One way that big data is being applied at the local level is via Card Linked Offers that track consumer spending and target offers and promotions based on that behavior.

Banks, credit card companies and payment processors have been especially targeted by the Card Linked Offer vendors, which include Cardlytics,  Cartera Commerce, edo Interactive and MasterCard’s TruAxis.  These financial institutions have long been accustomed to paying money to support credit card rewards programs. Now, however, they can use card linked offers to make money from commissions on sales, and also leverage their consumer data.

While initial results are apparently promising, the banks haven’t moved very quickly. Bank of America has spent an estimated $30-$50 million to launch Bank AmeriDeals with Cardlytics, but the banks generally are focused on compliance issues and are also focused on fees and traditional revenue streams, which are once again proving very lucrative for them. It is a far cry from the situation just three years ago, when the mortgage crisis and recession caused them to be looking more seriously at entrepreneurial opportunities.

The changed environment, in part, has caused the Card Linked Offer vendors to supplement their relationships with the financial institutions. Edo Interactive, for instance, has been developing  edo Marketplace to allow smaller merchants to use its platform to create Do It Yourself deals.

While it may look like edo is looking beyond banks,  edo President and CEO Ed Braswell tells us the company’s expanded Marketplace actually complements the company’s partnerships with banks. edo works with its bank partners to develop offers and target the right consumers. Edo’s focus is on getting relevant, “high quality”  offers, says Braswell. Edo is positioned to construct “Intelligent deals” based on “tons of data” from financial institution partners. The algorithms “really drive performance.”

To ramp up, the company has hired 23 local sales people, along with 12 sales people who are focused on touching the Top 700 national brands, adds Braswell. He also notes that there are “a few” sales people who are working on channel partnerships to help scale the merchant network.

The results that edo reports are impressive: 80 percent of those redeeming offers are new customers, and fifty percent of those return at least once within 90 days.