Gen Z Turns to AI to Gamify Retail Loyalty Programs

The shift signals a fundamental change in the relationship between shoppers and rewards platforms. According to the Comarch report, "Loyalty as a Growth Engine in the AI Era," consumers are increasingly leveraging technology to combat inflation and manage complex point systems. Nearly half of shoppers in both the US and UK now use AI to align their spending with reward opportunities, effectively outsourcing the labor of coupon clipping and point redemption to software.

This behavior highlights a persistent friction in retail strategy. While top-tier loyalty programs currently enjoy a 20-point Net Promoter Score advantage in the UK and 14 points in the US, many consumers remain alienated by administrative complexity. In the US, 76% of non-members avoid joining programs because they perceive the effort required to manage them as disproportionate to the benefits. Globally, 32% of potential users abandon sign-up processes entirely due to tedious onboarding.

Max Byloff, CEO of Comarch Loyalty Solutions, views this as a necessary evolution for the industry. He suggests that the era of asking customers to manually track expiration dates and redemption tiers is coming to an end. By integrating agentic AI, brands can shift the burden of engagement from the shopper to the platform, ensuring value is identified and delivered automatically. As Byloff notes, the current experimental phase of this technology is where the most effective tools are being built, forcing brands to rethink their role in the customer journey.