Loyalty & Punchcards

Loyalty programs and punchcards are the most universally understood engagement mechanic in the world. Buy 9 coffees, get the 10th free. Visit 5 times, unlock a reward. Spend enough, reach Gold status. Everyone knows how they work.

The problem is how they're built today. Paper stamp cards get lost, damaged, or forgotten at home. App-based loyalty programs lock users into yet another account with yet another password. Centralized databases can be manipulated, wiped, or shut down. And none of them talk to each other: your loyalty at Brand A is invisible to Brand B.

bonuz Loyalty & Punchcard DNFTs solve all of this. They're on-chain, fraud-proof, self-custodial, and portable across the bonuz ecosystem. The user holds their loyalty status in their wallet. The brand tracks engagement in real time. And because the data lives in the bonuz graph, loyalty becomes composable: brands can recognize engaged users from across the ecosystem, not just their own customers.

How It Works

A Loyalty or Punchcard DNFT is a stateful on-chain asset that updates incrementally with each qualifying action. Think of it as a digital stamp card where every stamp is verified, permanent, and tamper-proof.

The core mechanic: the user performs an action (purchase, visit, scan, quest completion) → the brand verifies it (QR scan, NFC tap, or dashboard confirmation) → the DNFT's on-chain state updates (stamp count increments, progress bar advances) → when the threshold is reached, a reward is triggered automatically.

No paper cards. No "sorry, our system is down." No fake stamps. The blockchain is the ledger.

Types of Loyalty Programs

Brands configure loyalty programs through the Brand Dashboard (app.bonuz.market). The same underlying DNFT technology supports multiple loyalty models:

Classic Punchcard. A fixed number of actions required to earn a reward. Buy 9, get 1 free. Visit 10 times, unlock a voucher. Simple, effective, and the most common model. The DNFT tracks the count and automatically transitions to "redeemable" when the target is hit.

Tiered Loyalty. Progressive status levels based on cumulative engagement. Silver → Gold → Platinum, or any custom tier names the brand defines. Each tier unlocks different benefits (discounts, early access, exclusive content, VIP treatment). The DNFT's state reflects the current tier and updates as the user crosses thresholds.

Points-Based. Actions earn points rather than stamps. Different actions can earn different point values (a purchase might earn 10 points, a referral 50 points, attending an event 25 points). The DNFT tracks the running total. Rewards unlock at defined point thresholds.

Spend-Based. Tier progression or rewards based on cumulative spend rather than visit count. Common in retail and hospitality where transaction value matters more than frequency.

Challenge-Based. Loyalty that advances through specific actions rather than repetition. "Try 5 different menu items" or "visit 3 different locations" or "complete the onboarding quest + refer a friend + attend an event." The DNFT tracks which specific challenges have been completed.

Creating a Loyalty Program

Brands don't write smart contracts. They use the Brand Dashboard:

Select the loyalty template. Choose between punchcard, tiered, points-based, spend-based, or challenge-based models.

Define the rules. Set the action that qualifies (visit, purchase, scan, quest completion), the threshold for rewards (10 stamps, 500 points, Gold tier at 25 visits), and the reward itself (a voucher DNFT, a membership upgrade, an exclusive access pass, or a points payout).

Configure verification. How are qualifying actions confirmed? QR code scan by staff, NFC tap at the point of sale, automatic tracking via the bonuz Lifestyle Wallet, or manual confirmation through the dashboard.

Set branding. Upload card design, choose colors, define tier names and badge imagery. The loyalty card appears in the user's wallet with the brand's visual identity.

Launch. Users receive their loyalty DNFT when they first engage with the brand (first visit, first purchase, or by scanning a campaign QR code). From that point on, every qualifying action updates the card automatically.

The State Machine

Loyalty DNFTs have the most active state lifecycle of any DNFT type:

Issued → The loyalty card is created and assigned to the user's wallet. Initial state: 0 stamps, base tier, or 0 points.

Active (Progressing) → Each qualifying action triggers a state update. The stamp count increments, points accumulate, or tier progress advances. This is the state users spend most time in. The bonuz Lifestyle Wallet renders progress visually (e.g., 7/10 stamps filled).

Redeemable → For punchcard models, the card reaches its target and becomes redeemable for the configured reward. The user presents the card (via QR in the Lifestyle Wallet), the brand confirms, and the reward is issued.

Redeemed / Reset → After redemption, the punchcard either resets to 0 (for repeatable programs) or archives (for one-time rewards). Tiered loyalty cards don't reset; they continue progressing.

Tier Upgraded → For tiered models, crossing a threshold triggers a tier change. The DNFT metadata updates to reflect the new tier, and any tier-specific benefits become active.

Expired (optional) → Brands can configure time-based expiry. If a user doesn't engage within a defined period, their loyalty card can expire or their tier can downgrade. This is optional and configurable per program.

All state transitions are on-chain and reflected in real time in the user's wallet.

Apple Wallet & Google Wallet

Loyalty and punchcard DNFTs can be added to Apple Wallet and Google Wallet for instant access at the point of interaction. Users don't need to open the bonuz Lifestyle Wallet every time. They pull up their loyalty card from their phone's native wallet, just like a boarding pass or payment card, and present it for scanning.

The pass syncs with the DNFT's on-chain state. When a stamp is added or a tier changes, the Apple/Google Wallet pass updates to reflect the current progress. This bridges the on-chain experience with the native mobile experience users already know, making bonuz loyalty cards feel as natural as any existing wallet pass.

Verification & Anti-Fraud

Traditional loyalty programs are rife with fraud: fake stamps, shared accounts, employees awarding points without real transactions. bonuz eliminates these at the protocol level:

Staff-verified scans. The most common model: a staff member shows a QR code after a qualifying action (purchase, visit). The user scans it with the bonuz Lifestyle Wallet. The scan triggers a server-verified state update. No fake stamps possible because the QR code is authenticated and the state transition requires the brand's authorization.

NFC tap verification. An NFC tag at the point of sale or venue entrance. The user taps their phone, the tag triggers a claim, and the DNFT updates. Tags can be configured as time-limited or rate-limited (one tap per user per day).

Single-action enforcement. The protocol prevents double-counting. If a user already scanned for today's visit, a second scan won't increment the counter. Configurable per program (some brands may allow multiple qualifying actions per day).

On-chain audit trail. Every stamp, every point, every tier change is recorded on-chain with a timestamp. Brands can audit the full history of any loyalty card. Users can verify their own progress independently.

What Loyalty DNFTs Unlock

Portable status. A user's loyalty tier lives in their wallet, not in a brand's database. If the brand changes systems, migrates platforms, or even shuts down their app, the user's loyalty history survives on-chain.

Cross-brand recognition. This is the real unlock. Because loyalty data lives in the bonuz graph, Brand B can see (with the user's permission) that a user is a Gold-tier member at Brand A. A hotel chain could offer perks to users who are loyal customers of a partner airline. A restaurant could give priority seating to users with high engagement scores across the ecosystem. Siloed loyalty becomes networked loyalty.

Reward chaining. Loyalty milestones can automatically trigger other DNFTs: reaching Gold tier issues a VIP access pass, completing a punchcard mints a voucher, accumulating 1000 points unlocks an exclusive membership. The Engagement Protocol handles the logic.

Real-time analytics. Brands see engagement data in real time through the dashboard: active loyalty cards, progression rates, redemption frequency, most active users, tier distribution. Data-driven decisions instead of guesswork.

Real-World Examples

Coffee shop punchcard. A café issues a punchcard DNFT to every customer. Staff scans a QR code after each purchase. The card fills up visually in the user's wallet (7/10 stamps). At 10, the user redeems for a free coffee. The card resets and starts again. No paper cards to lose, no stamps to fake.

Restaurant tiered loyalty. A restaurant group creates a 3-tier loyalty program: Regular (0-9 visits), VIP (10-24 visits), and Elite (25+ visits). Regular members get no perks. VIP members get priority reservations. Elite members get complimentary appetizers and access to exclusive tasting events. The DNFT updates tier automatically based on visit count across all locations.

Retail points program. A fashion brand awards 1 point per dollar spent. At 200 points, the user unlocks a 10% discount voucher DNFT. At 500 points, a 20% voucher. At 1000 points, early access to new collections. Points are tracked on-chain and the user can see their balance and upcoming rewards in their wallet.

Multi-brand coalition. Three restaurants in the same neighborhood create a shared loyalty campaign: visit all 3, earn a "Neighborhood Explorer" badge and a shared voucher DNFT good at any of the three locations. Each restaurant issues its own PoV, and the parent campaign DNFT tracks progress across all three. Collaborative loyalty that benefits everyone.

Gym challenge card. A fitness studio issues a challenge-based loyalty card: attend 5 different class types in one month to unlock a free personal training session. The DNFT tracks which class types have been attended (yoga ✓, HIIT ✓, spin ✓, pilates ✗, boxing ✗). Visual progress in the wallet motivates completion.

Why On-Chain Loyalty Matters

The global loyalty management market is worth hundreds of billions of dollars, and most of it runs on fragile infrastructure: centralized databases, proprietary apps, paper cards, and siloed point systems that die when the brand pivots or the platform shuts down.

On-chain loyalty through bonuz DNFTs doesn't just digitize stamp cards. It makes loyalty owned, verifiable, portable, and composable. Users own their status. Brands get fraud-proof tracking. The ecosystem gets network effects. And when a user walks into a new venue with a wallet full of verified engagement history, that's more valuable than any coupon code.