Reading a rewards catalogue like a member in the queue

Items that look generous on a poster often fail a one-glance test: expiry on a closed day, a mall café the member cannot reach, small print that contradicts the title.

Operators add rewards because last quarter’s list did not move. The new list is longer. Members still redeem the same two items — usually a drink discount that matches what they already buy.

When we read a catalogue, we stand in the member’s place, not the merchandiser’s. The test is one glance on a phone, often in a queue. If the title says “free pastry” and the small print says “with any set above RM 28, weekend, selected outlets,” the title is a poster. Cashiers get the argument.

Expiry on a Tuesday is a Malaysian small-print problem we see in F&B apps. The outlet is closed that morning. The reward dies while the member is at work. Hotel memberships do a quieter version: points that “last a year” in the brochure and nine months in the wallet if there is no stay.

Bilingual lists cause a different kind of unused item. English promises a complimentary night. Bahasa Malaysia, on the same card, mentions a surcharge. Members who switch language to check think the app is broken. They are not wrong.

We also mark food rewards with no halal note when the rest of the menu is careful, and petrol-app rewards that require a weekend mall café the forecourt does not sit beside. The catalogue is then a wish list for a person who is not holding the pump.

None of this tells you your margins. It tells you which lines a member can finish without a staff briefing. Those are the lines that move. The rest decorate the poster.