Guest article: S-Etukortti - the clarity of a 30-year-old national treasure still appeals

In the last thirty years, S-Etukortti membership card has become an exceptional phenomenon. The green card, built on the idea of co-op membership, is currently carried in the wallets and phones of approximately four million people living in Finland. For some, getting the card has even become a sort of rite of passage into adulthood. During these decades, the core idea of the card has remained the same, even if its features evolve to make our customers’ everyday lives easier.

As a co-op, S Group is entirely owned by its customers. The group consists of 19 regional cooperatives and their central organisation, SOK. The monthly cash-based Bonus is undoubtedly one of the biggest reasons why so many choose to get the S-Etukortti. And, while many may not think about it, getting the card also makes them members of their local cooperative. The idea of a cooperative business model comes historically from a group of people who wanted to have their own store, where they could always rely on fair and affordable prices.

With the rise of the 1980s consumer culture, the idea of a cooperative business model was no longer enough. S Group renewed its strategy and launched a programme where using a loyalty card would lead to a monthly cashback based on a percentage of their purchases. The logic was simple and directly linked to cooperative principles: the more a member uses the products and services of the company they own, the more Bonus they receive in return. A straightforward and practical logic resonated strongly with Finnish consumers. Today, S-Etukortti is Finland’s most widely used loyalty programme.

The concept remains, but digitalises 

When I think about the early stages of S-Etukortti, one significant achievement was getting all 19 regional co-ops to commit to a common Bonus model. From the consumers’ perspective, the changes in our loyalty programme have seemed small for a long time, as the membership card and the Bonus have remained the same. Still, at the same time, the simplicity and consistency have been S-Etukortti’s greatest strengths. We haven’t wanted to continuously evolve or redesign the brand, because we recognised the value in the clarity and reliability of the concept. The stability is valuable, especially now, when the world around us demands constant adaptation.

In the past years, the pace of development has naturally accelerated. The mobile phone has become the primary wallet for many, and people no longer want to carry a physical card with them. Adding S-Etukortti to the mobile wallet has met this need and modernised how the card is used, even as the core principle remains the same.

The secret of success 

The success of S-Etukortti comes from what we call “the turbo screw”. When building a successful customer loyalty programme, we need a combination of mutually reinforcing elements:

• Competitive products and services

• Clear and meaningful rewarding that ensures that members get more

• Concentrating purchases on the S Group’s broad and comprehensive offering

When customers realise that they can earn cashback from all of S Group’s services, it encourages using the card much more than if the Bonus were paid only on grocery purchases. Very few loyalty programmes in Finland cover such a wide range of everyday products and services.

Another advantage is the clarity of our programme. The monthly Bonus is paid out as cash, which can be used wherever and whenever. We don’t want to limit our customers to spending their earned Bonus only within the S Group, and we believe this freedom is an important factor in strengthening the customer relationship.

S-Etukortti is adopted regardless of age and nationality

Finnish consumers tend to be fairly pragmatic and financially responsible. We like to benefit from available discounts, collect our bonuses, and appreciate the idea of earning money based on our spending. Many of us might even feel a slight sting if we forget to show our membership card at the checkout. Although the mobile card has now solved this problem.

Another factor behind the card’s widespread adoption is how it is often associated with becoming an adult. And while the accumulated Bonus may not be a large sum for a one-person household, the card becomes a natural part of everyday life when the family grows.

Our customer base is also becoming increasingly international. The cooperative business model is new to many people who move to Finland, and we have wanted to target much of our communications to them as well. To support this, S Group, together with HOK-Elanto, launched a new service where an AI-assisted figure called Eero pays Bonuses and explains the concept of S-Etukortti and its benefits in 17 different languages. This service has been warmly welcomed, and many people are surprised to learn that getting the card actually makes them an owner in their local cooperative.

AI-driven personalisation, customer-first privacy

The S-Etukortti has long been primarily a way to earn Bonus, but we intend to keep evolving it to make our customers’ everyday lives even easier. S Group is investing in its own AI development, enabling each customer’s user profile to learn their preferences safely through the use of their card. Maintaining total control of our in-house AI solutions is important as we want to ensure data security and cherish our customers’ trust.

A customer’s purchasing behaviour helps the AI understand them as an individual and suggest solutions based on the choices they have previously made. In this process, we ensure that their data remains safe and is not transferred anywhere else. With AI, we can make everyday shopping easier and faster by helping customers find products they would probably buy anyway. Investing in our own AI also enables a wide range of use cases. For example, AI can learn to recognise different diets, price preferences, or even what kind of meal a customer is likely to prepare, based on what they have bought previously and what they are currently buying.

We understand social responsibility as not encouraging customers to buy more than they need or can afford. In developing the service, the goal is to help each customer find the options that work best for them within S Group’s wide offering. Another thing is that we never collect data without permission. If a customer does not consent to data collection, nothing gets collected. In this case, no personalised recommendations are created either.

Building blocks of a successful loyalty program

I feel that building a successful loyalty programme starts with a good product and ensuring that the rewards are simple and clear. A competitive product, an easy-to-understand reward concept, and respect for the customer’s freedom of choice, already take you quite far.

I can’t help thinking how a concept that is simple and stable can become the greatest strength in a world where everything is constantly changing. A loyalty programme that is steady and familiar builds trust, which clearly is something that is valued in Finland.

I don’t believe customers come to a store because of a loyalty programme alone, but they might choose not to come if the programme doesn’t work. My hope is that in the coming decades, we will continue to develop S-Etukortti in ways that genuinely matter to consumers living in Finland.