LOYALTY VS. ENGAGEMENT

Today we are thrilled to announce that our president and CEO, Tom Belle, will be featured in the August issue of Direct Marketing Magazine. He answers their “One Tough Question” by exploring the roles of loyalty and engagement in the development and maintenance of customer relationships. In preparation for the launch, we are doing a three-part blog series highlighting these exciting areas of marketing strategy.

Part 1 – Loyalty: A Competitive Edge

First of all, let’s get on the same page with our definition. Loyalty – in strict marketing terms – is a transaction-based interaction motivated by an incentive. The incentive could be a discount, an offer for something extra, points to redeem on a purchase or a sale, and so on.These days, loyalty programs are everywhere. From consumer-based programs offered by restaurants, hotels, airlines, banks, and supermarkets to B2B-focused programs that reward sales teams, distributors, agencies and entire corporations, they have proven to be an extremely successful factor in the customer-brand relationship.

Why are they so successful? These types of programs give customers desirable, useful or just plain exciting reasons to keep buying from you or doing business with you. For your company, loyalty programs drive immediate and specific customer behaviors that get results you can measure against your bottom line. But with so many programs out there, it can be tough to figure out how to use loyalty to truly differentiate yourself.

Stand Out in the Crowd

Here’s the key: it doesn’t start with your business. It starts with your customers. Answer some of these “tough” questions: Who are they, and what do they need? What do they want or expect from you? What gets their attention? What motivates them to interact with you – and further, what gets them to come back? The best way to create a solid, successful, competitive loyalty program is to focus first on your customers.

The other side of this equation is your landscape. Who are your key competitors? What types of loyalty programs do they have in place? What alternative rewards or specials could you offer that are different, unexpected…and better? In today’s competitive world, loyalty is a strategic play that truly can give you an edge. It all depends on how you approach it. The end goal: make your customers’ lives easier, help them save, give them rewards, help them maintain their current lifestyles – so they keep coming back for more.

Get Started

If you want to learn more about creating a customer-focused loyalty program that will give you an edge, give us a call or contact us. And stay tuned for part 2 in our series, where we explore customer engagement.