Wildfire CMO demonstrates how brands can offer rewards for AI shopping
Let’s say you need a sleeping bag. Just a small one, but not something intended for a child, either.
Looking for this sleeping bag used to start with a Google search, followed by scrolling through links to retail sites, at which point you might scroll through dozens of product listings before finding what you want.
Artificial intelligence (AI) has made that process much faster, where key product details, pricing comparisons and reviews are all brought up in response to a query on services like ChatGPT. While an increasing number of consumers find this form of online shopping faster and more convenient, Wildfire is proposing an additional element that will integrate loyalty programs directly into the digital experience.
Late last month Wildfire, which is based in San Diego, said it was offering a way for companies to deliver rewards for purchases made through AI platforms. Its first customer is Bold.org, a debit card issuer that connects students with scholarships and student banking services with the goal of reducing student debt.
Wildfire
Wildfire said students using the Bold Debit Card can now earn Bold Points on eligible AI-assisted purchases, which can be used to reduce student loan balances, contribute to educational advancement and improve overall financial wellness.
Tristan Barnum, Wildfire’s CMO, showed 360 Magazine how Bold.org customers could use its white labelled browser extension to log into their account as they shop online.
When a consumer looks at a specific product suggested by ChatGPT, for example, an area on the right-hand side of the page offers a selection of sites where they can make a purchase. One of the listed sites included a callout in blue notifying the consumer that they could earn up to 5.2x “Bold Points” for selecting a specific site.
“They are able to offer that browser extension to Bold debit card holders as a perk that is going to help you save money when you’re shopping online,” Barnum explained. “It may influence the shopping decision, which is great for our merchants, and those users feel like they are getting a great deal from Bold.org.”
Of course, many consumers are members of multiple loyalty programs, and brands that partner with Wildfire – the company has more than 50,000 merchant partners around the world, according to Barnum – could each offer their own browser extension so that online shoppers could consider which reward offers appeal to them.
Wildfire tends to attract clients such as fintechs and traditional banks, Barnum said, in part because of the company’s rigor in complying with regulatory requirements that govern the financial services sector. It will also work with brands in other markets, though, and she suggested Bold.org is a natural partner to show what loyalty-infused AI shopping can look like.
“Bold tends to have a younger demographic, and the younger demographic is far more open to (AI shopping),” she said. “They’re adopting AI very quickly, and they’re sort of pushing the limits of what to do with it.”
Besides ChatGPT, Wildfire’s extensions will work with Google’s Gemini, Pexplexity and Anthropic’s Claude AI tools. Brands can use the technology to offer traditional rewards like cashback and points, but also education-linked awards that drive social impact.
Barnum said it’s important to recognize that AI-powered shopping is not simply a new channel, but an evolution of the experience consumers have when they go looking for their next favorite purchase.
“What we’re doing is understanding that users are coming to tools like this for advice about shopping, and we are meeting them where they are,” she said.
