Back in the old-covered wagon days, people in far-flung areas of America would rely on the yearly arrival of the Sears Roebuck Catalogue (via pony express mail, no doubt) to place their orders for the newest gadgets — butter churns, cast-iron skillets, custom-fit saddles — cool stuff like that. Then they would patiently wait 11 months for the pony express guy to show up on the homestead with their order.
Times have definitely changed. Catalogue shopping has became a lot quicker, for one thing. With the Internet and its many shopping options, people don’t risk anything except getting saddle sores from sitting in front of a computer screen too long. And now, with Citibank’s redemption website, Citi Rewards (visit www.citibank.com.ph and click on the Citi Rewards link), you can redeem your accumulated points and place your order — right online.
What’s more, you can explore categories to match your lifestyle needs — from Discovery, Adventure, Innovations and Well-Being to Glamour, Satisfaction, Family, Time, Memories and Charity — and start getting rewarded for your card use.
This is something Citibank is keen on, incidentally. “Each year, we try to make redeeming from the Citi Rewards program easier for our cardholders,” says Rio Mayuga, VP for Cards Business, Citibank Philippines. “We would like our cardholders to enjoy redeeming their points. Making the Citi Rewards program more robust and exciting is our way of saying thank you for our customers’ patronage. It’s like shopping from a virtual department store. Plus, we deliver the items to their doorstep free of charge.”
This is very true. My one act of redemption — redeeming my points a few years back, that is — was quite fulfilling. Not only was I able to order a cordless phone that I liked over the phone, it was delivered to my home address within days.
This is unusual for a “points” program, by the way. I’ve tried getting my “gift” items from other programs, and was often told that the item I had my eye on was, regrettably, “out of stock.” Not so with Citibank’s Rewards Catalogue. And now the website makes it even easier.
How easy? Just log on, visit the link, and peruse the 10 categories. Click on what you’re interested in (say “Adventure”) and explore the pictured options, which run from Coleman and Travel Club accessories to package trips through PAL, Singapore Airlines and Thai Airways. Choose one, and a description will appear with a window showing the product code, prompting you to redeem the item. Fill in your personal info — name, address, card number, etc. — send it off and the item is on its way. It’s that easy. Redemptions for the Citi Rewards 2008 catalog are valid until October 15, 2008, but your points won’t expire: you can always redeem from the next Rewards catalog.
Since this is a “gadget” section, I couldn’t help noticing the array of high-tech goodies that Citi Rewards offers online. For a sizeable transaction of points, you can get your hands on a Black and Decker Drill Set, a Sony PlayStation 3, an Xtreme Magic Sing Duel Wireless Videoke set (for tangle-free duets, of course), a Samsung 40-inch flatscreen TV, an iPod Touch, MacBook Air, Guitar Hero III (“Legends of Rock”) set, or an Osim Massage Chair. Oh, they even have stuff for kiddies, like a Lego Star Wars Millennium Falcon set.
Actually, I’m like a lot of Citibank Rewards customers: I have only a vague inkling of all the items available to me. The website is an expanded version of the “paper” catalogue Citibank customers still receive once a year (you know, the one with the dog-eared pages of sections where you’ve emphatically circled items that you may not necessarily need, but surely would like to have).
Says Bea Tan, Citibank Cards Business director: “With many credit card companies now offering similar programs, cardholders no longer see it as something special, and catalogues no longer excite them as much. So Citi took that extra step by empowering consumers with ideas that inspire them; this, plus making the Citi Rewards site more attractive and easy to use.”
Thus was born the new, improved website: a chance to tap into customers’ lifestyles and predilection for choice. The look itself is inviting: a page of avatars welcomes you into each category. The names are clever — i.e., “Time” offering watches as well as card fee waivers, or “Satisfaction” leading you to a slew of restaurant choices. “Innovations,” of course, takes you to the latest gadgets. The site was developed by Citi’s regional team, a collaboration that was rolled out across seven countries: the Philippines, Thailand, Hong Kong, Singapore, India, Indonesia, Australia and Malaysia.
As with the paper catalogue, Citi Rewards also allows people to reward others — through donations to charity organization such as Children’s Hour, Unicef, Operation Smile, Working Hands, World Wide Fund for Nature and Greenpeace. “Donations to charities have always been a part of the Citi Rewards program and they have always had a good rate of redemption,” says Mayuga. “Our customers feel blessed so they share their blessings with their favorite charity.”
Another nice feature: Citibank actually periodically contacts users via SMS to remind them of their reward points status — and steers them toward the website. It’s a good way to receive updates, and remind customers that they are entitled to a little something nice, if they just check out the catalogue.
There’s something special for Citibank Platinum/Gold card members on the site as well: when they click on the Citi Gold and Citi Platinum Exclusives link, they can get Rewards items such as the MacBook Air and Samsung 40” LCD TV at discounted points.
And first-time users of the Citi Online site get 300 Bonus Rewards points, and 200 Bonus Rewards points if you are redeeming an item from the Citi Rewards 2008 Catalog for the first time. Those making succeeding redemptions receive 100 Bonus Rewards.
It’s all part of what Citi Reward’s tagline calls “Rewarding you best.” Yes, in this age of “empowering,” the key is to make the customer feel as though his or her needs are being met in a personal, individualized way. Allowing the customer to explore options, choose their best mix of point redemptions and tailoring it all to a changing marketplace is what the Citi Rewards site is all about.
And for those of you who still rely on the pony express, don’t worry: there’s still a paper catalogue from which you can make your purchases, and a 24-hour CitiPhone number which will allow you to redeem yourself up until the wee hours. A luxury that catalogue shoppers in covered-wagon days could never even dream of.
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Citibank has reward tie-ups with over 40,000 outstanding establishments spanning over 30 countries across Asia Pacific and the world. It is part of Citibank World Privileges, an exclusive privilege program that allows Citibank cardholders to enjoy special discounts and offers from shopping, travel, spas to dining and more. To enjoy these offers, they simply need to ask for Citibank World Privileges when they charge to their Citibank Card at participating merchants locally or abroad.