In this episode of Total Retail Tech Insights, Editor-in-Chief Joe Keenan interviews Carlos Dunlap-Beard, vice president of business development and loyalty strategy at Clarus Commerce, a premium loyalty program solutions provider. Dunlap-Beard discusses Clarus Commerce's business offerings, the years of experience in loyalty solutions he brings to his role, and what makes premium loyalty members so valuable to retailers. He shares why member acquisition and retention are more difficult for premium loyalty programs than free programs, but result in retailers' most loyal customers.

Furthermore, Dunlap-Beard explains why the economics of providing a paid loyalty program make sense for retailers, why it's valuable to offer both free and premium programs, and why consumers are willing to pay for a membership with their favorite brands. He discusses how retailers successfully convert customers into paid members, and why retailers need to continually refresh and optimize their loyalty programs to retain customers. Lastly, Dunlap-Beard shares a list of resources available from Clarus Commerce, such as the 2021 Loyalty Industry Data Study and the 2020 Premium Loyalty Data Study, which retailers can utilize to better understand the role that premium loyalty programs can play in their future success.

Carlos Dunlap-Beard is the vice president of business development and loyalty strategy at Clarus Commerce. He has spent the past 25 years cultivating a rich background in B-to-C/B-to-B engagement strategies, direct marketing, business development, customer acquisition, customer loyalty, data analysis and strategic marketing. A proven marketing strategist and consumer engagement thought leader, Carlos has authored dozens of articles, blog posts and whitepapers featured in numerous publications, and has spoken at many conferences and events.

If you missed part one of this multipart series, you can listen to it here.