BP is planning to roll out a number of new programs to take advantage of Pump Rewards technology," Dean added. "Part of its value to branded marketers is the ability to reward consumers in a variety of ways."

BP markets more than 15 billion gallons of gasoline annually through 11,000-plus BP and ARCO branded retail outlets.