Originally published 12/2011

Loyalty Programs are very hit and miss. Some are great and others make you wonder why you signed up in the first place. Your wallet is full of punch cards from coffee shops or it isn’t because you have so many loyalty cards you don’t want to carry them. What if you only had to carry one loyalty card? What if that card was a card you already carry? Your credit card!

We had the opportunity to check out MOGL, a Solana Beach (San Diego) start-up, at the San Diego Bay Wine and Food Festival. MOGL, is a mix of loyalty program, charity support, and life gamification. You sign-up on their site and link your credit and/or debit card(s). When you dine at a participating restaurant you get 10% cash back, which is paid out at the end of each month. If you spend at least $20 during your visit, MOGL donates a meal on your behalf to Feeding America. Finally, for every dollar members earn, MOGL puts ten cents into a jackpot. If you’re the top spender at that restaurant, you become the MOGL and win the jackpot for the month. So while it’s great and all being the mayor of a place on FourSquare, it doesn’t mean anything, where being a MOGL gets you cash!

MOGL is currently available in Southern California, but with new venture capital is quickly expanding. Expect to see them in San Francisco and New York in the near future.