Understand how your system fits into the loyalty ecosystem and choose the right integration approach for your use case.
Across all partner types, the core integration pattern remains consistent:
- Customers link their payment card(s) to a loyalty profile
- Tyro detects transactions made with linked cards
- Transaction events are sent to the loyalty partner
- The partner calculates and applies rewards
Where implementations differ is in:
- how cards are linked to member profiles
- whether online payments occur in your app or website
- who owns the customer relationship and data
- how many merchants participate in the program
- where loyalty logic is executed
- how rewards are surfaced and redeemed
Understanding these differences will help you choose the right integration approach before building.
Many program loyalty providers
Loyalty providers that operate a program per merchant or merchant group (e.g. a franchise network or house of brands).
How it works- Each merchant (or group or location) has its own standalone loyalty program
- Customers link their payment card separately for each program
- The loyalty provider manages customer profiles, rewards logic, and engagement
Customer experience- Customers join a specific brand’s loyalty program
- Cards are linked once per program
- Rewards are earned only within that merchant or group
In cases where payments do not occur within your app or website, card linking may require a one-time $0 authorisation transaction in the sign up process. Using on-terminal sign-up removes the need for this.
Aggregated / coalition loyalty providers
Loyalty providers that operate a single program across multiple participating merchants.
How it works- Multiple merchants participate in one shared loyalty ecosystem
- Customers link their card once to the program
- Each merchant can define its own earning rules within the shared framework
Customer experience- Customers join one program and earn rewards across many merchants
- No need to re-register or re-link cards
- Rewards accumulate across the network
Example
- ShopBack (earning rewards across multiple merchants)
Key considerations- Single card-linking experience improves adoption
- More complex partner and reward rule management
- Less direct ownership of the customer by individual merchants
POS-embedded loyalty providers
Point-of-sale platforms that include a built-in loyalty module as part of their product offering.
How it works- Loyalty is integrated directly into the POS system
- The POS provider acts as the loyalty provider
- Transaction-level data (e.g. basket composition) can be used to drive rewards
Customer experience- Loyalty is tightly coupled to checkout and ordering flows
- Customers may be identified via POS workflows (e.g. phone number, account, or card linking via Tyro)
- Redemption may occur directly within the POS
Capabilities- Access to item-level sales data
- The loyalty API has the ability to receive and pass on item level data, this is dependent on the POS providing such info.
- Control over redemption flows
- Seamless integration with ordering and payments
Enterprise (in-house loyalty systems)
Large merchants that build and operate their own end-to-end loyalty systems.
How it works- The merchant is both the loyalty provider and the program owner
- Infrastructure, customer profiles, and rewards logic are managed internally
- Tyro Loyalty API is used to enable card-linked functionality
Customer experience- Fully branded and customised loyalty experience
- Often integrated across multiple channels (in-store, app, web)
- Card linking can be embedded in the merchant’s own flows
Capabilities- Full control over data, experience, and reward mechanics
- Ability to unify online and in-store customer profiles
- Highly tailored engagement strategies
Key considerations- Highest level of flexibility and control
- Requires greater technical investment
Use this table to quickly compare partner types and choose the approach that best fits your system and business model.
| Partner type | Card linking | Merchant coverage | Control level | Complexity | Best suited for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single-merchant provider | Per program | Single merchant or group | Medium | Low | Merchant-specific loyalty programs |
| Aggregator / coalition | Once per program | Many merchants | Low–Medium | Medium–High | Multi-merchant reward ecosystems |
| POS-embedded | Per merchant / POS | Depends on POS footprint | Medium | Medium | POS platforms with built-in loyalty |
| Enterprise (in-house) | Custom implementation | Single enterprise | High | Medium | Large merchants building their own loyalty stack |
Your integration approach is primarily determined by how cards are linked to member profiles and where transactions occur.
- Customers are prompted after a transaction from the terminal to join
- A QR code is displayed on the terminal, sending the customer to the loyalty sign up page
- The memberReference is added to the sign up link, enabling for the card to be linked to the profile post sign up.
This is the primary registration method for partners without Tyro e-commerce integration, and can also be used alongside app or web-based registration to drive in-store sign-ups.
- Cards can be linked naturally through customer transactions
- No additional card verification flow is required
- Provides a seamless registration experience
Loyalty + ordering/shopping apps, enterprise systems with e-commerce
- You must implement a card linking flow
- Typically achieved via a $0 authorisation transaction
- Adds an extra step to the registration experience
Standalone loyalty providers without integrated payments
Regardless of partner type, you are responsible for:
- Handling loyalty events from Tyro
- Maintaining customer profiles and loyalty logic
- Calculating and applying rewards
- Supporting merchant activation and onboarding
- Managing how rewards are surfaced and redeemed
Once you’ve identified your partner type and integration approach, continue to the Activate a merchant page to understand how merchant locations are onboarded and enabled for loyalty.