UK retailer the Lincolnshire Co-operative is changing the way it is talking about member rewards, replacing ‘dividend’ with ‘cashback’.
In March the society conducted research involving members, customers, and people who don’t currently shop with the organisation.
“The findings revealed that while members value their dividend reward, many customers and non-customers were unclear what we meant by ‘dividend’,” said the society in a statement.
“To make our membership scheme more inclusive and easier to understand, we’re updating some of the language we use”.
The society also spoke with members at its annual members’ meeting in December and half-yearly meeting in June about the need to ensure member rewards are affordable and sustainable.
“As part of the changes, we are standardising the member reward across our different business areas.”
As of 8 September 2024, as well as changing the name of member rewards to ‘cashback’ instead of ‘dividend’, the rate of cashback is now standardised to 1% across all business areas, with the exception of when you buy Love Local products in food stores, which will still offer 2% cashback.
This demonstrates “our continued commitment to championing local producers across our trading area,” said the society. “When you buy fuel from us, you will continue to earn 1p of cashback for every 5 litres purchased”.
Lincolnshire confirmed members can continue using their existing dividend card, key fob, and app as normal. “There are no immediate plans to replace these, so please keep using them every time you shop to earn cashback for both yourself and your community.”
Meanwhile, the society has invested £2m in solar panel installation, bringing the number of sites with panels installed up from 11 to 73. The new sites are anticipated to produce an additional 1.8 million kilowatt hours (KWH) a year. Buildings with solar panels will use approximately 30% solar energy and Lincolnshire Co-op’s overall indirect CO2 emissions will be reduced by an estimated 10%.
