The Importance of Data and Insights to ensure a healthy Loyalty Program

Last updated: July 7, 2022

Customer Engagementdata and insightsloyalty programs

So, you have created and launched a loyalty program.

You have tailored the rewards to appeal to your members and you have created some personalized special offers. You have also made sure that you’re sending members the right promotions at the right time so they feel part of it and engage more actively with your brand.

All done. But how do you determine if your loyalty program is working well?

That’s where data and insights come in to steer your loyalty program in the right direction.

Loyalty Programs enhance Customer Loyalty.

The engaged customer is a more valuable customer. According to Accenture, “57% of consumers^[1] spend more on brands or providers to which they are loyal.” Nike loyalty program members reportedly spend three times more overall than non-members.

According to the Q1 2022 Global Loyalty Programs Survey^[2], the Loyalty Programs Market in India is expected to grow by 13.2% on annual basis to reach US$ 2425.6 million in 2022.

Loyalty programs have been continually used by brands to not only entice consumers but to re-market to them in a way that strengthens their affinity to the brand.

Harnessing customer information and data through loyalty programs, brands personalize their offerings to improve customer engagement as well as retention and tailor experiences so that their customers keep coming back and increase spending.

But a Loyalty Program is only as good as the data capabilities that underpin it.

According to a survey by Merkle^[3], 62% of marketers say their loyalty programs are fully integrated with their CRM data. 7 in 10 marketers are using point-based loyalty tactics for their programs, while others are using spend-based (51%), cash back (48%), and surprise and delight (35%) tactics.

Brands are using data to segment and target personalized communications and offers to their target audience. This helps in optimizing revenue generation and long-term customer value.

As an example, Sephora leverages its loyalty program data^[4] to offer its members a combination of discounts and other rewards. For higher-tier members, personalized gifts and experiential event recommendations are based on customer activity and engagement with the brand.

Reebok’s loyalty program^[5] rewards customers for sharing data on their attributes and preferences as well as brand interactions, including on social media. The rewards include discounts, early access to products and invites to exclusive events.

What's in store for a Loyalty Program backed by data and insights?

Loyalty programs can be a cost-effective mechanism for collecting customer data and driving sales. Additional benefits include:

1. Customer Segmentation and Personalization

Data allows brands to personalize and make their experience with a brand more relevant. For instance, tailoring specific programs to specific segments or unlocking exclusive merchandise for customers who value exclusivity.

No two customers are the same, hence leveraging data to send the right messages and rewards at the right time. BigCity offers skill-based games like Predict & Win that is relevant to the brand and the target audience. This also helps brands gain traction in loyalty metrics and turn customers into brand loyalists.

2. Mapping out Customer Journey

Mapping out the customer journey helps in gaining clarity on the experiences and frustrations of customers as they progress with a brand over time. This also helps in providing insight on how marketers can remove roadblocks and hurdles to create a seamless experience and prevent churn.

For instance, BigCity has created a customized loyalty app for a world-renowned beer brand with exciting engagement modules like Happy Hours and rewards that cater to their young and dynamic TG.

3. Basket Analysis

Insights of a loyalty program captures not only when and how much people buy but also what they buy and how often. Hence brands can use this data to analyze the shopping baskets of their customers to find out more about them.

Basket analysis helps in identifying top customers for specific product lines, analyzing customer lifetime events, and identifying up-selling and cross-selling opportunities. For instance, BigCity’s WhatsApp-based loyalty program integrating an earn-and-burn tactic for a leading automobile lubricant brand has helped garner channel loyalty, increased counter share, and digitized trade offers.

4. Customized Marketing Communication

Based on loyalty program data, brands can customize their business interaction with customers by creating different offers and sharing personalized messages to different customer segments.

For instance, for loyalty programs targeted at mothers, BigCity delighted the TG with experiential rewards like salon experiences, movies, dining, and more. At a more sophisticated level, this allows brands to create truly one-to-one marketing messages based on a customer’s buying behavioral patterns.

The more your customers belong and engage with your Loyalty Program, the more you will be able to drive your Overall Business Growth.

Insights are as good as the quality of your data. So better quality data will offer you better-quality knowledge about your business and your customers, enabling better business decisions.

At BigCity, we specialize in building customized loyalty programs based on data-backed parameters powered by a robust reward network and instant gratification. With cutting-edge technology, we help in combining online engagement tactics like gamification, AR, chatbots, and digital contests to create bespoke loyalty programs.

If you are looking to improve the performance of your existing loyalty program or thinking to launch a bespoke loyalty program, then get in touch with us at marketing@bigcity.in, and we can discuss how we can create a tailored response for your needs.