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Experts explain what retailers have gotten right (and wrong) in utilizing social commerce and what the future of this fast-evolving technology looks like.

Collecting points is one of the great American pastimes. An estimated 630 million members are enrolled in various airline loyalty programs worldwide, with more than 300 million members in the United States. But many of the miles never are redeemed.

Every day and in nearly every retail business across the country, marketers make assumptions about who their customers are. While stereotypes are quite often wrong, data driven generalizations are what helped Harley Davidson’s build profiles hat illuminated new customer segments, allowing them to target women, weekend warriors as well as the traditional leather-clad biker that most people think about when they think of “hogs.”

When it comes to attracting talent — particularly young professionals — location is everything these days. And Clutch Holdings knew exactly how to leverage the old to lure in the new.

The primary way most Americans are currently experiencing the great fintech boom isn’t through Apple or Android Pay at all, but through proprietary payment apps from chains such as Target, Walmart and Starbucks. But according to Andy O’Dell at Clutch, these apps “have nothing to do with actual payments…the future of these programs is in the data they generate”

Many retailers fail to generate customer loyalty by blindliy focusing on discounts and promotions in exchange for short-term gains. As seen here, genuine loyalty can only be obtained once the focal point becomes sending personalized, timely messages to a brand’s most valuable customers.

McDonald’s recent surge in sales from their new all-day breakfast menu confirms the need for franchises to capture, segment, and react to customer insights. Tyler Walton outlines a way for franchise systems to implement this data-driven strategy.

Remember the days when a meal was included on your flight? Now you may not even be able to avoid the middle seat without being nickle and dimed. Experts explore the effect of this strategy on customer experience and loyalty.

Frequent, low-spend customers were upset after Starbucks changed their loyalty program and made it harder for them to receive rewards. Yet the program better aligned with business goals and recognized the brand’s most valuable customers as we found out in this analysis.

Consumers expect personalization from brands, but a huge barrier exists as many brands have disparate systems and customer channels. Check out the five steps on delivering the communications that customers demand.