Murphy's USA is testing a new rewards program with Whrrl, a location-based service designed to enable consumers to earn points leading to a wide variety of prizes, including a digital coupon for $50 in free gas, when they check in at the chain's roughly 1,100 stations. Whrrl is a social loyalty program designed to close the gap between a brand's online social media presence and real-world physical presence. Whrrl Society Rewards is the first program to tie together word-of-mouth influence and real world visits, rewarding people for motivating others to visit a business.

"Traditional loyalty programs can create the wrong expectations with customers, because discounts based on transactions don't always lead to a deeper relationship," Casey Petersen, Murphy USA’s Social Media Marketing Manager, said in a press release. "We love our customers not only for their business, but positive word-of-mouth and influence on others to try Murphy USA gas. Whrrl's Society Rewards program is the perfect way to reward them for their loyalty."

Sears Holdings recently announces enhancements to the Sears  and Kmart loyalty programs. A new consumer survey, commissioned by Sears and Kmart, revealed that a majority (81%) of Americans remain generous at heart and admit that if they received a large sum of money, such as a prize or gift, they'd likely donate a portion of the funds to a charity, non-profit or other aid organization.

To celebrate the upcoming first anniversary of Shop Your Way Rewards, Sears and Kmart have announced the Shop Your Way Rewards 'What Would You Do with One Billion Points?' contest, to give one lucky, loyal customer the chance to win up to one billion Shop Your Way Rewards points — half to keep and the other half to donate to charity.

The contest, which started July 14, offers Shop Your Way Rewards members the chance to enter by submitting a 45-second personal video message describing what they would do with One Billion Points. All videos will be posted online at http://www.billionpoints.com, where America will vote to determine the winner.

Sterling Commerce recently announced the launch of Sterling InFlight Data Management Mobile, a BtoB integration as-a-Service visibility offering for mobile devices.  The application is designed to broaden the company’s mobile application portfolio, which includes Sterling Integrator Mobile and Sterling Control Center Mobile, which were announced in February.

Sterling InFlight Data Management Mobile is designed to provide business users with up-to-the-minute visibility into their BtoB transactions.  It is also designed to enable customers of Sterling BtoB integration solutions delivered as-a-Service to better manage the electronic document exchange supporting business-critical processes such as purchase orders, remittances and other supply chain operations.  Specifically, the application is meant to enable customers to determine the status of a transaction; monitor and take action on errant transactions; and review the actions that trading partners have taken.

According to a 2010 Vanson Bourne OmniBoss Survey on strategies for BtoB integration, 67% of U.S. companies say they predict effectiveness and productivity enhancements as a result of mobile devices increasing visibility of their BtoB data.  For companies that look to third-party support for management of their critical BtoB data, such as Sterling BtoB integration as-a-Service customers, Sterling InFlight Data Management Mobile is designed to provide the visibility to ensure smooth operations from anywhere, anytime.