Creating a successful loyalty strategy relies on developing customer relationship through enhancing value. You know how important it is to use an audience-centered approach to offer value that is meaningful, timely useful to the member, your brand and your advertising and promotion partners. The process of creating a successful strategy includes considering a mix of at least four types of benefits to entice participation. Using these benefits effectively will help you maintain focus in execution over the life of your program:
1. Initial Participation and Enrollment Offers: In an environment where consumers are inundated with advertising messages and solicitations to engage, it’s important to create instant gratification offers to attract registration. In addition to an offer of points, consider using the “Instant Win” feature as a method of involving new members in participation. You can also create exclusive contests only available to recent members (use the targeting feature of the contest module). The sooner a new member enjoys the benefits after applying for membership, the more likely you will influence habitual behavior.
2. Accumulated Benefits: The more a member participates and engages in desired behavior the more he/she should be recognized and rewarded. This of course comes in the form of accumulating points to earn opportunities. How valuable are your opportunities to attract repeat behavior? In addition to sweepstakes, trade-ins and auctions, how can you create added value for highly engaged members? Perhaps publicized offers only available to members who have achieved certain levels (status), or events only available by invitation to the top xx% of players? Again, this can be achieved with targeting. You can also offer discounts, rebates or special coupons available only to your elite members.
3. Instant Benefits: One cause of declining participation is the tendency of programs to become stale. Administrators find a few successful tactics and innovation takes a back seat. Surprise your members with unexpected, spontaneous offers to reinforce the sense of belonging and increase mind share. Announce (on air, in print, online, via email, by text, in social media, etc) an enter to win contest for a nice prize over a short duration (less than 24 hours). Even better: Offer the contest for everyone to enter for FREE (no points). This will attract new membership as well as create a new reason for inactive participants to participate. Make “surprise” a regular part of your strategy.
4. Emotional Benefits: Explore tactics to reinforce the member’s emotional connection to your brand with benefits unique to the brand. If you can create ways for member participation to make them feel good about the relationship, another reason to engage will be established. Brainstorm ways to achieve this for your program, even if the idea is as simple as organizing a charitable event where donated points turn into benefits for a charity of choice. Especially in difficult economic times, the public will appreciate it if your brand makes it easy for them to do something good for others.
A thriving, dynamic loyalty campaign requires care and planning. Build in unique opportunities to engage members on their terms. For help with your loyalty strategy, contact Triton’s Audience Engagement team…email Tracy Johnson or email Jeanette Graham!
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