Expense management platforms are cashing in on corporate cards. Virtual or physical, debit or credit. These cards increase user autonomy while reducing the risk of out-of-policy spending. They’re big benefits — if you can get employees to use them. Can corporate card reward schemes accelerate adoption?

In this blog, we will explore:

• The challenges preventing card adoption
• What are corporate card rewards, and why do they work?
• How are companies using climate projects to reward responsible spending

The challenge of corporate card churn

Commercial card users are like cats. They appear aloof and disloyal, but they will stick around for the right reasons. I’m not hating on cats. I love cats for this very reason — their loyalty is earned.

Ascenda found that 51% of companies are open to switching card providers. Further, 41% of companies feel neutral or dissatisfied about their current commercial card provider. Just like cats, these companies don’t have a reason to stay.

The risk of customer churn is high. Acquiring a new customer can cost 5 to 7x more than retaining existing customers. It’s a costly trap for expense management companies to fall into.

Switching to other companies isn’t the only competition corporate card providers face. Employees (86%) also admit to using personal cards for expenses. As a result, the promise land of corporate card spend is diluted by incomplete spend data.

What will make corporate cards stickier?

Customer retention is a smart investment decision. But what will make them stick? Better business travel booking (18%), expense management tools (27%), and reward earning opportunities (31%).

If corporate card providers can offer these value-added services, their customers are more likely to stick. They realise the value of staying is greater than the pain of leaving.

What are corporate card reward programs, and why do they work?

Corporate card rewards come in all shapes and sizes. Effectively, they aim to increase card usage by positively reinforcing behaviour. This is why most programs use the typical spend-to-earn model.

Ramp offers discounts across hundreds of other business tools, such as Notion, Slack, and OpenAI. Payhawk offers cashback, which the business can use as it sees fit. While Brex users can redeem points against giftcards.

Building B2B reward programs that work

Effective B2B loyalty programs can increase retention by 13%, the likelihood of referrals by 70%, and annual revenue by 10-20%.

Unlike their B2C counterparts – such as Tesco Clubcard Points, Airmiles, and Amazon Prime – B2B reward programs are slightly trickier in execution. This is because more people, governance, and goals are at stake.

Successful corporate card reward programs should:

• Speak to all stakeholders, i.e. the card user and financial controller
• Overcome the lag between earning and redeeming rewards
• Add innovative value propositions
• Build emotional, rather than transactional, loyalty

Accelerating customer ESG goals with green rewards

While cashback seems like the obvious option, could funding climate projects result in greater customer loyalty? Over 23,000 companies worldwide are already publishing sustainability reports, and that number is only growing.

Plus, sustainable brand positioning cultivates emotional loyalty with customers. It resonates with our values and beliefs. Given that B2B relationships have multiple stakeholders, reward programs need both rational and emotional hooks. Climate projects do both.

Companies can meet their ESG goals, while users can feel good that their corporate spend is funding impactful projects that address climate change, biodiversity loss, and humanitarian crises. Protecting Orangutans in Borneo, or financing the latest carbon capture technology, is certainly an innovative and engaging story to tell!

Further, climate projects align with both user and customer goals. A recent survey found that 55% of employees aged 16-34 would use a corporate card if given the choice. This is the same generation that will consider the environmental sustainability of a company when choosing an employer. This matches the growing number of companies that have committed to reducing their impact on the planet.

Reward users using high impact climate projects

Corporate card providers must innovate by offering valuable rewards to their customers and end-users. By doing so, they increase card stickiness, reduce churn, and cultivate loyalty.

They can do this by funding Lune’s rigorously vetted climate projects. Using Lune’s API, providers can seamlessly embed climate projects into their customer experience. Users can see the outcome of their spending instantly without leaving the platform.

These rewards are:

• Easy to redeem using Lune’s API
• Speak to both users and business leaders
• Build emotional loyalty with visible, credible impact

To start rewarding your users for building a climate positive legacy, download our guide to see why Lune’s climate projects deliver positive impact and peace of mind.