Solana Labs launches customer loyalty platform

The Solana developer also oversees a mobile phone line and a game development product

June 12, 2024 09:00 am

rafapress/Shutterstock modified by Blockworks

Solana Labs, the company that initially developed Solana, has launched a technology stack and “white-glove service” for businesses looking to launch customer loyalty programs on the blockchain.

The platform, called Bond, is the third Solana Labs-developed product to hit the market, joining GameShift, which helps game developers create Web3 games, and Solana Mobile, which is currently accepting pre-orders for a second iteration of its Solana-integrated mobile phone.

Bond’s website highlights digital collectibles and “product passports” as blockchain-enabled features of the service.

And perhaps in a nod to the memecoin craze driving Solana’s recent usage spike, the site throws in as a pitch for potential clients: “Engage the vibrant Solana community to tap into Millennial and Gen Z purchasing power.”

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Solana Labs put out a press release for Bond that stressed the service’s emphasis on direct relationships with consumers and analyzing client bases while preserving privacy.

In all, Solana Labs appears to be positioning Bond more as software-as-a-service with blockchain rails than as a deeply crypto-native product.

The word “tokens” garners nary a mention in the press release, which adds that “customers won’t even realize it’s Web3” when using Bond.

Applying blockchain technology to customer loyalty has been tried elsewhere. Singapore Airlines put frequent flier miles on blockchain as early as 2018, and Visa announced a Web3 customer loyalty platform earlier this year.

Of course, not all of these experiments have been successful. Starbucks recently ended its Odyssey NFT-themed loyalty platform after a year and a half of beta testing.

Still, Solana Labs is betting that there’s a future for blockchain-based loyalty.

“Solana Labs explored various areas and products, and noticed that there was a gap in the loyalty space, in particular for relationship based loyalty, where the ROI horizon is longer than traditional loyalty programs,” a Solana Labs spokesperson said.

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