How to Win your Customers' Loyalty: Dos & Don'ts

Budgets are tight and delivering value for money has never been harder, yet customers are more likely than ever to shop around – hanging on to your market share right now is all about loyalty! When it comes to customer loyalty follow these "Dos and don'ts".

Dos:

• Do research properly before setting up a scheme – trying to force a loyalty scheme on consumers that doesn’t meet their needs or fulfil their expectations will result in failure.
• Do communicate your scheme properly with your target audience in mind. Failure to effectively explain what the scheme does, how to redeem rewards or how to access other benefits can leave great schemes unused.
• Do create a proper business plan before launching a scheme. If the numbers don’t add up, try a different tack that will give you the ROI you desire – well run schemes should not need any increase in existing promotions and marketing budgets.

Don'ts:

• Don’t assume that B2B and B2C schemes can run in the same way – while there are similarities, there are also fundamental differences in the relationship with customers in B2B and B2C that should influence the way a scheme is structured.
• Don’t rush into a coalition scheme to save money without considering the effect that partners in that scheme could have on your own brand and marketing.
• Don’t make things unnecessarily complex – some of the best schemes are the simplest to operate and the easiest for customers to use.

Marketing Tips:

1. A loyalty scheme must constantly be reviewed and developed to meet changing consumer demands, expectations and channels of engagement.
2. It must engage with members to understand their motivations and expectations and use this knowledge to deliver relevant communications.
3. It must provide clear benefits for membership and deliver added value in terms of financial rewards, customer service and the member experience.
4. It must provide rewards that are timely, relevant and attainable, in order to drive incremental, profitable changes in member behaviour.
5. It must consider the benefits of new technology and clearly communicate these to members while managing expectations and reservations, particularly across differing demographic groups.
6. It must provide the business with a return on investment through measurable financial terms, data assets and increased brand presence over and above the competition.
7. It must tread carefully between providing relevant rewards and over-tailoring the offer
8. It must offer members a better service than their non-member counterparts, as well as providing them with improvements in the simplicity, immediacy and accessibility of offers and information.
9. It must work harder to understand customers’ motivations for repeat spending and communicate with members accordingly with relevant messaging.

If you need help with your Loyalty Scheme (existing or planning for a new one?), please contact
Dr. Antony Michail
a.michail [at] anacalypsis.eu