Kendra LustyIn today’s world, many businesses are seeing increasing diversity among their members. Are your membership benefits keeping up?
Access Development has expanded its loyalty platform with nine new languages, multi-lingual support, flexible payments, and currency conversion. This provides forward-thinking membership organizations the tools to serve increasingly diverse audiences and stay ahead of demographic shifts.
Look through the mission statements of most membership organizations and you'll notice a common thread: they're all about helping people. Professional associations help people advance their careers. Social clubs help people build community. Non-profits help people thrive in life.
So naturally, the benefits you offer should support that mission, right? But here's the thing: it's really hard to help people if they can't easily access what you're offering. Maybe it's a language barrier. Maybe it's confusing international pricing. Maybe they get stuck and can't find help in a language they're comfortable with.
That's exactly why we've just rolled out some major updates to the Access platform. These aren't just nice-to-have features, they're loyalty solutions designed to ensure your benefits reach more members, more often.
The Opportunity: 68 Million Americans Need Non-English Benefits & Loyalty Platforms
Currently, one in five Americans speaks a language other than English at home. This percentage is growing rapidly, and has been for decades. Already it represents a large chunk of the population, and likely, a growing portion of your members.
Think about your member base for a second. You've probably got:
- Members who are more comfortable navigating in their native language, even if they speak English
- International chapters or offices where English isn't the primary language
- Immigrant communities who are still building their English skills
- Multi-generational families where older members prefer their heritage language
Access Development is the nation’s largest private discount program, which is one of the most inclusive benefits a membership organization can offer. The breadth of savings, ranging from everyday necessities to aspirational purchases, make it relevant to members of all generations, income levels, geographic location and cultural background.
Access has been hard at work ensuring that language barriers don’t keep members from enjoying a valuable benefit, and don’t come between our partners and the member engagement and retention they’re working for.
Access Update #1: Ten Languages Across Loyalty Platform and Mobile App
We've expanded our platform to support ten languages total: English, German, Spanish, French, Korean, Italian, Portuguese, Tagalong, Chinese, and Japanese. Members can browse the Access discount website and My Deals Mobile app in whichever language feels most natural to them. This opens the doors to hundreds of thousands of travel, dining, shopping, and even more savings.
On the website, there's a language drop down menu at the top of the homepage. In the app, members just tap "More" and change the default language to any of their choosing.
Access Update #2: Multilingual Customer Support Chat
Access customer service chat now supports multiple languages. Access has always been dedicated to offering excellent, hands-on support with a dedicated, on-site team of agents. Now, those agents are armed with the tools needed to help every member, every time. This helps ensure every interaction ends on a positive note, and keeps engagement high as they return to enjoy their savings again and again.
Members can start a chat in any language, and the service team member will do their best to assist in the same language. No more frustration. No more translators in another tab. Just real help, in real time, in the language they prefer.
The Impact of Language Services: Higher Conversions, Better Loyalty
The business case for offering language services is pretty compelling. When you remove language as a barrier, several things happen:
You can reach new member segments. Research shows that 72% of consumers are more likely to buy a product if information is available in their native language. Even more striking, 56% say language is more important than price when making a buying decision. There are entire communities you might be missing simply because your benefits feel inaccessible.
Your utilization rates go up. Businesses that localize their websites see an average conversion rate increase of 70%, with some seeing increases up to 100%. When members can navigate comfortably, they actually use the benefits you're paying for.
Retention improves. 70% of end-users are more loyal to companies that provide support in their native language, and 29% of businesses have reported losing customers due to lack of language support. When people feel seen and valued by your organization, they stick around and they tell others about you.
You stand out. 72% of companies that provide multilingual support say it has increased member satisfaction, and 58% also reported an increase in brand loyalty. While other organizations are still offering English-only benefits, you're delivering an inclusive experience that resonates with diverse audiences.
"We hear this all the time from organizations we work with. They'll say, 'Hey, we've got this Spanish-speaking chapter in Texas and they're not using the benefits,' or 'Our Canadian members keep asking us for French support,' or 'We're trying to grow our membership in immigrant communities but nothing's working.' The thing is, it's not that these people don't want your benefits—they just can't easily access them. Language isn't some niche concern anymore. It's fundamental to actually serving a modern, diverse membership."
The Challenge: Modern Members Expect Payment Flexibility on their Loyalty Platforms
Just as language accessibility opens doors, payment flexibility keeps them from closing.
Member expectations around payments have completely changed in the last few years. This includes how people pay for things, and even how they perceive pricing. People want clarity, and they demand flexibility. This is especially true when it comes to travel related purchases, which typically come with a big price tag and even bigger expectations.
Flexible payment options like BNPL (Buy Now, Pay Later) and currency conversion are beneficial for:
- Younger generations who prefer to manage their cash flow strategically
- Those with unexpected travel needs who don't want to blow their budget
- The growing number of members who consider convenience an important perk of membership
- International members who live outside the U.S.
- Members with family overseas who travel regularly
- Organizations with global operations where employees book cross-border travel constantly
The Access Travel Platform offers some of the most competitive rates on hotels, car rentals, and theme park/event tickets. The range of options, from budget-friendly stays to dream vacations, makes travel accessible to members across all life stages, financial situations, and travel preferences. Even with steep discounts, some members want even more options when it comes to paying for their vacations.
Access has been hard at work ensuring that payment constraints don't keep members from booking their next trip. After all, payment flexibility increases conversions, and conversions show you that your members are using and enjoying their benefits.
Access Update #3: Buy Now, Pay Later for U.S. Hotel Bookings and Theme Park Tickets
We've added Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) options for hotel bookings and theme park tickets, currently available to U.S. customers. If you're not familiar with BNPL, it's exactly what it sounds like: members can book their hotel or buy their tickets now and split the payment over time, often with no interest if they pay according to terms.
During checkout, BNPL shows up right alongside credit and debit cards. Members select their payment plan, get quick approval, and they're done. The whole thing takes minutes.
Access Update #4: Multi-Currency Conversion on Hotel Bookings
Access Development now offers automatic currency conversion when members book hotels. In addition to the U.S. dollar (USD), members can pay with United Arab Emirates dirham (AED), Australian dollar (AUD), Canadian dollar (CAD) and Mexican peso (MXN). No need for calculators or anticipating changing exchange rates.
Once a member brings up a list of available hotel savings for their chosen destination and dates, they have the option to change what currency the price is displayed in. Exchange rates are displayed clearly, so there are no surprises.
The Impact of Payment Flexibility: Higher Conversions, Higher Spend
You want your members using and enjoying their benefits. Every successful booking represents an engaged member. When you remove payment woes as a barrier, several benefits emerge:
Trusted payment options increase loyalty. The market for BNPL hit $340 billion in global transaction value last year and is growing at 12% annually. 86.5 million Americans used BNPL last year, with over half of millennials and gen z members preferring it over credit cards. Worldwide, 79% of customers are more loyal to businesses that provide clear and seamless currency conversion options.
Fewer carts abandoned. 26% of Americans say they're more likely to buy when BNPL is offered, and as many as 49% of customers report they will abandon a cart if they don’t have local currency options. Members who might have hesitated or abandoned a booking follow through when they have payment flexibility.
Average booking values rise. BNPL can increase average order values by 20-40%. Like discounts, flexible payment options help members afford more than they otherwise could, meaning that many choose a nicer hotel or extend their trip by a day.
"Think about it from the member's perspective: You're planning a trip to Paris. The hotel is $250 per night—but wait, can I even afford to pay the full amount right now? Suddenly you're checking your bank balance, and you know what happens? You just close the tab.
Members aren't being difficult; the platform just gave them too many reasons to give up. That's why payment flexibility features like currency conversion and Buy Now, Pay Later to qualified members aren't just nice-to-haves—they remove the friction that kills bookings."
The Bottom Line: Diverse Members Need Diverse Benefits
Why the recent updates to a loyalty platform that has been serving businesses and their members for over 25 years? The answer is simple: the need is urgent.
The demographics of the United States are shifting rapidly. The number of people speaking languages other than English at home has nearly tripled since 1980, growing from 23 million to 68 million. Language diversity is increasing. Payment preferences are evolving—BNPL usage grew 970% between 2019 and 2021. Member expectations have been shaped by consumer experiences with Amazon, Netflix, and their banking apps—they expect personalization, flexibility, and support in the channels and languages they prefer.
Membership organizations that recognize this and adapt will thrive. Those that don't will slowly watch their relevance decline as they fail to connect with new generations and diverse communities.
These updates aren't just about being inclusive (though that's important). They're about being competitive. They're about ensuring that the benefits you invest in actually drive the outcomes you care about: recruitment, retention, and engagement.
Innovation For Tomorrow’s Members. What's Next?
Access Development helps businesses and associations of all sizes create benefits experiences that actually work for their entire member base. We're constantly listening to what organizations need and evolving our platform to meet those needs.
Feel free to contact us if you’d like to learn more about how Access can help you. We are continually innovating, improving products and services to become ever more accessible to a diverse audience. To learn about some of our other recent updates, click on the links below.
- Expansion of our travel benefits including theme parks and event tickets
- Omnichannel marketing services to keep members connected with organizations
- Dedication to online data security, as evidenced by SOC 2 certification
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Innovative solutions for flexible rewards programs, like the cash back travel product
Topics: Customer Engagement, Member Benefits, member engagement, loyalty programs, loyalty platform
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