FIRST came the Superquinn Superclub card. And now Dunnes Stores is introducing its own loyalty card, aimed as a pre-emptive strike against what is expected to be a major marketing drive by Tesco, the new owners of the Quinnsworth/ Crazy Prices chain. By introducing the card, Dunnes is moving its marketing drive on to a new level.

The old "better value" pitch is now being refined with Dunnes offering incentives to regular customers in a bid to hold on to and build on its market share in an increasingly competitive market. A central figure in the new focus is Dunnes' head of food, Mr Dick Reeves, who joined from Quinnsworth last year, while the introduction of new techology under Mr Andrew Street, formerly from Boots in Britain, is also crucial.

Mr Feargal Quinns Superguinn was the first super-market chain in Europe to introduce a loyalty card scheme through its "superclub", now five years in operation. It offers shoppers gifts or discounts in return for points accumulated and has also forged links with a range of other retailers.

Dunnes' scheme will be different concentrating initially ion offering money off in return for points accumulated. Broadly each £100 spent will give the shopper £1 off. Other incentives such as flights or holiday discounts are expected to follow.

Because it has yet to introduce full scanning technology in all its stores, Dunnes Stores will have to operate a "£1 per point" scheme, initially at least. However, once the introduction of scanning is complete it is already advancing apace

Dunnes will be able, for example, to offer special deals offering extra points on certain products, just as Superquinn does. And a whole range of other marketing opportunities will also be opened up over time from the schemes database.

Loyalty cards are an attempt to eliminate the "floating consumer culture. They reduce the chances of customers casually changing where they shop and have become a major factor in the British market.

Tesco launched its loyalty card called Clubcard Plus, in February 1995. One point is allocated for every pound spent. The value amounts to one per cent of the figure spent by the consumer - similar to what Dunnes is offering - and additional vouchers, with money off specific items, are also included.

These specific vouchers are Just that specific. For example, Tesco runs a Student Card and a card for older people, and every item purchased is scanned in the database. Students, for example, are unlikely to get a voucher for a reduction off nappies. The scheme has a total membership of fend million in Britain.

Sainsbury, Tesco's big rival, also operates a loyalty card system. It is similar in many respects to the Tesco card system, but it has additional uses. For example, loo points can get you into the London Aquarium, can be set against your phone bill or help pay for a flight.

The days when supermarkets just sold food are, it seems, long gone. Now marketing is all in an attempt to win customer loyalty and Irish consumers will look forward to attempts to woo them in the months ahead.