This week WILY had the pleasure of attending Flourish Conference 2018: The Growth of Branded Currency. The event focused on innovations in the gift card and loyalty industry, and how organizations can benefit from new digital solutions. WILY met with forward-thinking leaders about how to gamify their incentive programs, and heard from a number of disruptors in the space about how they’re helping to improve rewards programs.
With so many helpful sessions, it was nearly impossible to catch them all, so we tracked the hashtag #Fourish18 to uncover some of the most memorable moments from the conference.
Here’s our recap of Flourish 2018, according to your best tweets:
Getting set for #FLOURISH18 check out @TCS_SDC clients @wilyglobal and @nano_Pay in #chicago @FlourishCon tomorrow ?? pic.twitter.com/EwQ58fIMLX
— Tina Kotrych (@TKotrych) April 9, 2018
Sneak peek of our #gamelounge for #flourish18 @MKTGINNOV @darden @Buyatab @SVMRewards @khconnection pic.twitter.com/C10YJ8oAsF
— Flourish Conference (@FlourishCon) April 10, 2018
Excited to kick off #Flourish18 in #Chicago! pic.twitter.com/mxmItpqGOy
— Ashley Poynter (@acegrl) April 10, 2018
#Flourish18 Flourish founders Kristen Thiry and Holly Glowaty opened the second annual show by encouraging those in attendance to look past the gift ability factor and begin referring to the industry as branded currency as a competitive strategy. pic.twitter.com/lDhQsmdTY8
— Vince Alonzo (@VinceAlonzoSM1) April 10, 2018
#Flourish18 keynote speaker Bridget Brennan listed the growth of the gifting culture, the rise of loyalty programs, and the emergence of the female economy as among the key reasons the branded currency market will continue to grow. pic.twitter.com/IO30mK6RxL
— Vince Alonzo (@VinceAlonzoSM1) April 10, 2018
We wanted to take a disruptive position-Rick Buer @gcincentives #flourish18 pic.twitter.com/wtHCMabXLF
— Sue Voyles (@PRDiva) April 10, 2018
#Flourish18 Mark Bonchek of Shift Thinking says that the move from a push economy (building relationships to drive transactions) to a pull economy (embedding transactions in relationships) will increase the role of branded currencies in the economy. pic.twitter.com/6sESbrUeYK
— Vince Alonzo (@VinceAlonzoSM1) April 10, 2018
Live now at #Flourish18 @jasonhenrichs of @FintechForge interviews Mark Schatz from SVS on Industry and Consumer Insights that Help Retailers Drive Stored Value. Watch for the podcast of the interview on @provokecast pic.twitter.com/6VD8vnR5wo
— JP Nicols (@JPNicols) April 10, 2018
@sabudulai sharing insight on compliance & regulation w/ #brandedcurrency for @TCS_SDC & @invest_canada at @FlourishCon #Flourish18 pic.twitter.com/uudLPuQfFm
— Tina Kotrych (@TKotrych) April 10, 2018
Matias Marquez, founder & COO of ?? @Buyatab talking about adoption of technology #digitalgiftcard #10xRule #Flourish18 pic.twitter.com/vwcuM5O2l1
— Tina Kotrych (@TKotrych) April 10, 2018
#Flourish18 Some best practices for taking branded currency (gift cards) global: don’t invest in brick and mortar, put the money into digital marketing; rely on local council rather than your in-house lawyers: and don’t assume what works domestically will work internationally pic.twitter.com/lxRZ4NS92X
— Vince Alonzo (@VinceAlonzoSM1) April 10, 2018
Thanks @WeGift, https://t.co/S6E6gEkzOE and @KHConnection for a really fun night. #Flourish18 #Chicago pic.twitter.com/UhrPFfY7Jp
— Brenda Gilpatrick (@bgilpatrick) April 11, 2018
How to Right-Size Product Innovation and Loyalty for Your Business – @jasonhenrichs in a great discussion with Colleen Wilson and Maya Mikhailov at #Flourish18 pic.twitter.com/Qbn1xguA0b
— JP Nicols (@JPNicols) April 11, 2018
CashStar’s Hollis Thornton is live at #Flourish18 discussing how to increase awareness of B2B #giftcard programs with end users and buyers. @FlourishCon pic.twitter.com/0oQviSwZWp
— CashStar (@CashStar) April 11, 2018
#Flourish18 Financial tech expert J.P. Nichols tells Flourish attendees that core banking operations are moving toward models that eliminate the point of payment experience: “banking is no longer someplace you go. It’s something you do (on your phone).” pic.twitter.com/TdrpSzBAwo
— Vince Alonzo (@VinceAlonzoSM1) April 11, 2018
Plastic gift cards are not going anyone soon…we’re maybe 10 yrs away from all digital. @ngcgroup #flourish18 pic.twitter.com/06mjaZ6srt
— Sue Voyles (@PRDiva) April 11, 2018
Join @stockpile @giftofcollege @gophercard and @khconnection on the main stage to learn about the new types of branded currency and payment technology #flourish18 pic.twitter.com/XxNBRCQybL
— Flourish Conference (@FlourishCon) April 11, 2018
Snack break at #Flourish18. So much great #content and many #insights from thought leaders.
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.#brandedcurrency #loyalty #giftcards #incentives #rewards pic.twitter.com/QXfbmWlAIo— Ashley Poynter (@acegrl) April 11, 2018
Join @ArrowPayments, @Jifiti, @derekhuyser & #Compromised as they talk #Fraud & Security at All Stages of the Customer Journey on the Main Stage #Flourish18 pic.twitter.com/UYa9KKfrhy
— Flourish Conference (@FlourishCon) April 11, 2018
Ending #Flourish18 with a good ol’ game of cornhole! Until next year ✌ pic.twitter.com/VyQwMAVDoi
— Buyatab (@Buyatab) April 11, 2018