In the beginning, there were punchcards. Since then, man has created magnetic stripe and bar code cards, smart cards, java rings, and RFID cards. Technology has evolved greatly over the past 25 years, and loyalty sponsors and providers are still seeking the silver bullet of delivery devices.

While we’re busy debating which technology will win out, I wonder if The KeyRing Thing will make a good bridge to the future?

My friend and Loyalty Truth contributing author Jim Kuschill wrote a great article for Colloquy entitled a ”World Without Cards” in which he weighed the pros and cons of whether we needed cards at all. If we’ve learned anything over the past decade or so, it is that the technology or device used as a membership card is the not the sweet-spot of the value chain.

The right strategy, targeting, and value proposition are the keys to engaging consumers in loyalty programs. Get that right, and you could get away with giving members something akin to a gas station bathroom key (the small key attached to a large wooden dowel), and they would carry it.

Admittedly an exaggeration, I hope you understand the point. Sometimes the sexiest technology, after thorough vetting, is revealed to be not much more than a ”solution looking for a problem to solve“.  Jim Kuschill and I debated the added value of smart cards to loyalty program execution for literally years and, in the end, we agreed that it wasn’t the smart card that would make the difference.

What we did learn from our debate was put to the test as we worked with card issuers in Latin America and Europe as they introduced EMV standard chip cards into their markets. The lesson: it was the synergy of technology and circumstances that made the difference.

With many Latin American banks owning a strong acquiring business, we were able to recruit merchants to support POS bonusing and point redemption at POS to pay for purchases. It was this combination of factors that helped us migrate traditional points programs from magnetic stripe to EMV cards and we allowed the smart card to grab most of the glory.

After lots of debate over technology, I appreciate a return to simplicity. That’s why I find a particular brilliance in the Key Ring Thing, highlighted by Good Morning America as part of their coverage of the “best” discount shopping cards. In the GMA piece, Shop Smart Magazine Editor Lisa Lee Freeman profiled the device as she also highlighted her favorite discount cards found on Shortcuts.com.

When I opened my morning newspaper and read another profile of this device, I had to spread the word. The Fort Lauderdale Sun Sentinel chronicled how for $3.97, you can get yourself a high quality PVC card that holds 5 or 6 barcodes of your favorite rewards program. Through the web interface, consumers can select from popular programs or load their own if it does not appear in the list.

Apps to aggregate loyalty cards don’t end there, as My CardStar allows consumers to catalogue their favorites on their iPhone, Blackberry, or Android and JustOneClubCard.com, created by Gregory Pinero, serves as a more casual hobby site for the same purpose.

I like the idea of turning my night-watchman style keychain into something more sleek courtesy of the KeyRing Thing. I like even better having a “wallet” to store all my favorites on my iPhone, though I wonder how many bar code readers are enabled to read from the iPhone screen (an acceptance issue needs to be resolved).

In the end, it just might be that the highest purpose of “high tech” will be to deliver caveman-like simplicity to consumers. For today, the KeyRing Thing delivers on that count.

For tomorrow, who knows? It might even be that the Poken Girl has the answer….