There are a lot of businesses that offer free customer loyalty programs of various kinds. Airlines, hotels, specialty goods stores, drugstores, many grocery stores, gas stations, and many other businesses have found that customer reward programs that save their loyal customers a bit of money can end up making a great deal of money for that business.
One great example of this type of program is the MyPanera customer reward program run through Panera Bread. If you dine there, as I do every once in a great while, the program costs you nothing and seems to occasionally give you something for free. I earned a free bagel on one visit and a free beverage on another visit; both were basically surprises when I used my MyPanera card at the checkout.
The CVS ExtraCare program is another example. You earn “ExtraBucks” whenever you make purchases at CVS (which essentially function as store credit) and are sometimes eligible for additional sales, too. Other drugstores offer similar programs. None of these programs cost a thing.