Case Study: Data-Driven Customer Engagement Transforms Public Services

Airlines court frequent fliers with rewards for loyalty and as a consequence get to know their customers better. Why not public transportation? In Canada, Société de Transport de Montréal (STM) launched STM Merci in 2013. The program set out to encourage ridership and to increase revenues through an ecosystem of local partners that provide offers based on rider profiles and location-specific information. By opting in to the program, users of the STM mobile application allow the use of this data for targeted offers, such as two-for-one coffee or discounts at retailers near their regular routes. A successful customer engagement program requires close collaboration between technology and business leaders — namely between the CIO and chief marketing officer (CMO) — to facilitate the use of data while protecting passenger privacy. This case study illustrates best practices for such collaboration and the results achieved.