Guardian Credit Union has introduced a new loyalty program for its 35,000 Wisconsin members. The merchant-funded loyalty program will be powered by Buzz Points, a free program that will allow
credit union members to garner rewards through local shopping with GCU Discover® debit cards.
Buzz Points works with local financial institutions and businesses and rewards customers the highest for shopping locally with businesses in the program. Financial Institutions also gain additional revenue from Buzz Points as well as marketing data about their shoppers.
“Our institution was founded as a manufacturing-based credit union in 1934, and this heritage defines the hard-working individuals and communities we serve today,” Steve Wesson, President and CEO of Guardian Credit Union, said in a release. “The ability to reward our members for shopping locally while also providing the independent business owners in our community with a suite of robust marketing tools stood out as an ideal fit for both our members and our local merchants.”
Buzz Points is the only merchant-funded rewards platform that works with community financial institutions and local businesses to engage mutual customers. Credit union members can earn points by using their debit or credit cards whenever they shop, but they earn more points for local shopping and the most points for shopping with local businesses enrolled in the program. Buzz Points creates additional revenue for financial institutions and gives local businesses a turnkey marketing solution that provides the data analysis and targeted marketing technologies they need to expand their market reach, attract new business 
and increase the loyalty of existing customers while also helping to offset the higher interchange fees that small businesses are often burdened with