Both for economical and environmental reasons – paper is dying. People consume their news, magazines, and books all through digital. So why not make their wallet content digital as well? According to The 2015 Loyalty Report- “48% of loyalty program members would like to engage with a digital loyalty card program through their mobile devices.” As the mobile wallet grows, so will this number. And as if that wasn’t enough incentive to make a digital loyalty card, we recently showcased 5 reasons why you should consider digital loyalty in a sweet Infographic. But today’s article is more specifically beneficial.
And now that you understand why it’s a good idea, it’s time to implement. Which brings us to today’s post, 3 simple steps you can take to make a digital loyalty card program:
1.Figure out your offer
Your digital loyalty card goal is simple. Drive more customers into your store and entice them to come back – be loyal. But if you want your digital loyalty program to be one that customers remember and actually use, the offer needs to be good. Whether you’re giving something away for free or offering them a chance to buy an exclusive item, the power of your loyalty program is not just in what you offer, but how you offer it.
a) When considering a digital loyalty card offer, consider something that can’t be bought with money. If the user can “pay-to-win” they often will – this is prevalent in the mobile games industry and cheapens the experience – making them feel less loved by or involved with your brand. So instead, to ensure a strong loyal action rather than a one off purchase, offer something intangible. How about an experience only accessible through your digital loyalty program: a tour of your facility (like a wine seller offering a private wine tasting and tour of a vineyard for every 5th purchase). And if you have to offer a tangible/physical item, make it something that can’t otherwise be bought elsewhere. Only offer this item to people who have completed your loyalty steps.
b) Once you have your digital loyalty card offer (preferably intangible and inaccessible through other means) in mind, you need to figure out what it takes to redeem this offer. Is it 5 purchases or 10 purchases? This should be decided by how frequently a customer will visit your store (i.e. consumers will visit a coffee shop more often than their hair dresser, so adjust your offer accordingly). It’s also important to consider how many steps you offer up front. Someone will often push harder to finish a goal (complete a number of purchases) the closer they get to finishing that goal. In essence, the easier it is to ‘Chunk‘ your loyalty steps and see the end approaching, the faster consumers will work to achieve it. So perhaps consider offering the first two stamps for free. Or two stamps instead of one for hitting the halfway point. Chunking the goal like this for the consumer helps them feel like it’s easier to reach the reward. It’s like seeing 0.99 cents rather than $1.
What’s more, offering a random (variable ratio) digital loyalty card reward has been shown to scientifically improve performance on a task – so offer a random gift halfway through and keep your customer spontaneously excited. It’s the slot machine mechanic and it works well for Casinos.
If you can answer the question – What is your offer and what does it take to redeem the offer? Then you are well on your way to having a successful digital loyalty card program.
An example of a Loopy Loyalty digital stamp card
2.Design your digital loyalty card
Now that you have your offer, you need your actual digital loyalty card. You can custom design your loyalty card by inserting your own images, or you could use one of the many templates that are on offer – like using the Loopy Loyalty Stamp Card Designer Tool where you can have your loyalty card designed and on your phone within minutes. Regardless, designing your loyalty card should be an easy and effortless process. And that’s not even the best part.
You can take the loyalty card you just built and demo it within Apple’s Passbook or Google Pay to see exactly how it will look on your phone. That’s a big step up from receiving your mystery loyalty cards in the mail two weeks after ordering, only to find that you hate the way they look.
With something like Loopy Loyalty, you can continuously edit your digital loyalty cards until you’re completely satisfied. Then purchase. No mystery involved.
3.Distribute your loyalty card
Finally, the fun part. Multichannel distribution. This is where having a digital loyalty card, rather than a paper one, will make a huge difference. With a paper card, you must have face-to-face contact with the consumer in order to give them their loyalty card. With a digital version, consumers can receive their card via a number of different ways. SMS, Email, Facebook, or if they are in your store, they can scan your unique QR code with Passbook (now called Apple Wallet on iOS), which is already on their phone. No app downloading is necessary. But wait, that’s not all.
Sure, I just gave you the three major steps to running your first digital loyalty card campaign but now what? Now you measure. This is yet another advantage of using digital loyalty cards over paper.
4. (An Extra Step For Free) Measure/manage the digital loyalty card performance online
You now have access to real-time analytics through the Loopy Loyalty Analytics Dashboard. You can see when customers visit and exactly how many stamps they have left. All in real-time. There is no need to go through your records and manually compile all this data. It’s all readily available in the Analytics Dashboard.
I hope this helped you launch your first digital loyalty campaign. Remember, as mobile wallet usage grows, so will they want for digital loyalty and rewards cards. Don’t force customers not to participate in your loyalty program because it’s on paper. Help them remember your loyalty card by placing it right on their phone.
