Going the Distance: Four Ways to Build a Better Customer Loyalty Program for Your Brand

It’s easy enough for a customer to join your loyalty program, especially when you’re offering an incentive such as discounts. All your customer has to do is give out some basic information, and voila! They’re in the fold, a brand new loyalty member with your company. From there, it’s happily ever after. You offer the perks; they stand solidly by you, bringing you their continued business. Simple. Or is it? In reality, just how many of those customers are act ively participating in your loyalty program? Do you know? Sure, loyalty program memberships are on the rise according to market research company eMarketer, having jumped 25 percent in the space of just two years. However, that figure may be a bit misleading. The truth is that, while loyalty program sign-ups may be more numerous, active participation in such programs is actually in decline. At the time of the study, the average US household had memberships in 29 loyalty programs; yet consumers were only active in 12 of those. That’s just 41 percent. And even that meager figure represents a drop of 2 percentage points per year over each of the preceding four years, according to a study by loyalty-marketing research company COLLOQUY.

When discounts just aren’t enough

So what’s a brand to do? How can you make your loyalty program worth your customer’s while—as well as your own? After all, gaining a new loyalty member doesn’t mean much if your customer isn’t actively participating in your program. Consider this: Does your customer loyalty program offer members anything different from what your competitors are offering? Chances are your program includes discounts. That’s a given. And what customer doesn’t appreciate a good discount? But when every other company out there is providing this staple benefit in comparable amounts, it becomes less and less likely that customers will remain loyal to any one particular brand. Frankly, it’s all too easy for customers to get lost in a sea of loyalty member discounts. They’re everywhere. In fact, just under half of internet users perceive that all rewards programs are alike, according to a 2015 eMarketer survey. The key to success, then, is to differentiate your business from the crowd. If you can offer your customers something unique and valuable beyond the usual discount, chances are they’ll be more likely to stick with your brand. Here’s some inspiration from companies who get it.

Virgin: Reward more purchases with more benefits.

That’s not to say you need to get rid of discounts entirely. In fact, nothing could be further from the truth. Customers still love a good discount. The goal is to be creative in terms of the loyalty perks you offer. Take the Virgin Atlantic Flying Club, for example. As part of its loyalty program, the airline allows members to earn miles and tier points. Members are inducted at the Club Red tier, from which they can move up to Club Silver and then Club Gold. Here, it’s not just a discount. It’s status. And people respond to feeling important, elite. Still, even where the rewards themselves are concerned, Virgin is motivating loyalty customers with some pretty attractive offers. At the Club Red tier, members earn flight miles and receive discounts on rental cars, airport parking, hotels and holiday flights. But as members rise in tiers, they get even more. At the Club Silver tier, members earn 50 percent more points on flights, access to expedited check-in, and priority standby seating. And once they reach the top, Club Gold members receive double miles, priority boarding and access to exclusive clubhouses where they can get a drink or a massage before their flight. Now that’s some serious incentive to keep coming back for more. Discounts are still part of the equation – but they are designed with innovation and personal value in mind, elevating them to more than just savings.

Amazon Prime: Pay upfront and become a VIP.

What if your customers only had to pay a one-time upfront fee to get a year’s worth of substantial benefits? It may not sound like the smartest business idea at first glance. But take a closer look. Amazon Prime users pay a nominal $99 a year to gain free, two-day shipping on millions of products with no minimum purchase. And that’s just one benefit of going Prime. It’s true that Amazon loses $1-2 billion a year on Prime. This comes as no surprise given the incredible value the program offers. But get this: Amazon makes up for its losses in markedly higher transaction frequency. Specifically, Prime members spend an average of $1,500 a year on Amazon.com, compared with $625 spent by non-Prime users, a ccording to a 2015 report from Consumer Intelligence Research Partners.

Patagonia: Cater to customer values.

Sometimes, the draw for consumers isn’t saving money or getting a great deal. The eco-friendly outdoor clothing company Patagonia figured this out back in 2011, when it partnered with eBay to launch its Common Threads Initiative: a program that allows customers to resell their used Patagonia clothing via the company’s website. Why is this program important to customers? And how does it benefit Patagonia? The company’s brand embraces environmental and social responsibility, so it was only fitting that they create a platform for essentially recycling old clothing rather than merely throwing it away. The Common Threads Initiative helps Patagonia build a memorable brand and fierce loyalty by offering its customers a cause that aligns with deep personal values. OK, so their customers get to make a little money, too. Everybody wins.

American Airlines: Gamify your loyalty program.

If you’re going to offer your customers a loyalty program, why not make it f un? After all, engagement is key to building a strong relationship with your customer. And what better way to achieve that goal than making a game of it. American Airlines had this very thing in mind when it created its AAdvantage Passport Challenge following its merger with USAirways. The goal: find a new way to engage customers as big changes were underway. Using a custom Facebook application, American Airlines created a virtual passport to increase brand awareness while offering members a chance to earn bonus points. Customers earned these rewards through a variety of game-like activities, from answering trivia questions to tracking travel through a personalized dashboard. In the end, participants earned more than 70 percent more stamps than expected – and the airline saw a ROI of more than 500 percent. The takeaway: people like games.

Stand out from the crowd.

Your approach to your customer loyalty program should align with your overall marketing approach. Effective branding is about standing out, not blending it. Being memorable is key. To this end, keep in mind that loyalty programs are no longer a novelty. That means that yesterday’s strategies won’t work moving forward, so look for ways to rise above the noise, setting yourself apart from the cloying drone of countless other cookie-cutter programs.

8 Keys to a Lead-Catching LinkedIn Company Page

Given the mind-boggling speed of all things social media, it's easy to lose perspective on the passage of time. So try not to choke on your chai latte when you read these words: LinkedIn is now officially a decade old.

Yep. It launched in May of 2003 – when Mark Zuckerberg was still an unknown Harvard freshman. Facebook's predecessor MySpace, now having its midlife crisis and hanging out with rock stars, hadn't even been born. And Twitter was three or four years from hatching.

While logic would suggest that businesses would be the earliest adopters of any platform that’s founded on the concept of virtual networking, LinkedIn has been sluggish in giving brands a seat at the community table.

In the latter half of the 2000s, Facebook and Twitter quickly adapted for business users as marketers chased customers into those exploding communities. LinkedIn, however, didn't even allow companies the ability to post status updates until late 2011.

But in the last year and a half, LinkedIn's evolution has picked up the pace, and newly redesigned Company Pages were rolled out in September 2012, giving brands the ability to market products, recruit new talent and engage more directly with the greater community than ever before.

So if you've passed on LinkedIn to focus on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest, now is the time to grow your presence on the network built for business. Here's what you need to know to build a killer LinkedIn Company Page that will capture new eyes and convert new leads:

1. Getting started

If you have employees on LinkedIn, you likely have a Company Page already. LinkedIn creates them automatically via data from a third-party service – probably Dun & Bradstreet, though it's difficult to tell. But be warned. If you have one of these robo-profiles, it's little more than a short description, some contact details and a link to your website, so you'd better take control.

The first step is to establish an admin (or several) with editing privileges. These individuals need to meet LinkedIn's basic requirements, which in summary are:

• They must be a current employee.
• They need a company email listed on their LinkedIn profile.
• The company's email domain must be unique (e.g., jdoe@example.com), Sorry, Gmail won't work.
• They must have filled out their personal profile to a reasonable extent.
• They must have some connections.

If for some reason, you don't have a Company Page, the setup process is pretty straightforward after meeting the above admin requirements. Here's how according to LinkedIn.

Click Companies near the top of your home page.

Click the Add a Company link in the upper right area of the page.

Enter your company's official name and your work email address.

Click Continue and enter your company information.

If the work email address you provide is an unconfirmed email address on your LinkedIn account, a message will be sent to that address. Follow the instructions in the message to confirm your email address and then use the instructions above to add the Company Page.

A red error message may appear if you have problems adding a Company Page.

A preview of your completed Company Page is not available. When you publish the page, it is live on our website.

2. Look like you mean business

Once you've moved in, it's time to hang your open-for-business shingle on the door.

First, upload a company logo. For now, logo size is severely limited and the display quality is poor. It seems that LinkedIn is downsampling logos – removing pixels, and therefore sharpness – to save file space and speed page loads. So focus on keeping logos simple and legible at small scale. For example, compare the readability of the first two automotive logos below with the latter two.

Next to your logo, the banner image on your home page is your primary way to distinguish your brand visually. It's an at-a-glance way to say something about your company, and that expression can take any form you like.

Apple's banner conveys in both layout and message the brand's commitment to minimalist, functional design.

Nike, with its global corporate footprint, had a lot of ground to cover to represent its extensive brand portfolio in such a small space.

MAQS Law Firm is described as "a modern law firm combining professionalism and tradition with creativity and efficiency." Their logo/banner combination definitely says "creativity and efficiency" with a look that's more design firm that law firm.

3. Give 'em something to talk about

Like Facebook, Twitter and most other social sites, the front-and-center feature of your Company Page is an update feed.

It's worth noting, however, that its functionality is little more than broadcast medium, like the news page of your website. As a company, you won't be able to reply to comments or "like" another LinkedIn user's updates. That kind of give-and-take engagement is reserved for real people, like your employees.

So with this limitation in mind, focus your updates on topics that seed conversations and get shared across the LinkedIn community. Post news about your organization or links, with commentary, to interesting content around the Web.

Utilize colleagues to engage further with followers and commenters. Employees are also a great way to syndicate your updates as they share content with personal networks.

Unfortunately, creating engagement this way is like attending a networking event with your hands tied behind your back – it's kinda tricky and what you say had better be really good.

4. Promote your products and services

Nowhere do Company Pages offer more flexibility or marketing power as in the Products & Services tab.

A dozen parameters are available for describing and promoting each product or service in your portfolio. There are basics like description, title and links as well as the ability to identify key contacts, a sidebar area for special promotions and one for YouTube video embeds.

In addition, a header image slider drives visitor traffic to specific services listed below or to external-pointing links, back to your website for example. (This is a great way to build inbound links for you SEO-ers out there.)

To get started, provide a short description of each product or service along with a thumbnail image and link to your website. Believe it or not, this will put you ahead of many of the organizations using LinkedIn Company Pages today.

Once you've got the basics in place, slider images, videos and promotions can turn your Products & Services page into a compelling sales lead tool.

5. Audience segmentation

LinkedIn has built into the Products & Services tab powerful audience segmentation filters that allow you tailor your Products tab to different types of visitors. These filtering options are mapped to data from member profiles, such as company size, job function, industry, seniority level and geography.

6. Promote your groups

If your organization manages one or more LinkedIn groups, be sure to promote them on your Company Page.

If not, groups are a great way to build out your corporate LinkedIn presence and drive engagement with customers or those in your industry. When creating a group, try to focus on a topic or industry niche that lets you position your brand as an authority or that serves users in a way that’s unique to your brand.

For example, a private user group exclusive to your customers would let you gather insights for product development, provide another customer service channel and directly address criticism within a relatively closed environment and in front of your other customers.

Whatever group you run or may eventually run, be sure to let people know about it on your Company Page.

7. Analytics

Built into Company Pages are some pretty handy analytics tools, which LinkedIn refers to as "Insights."

Accessed via the blue "Tools" button in the header of your Company Page, Insights provide a straightforward view into how users are engaging with your brand, including:

• Page views broken down by Company Page tabs
• Update engagement by impressions, clicks, likes and shares
• Visitor demographics by seniority level, industry, job function, geographic region and company size
• Follower identification and demographics, broken down by seniority level, industry, job function, geographic region and company size

If you're familiar with professional analytics tools, LinkedIn's Insights will seem pretty light. But because they are built on user data behind LinkedIn's membership wall, Insights provide detail about your company's LinkedIn engagement that other analytics suites cannot. Ignore Insights at your own peril.

8. A word on Career Pages

If you see a Careers tab on an organization's Company Page, it's because that business is using LinkedIn's paid Talent Solutions services.

Talent Solutions offer powerful recruiting tools that, like audience segmentation, utilize LinkedIn's vast user data to drive more qualified candidates into HR departments. More than half of LinkedIn's revenues come from Talent Solutions, so it makes sense that the social giant would invest heavily in this tool.

If your organization is paying for Talent Solutions, make sure your careers tab keeps those recruiting leads excited about the possibility of working for you. The features are too extensive to cover here, but that's okay. For the price tag of Talent Solutions, you should have access to someone at LinkedIn who can help get you started.

For some Careers Page inspiration, look to companies that are widely known as great places to work. Here are a few to get you started:

Starbucks Careers Page

Zappos Careers Page

Google Careers Page

Inspiration to go

Now that you know what goes into a killer Company Page on LinkedIn, all that's left is to go build your own.

We've avoided specific step-by-step instructions in this article because they are subject to change as features are added or updated. But don't worry. LinkedIn provides guidance notes within the editing areas of Company Pages as well as an extensive help center with setup guides, FAQs, user forums and more.

Still, sometimes there's nothing like seeing it all in action, so I'll leave you with this 90-second snapshot of LinkedIn Company Pages. And don't forget to follow Fame Foundry on LinkedIn for additional digital marketing insights and news.

How 3 Big Brands Went Hard Core With Content Marketing (And the Lessons You Can Learn From Their Success)

In spite of all the hype that surrounds content marketing these days, many businesses still have lingering questions about exactly how to use content as a viable marketing strategy:

• What exactly is content?
• How do I know if this approach is right for my business?
• What resources do I need?
• How do I measure the return on our investment?
• My company sells widgets, so why would we need it?

In the face of such uncertainty, it's human nature – and therefore the nature of business – to look to those around us for guidance and inspiration. This is especially true for brands that have earned our respect. We may not always have access to the carefully guarded data behind their decisions, but where and how those organizations invest their marketing dollars is telling.

So let’s look at how three top brands – a lifestyle products company, a professional services association and an e-commerce behemoth – are investing in content to build relationships with customers and drive sales.

Cooking up content with Williams-Sonoma

Known for its high-end kitchen products, Williams-Sonoma has crafted a customer experience that’s far different from buying discount cookware off the rack at big box stores. Instead, the company has built a lifestyle brand around the idea of just how rich life in the kitchen can be.

As a result, it's no surprise that Williams-Sonoma's website is well stocked with content about the food-lover lifestyle, including recipes, wine, entertaining ideas and gardening tips.

The brand, however, has taken content-as-marketing-strategy a giant leap further by developing a website dedicated solely to kitchen design and remodeling – Cultivate.com – with features like premium photo galleries for design inspiration and a database of remodeling professionals aimed at helping readers create their dream kitchens.

Cultivate content partnerships Williams-Sonoma style

With Cultivate, Williams-Sonoma has done something noteworthy by forming strategic partnerships with both premium brands and remodeling professionals. As a result, they've created both a high-quality remodeling resource for consumers and a powerful sales tool for business.

It's a win/win/win scenario.

First, Williams-Sonoma wins because these partners, incentivized to provide great content for the site, bring additional expertise and value to readers while simultaneously easing the resource burden of producing so much high quality content. Williams-Sonoma can equip your kitchen with gadgetry, but "A Shopper's Guide to White Marble Counters" is outside the brand's focus. Fortunately, premium tile company and Cultivate partner Walker Zanger has the expertise and credibility with customers to fill that content void.

Second, the partners win because William-Sonoma has created a micro-marketplace and platform for engaging with customers already primed for their products. The site's powerful photo gallery feature lets users search kitchen designs by color, layout, style and cost, and all of the content is professionally produced by design and architectural firms eager to feature their services.

Last and most importantly, readers win because they get a better resource for kitchen remodeling, with professionally written content, expert advice, special offers and carefully curated products – all in one convenient package.

Even if you don't have a Cultivate-sized budget, your business can still take advantage of content partnerships and the benefits they provide. The key is to identify other companies that compliment – not compete with – your products or services.

For example, a business law firm could partner with both a CPA and management consultancy to create an advice blog serving local business owners.

Or, as a starting point, consider having other businesses provide some guest posts for your company blog. This toe-in-the-water approach allows you to test how well their content resonates with customers and which potential cohorts are the right fit, all before diving into a content partnership.

Just like cooking, gardening and most other things in life, it's often wise to start small, learn from both your mistakes and your success, and then grow from there.

Content from REALTORS that really hits home

The National Association of REALTORS (NAR) has long positioned itself as the foremost authority on home ownership, and its impressive credentials back up that message. It's the largest trade association in the U.S. with over 1 million members and its own political action committee.

So it makes sense that its brand message to potential clients is that Realtors, as experts on everything from property values to legal issues, are essential to navigating the complexities of buying or selling a home.

The challenge when selling professional services, however, is that you are, according to best-selling marketing author Harry Beckwith, "selling the invisible." There's no product to return for a refund if the customer is dissatisfied, and the stakes are often higher, both in cost and risk. So building trust with your clientele before they sign a contract is critical.

NAR is using content to build this trust and reinforce the perception of its brand as a network of specialized experts through HouseLogic.com, an exhaustive information resource dedicated to all areas of homeownership, including:

• DIY home improvement and maintenance
• Working with contractors
• Outdoor and green living
• Understanding insurance, home financing and taxes
• Education about home ownership legislation and causes
• Working with a Realtor

Want to gauge whether to tackle a home improvement project yourself or hire a contractor?

What's the difference between a standard home equity loan and an FHA 203(k) loan?

Who are Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac?

HouseLogic holds the answer. So what key content lessons does HouseLogic hold for the rest of us?

Build content the REALTOR way

First, build to your brand. HouseLogic draws visitors in with content about curb appeal and customized kitchens, but it doesn't stop there. Rather, it moves beyond these themes common to thousands of other sites and addresses issues more critical for homeowners – issues only the NAR could speak to. This depth and breadth reinforces the REALTOR brand as the definitive information resource for homeowners.

If you're a product company, create content that mirrors the space where your products intersect with your customers' lifestyles. If you provide services, make sure your content approach supports the emotions that you want customers to associate with your brand, whether trust, enjoyment, security or convenience.

Second, hire pros as much as possible. Realtors want you to rely on their professional expertise, so HouseLogic follows that thinking by using experienced content creators who are knowledgeable about the topics they're covering. For example:

One writer covering home decor and improvement, is a "HouseLogic contributor and builder of luxury homes in McLean, Va. She’s been a Homes editor for Gannett News Service and has reviewed home improvement products for AOL."

Another who writes about DIY repairs and remodeling, "has written or edited over 60 books on home repair and remodeling for The Home Depot, Lowe’s, Better Homes & Gardens, Sunset, and Reader’s Digest. He's a former contractor with decades of hands-on experience."

Your organization may not have NAR's resources, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't invest in creating as much great content as your budget allows. In these freelance-friendly times, there are writers and editors aplenty. Or save yourself the hassle and outsource your content entirely to a trusted digital marketing firm that understands the intersection of the Web, content and customer experience.

And don’t forget about photography and video production – two other content areas where it's typically better to hire a pro than to do it yourself. For some brands, a slick video may seem to sales-y while a more amateur style video could come across as more genuine.

Keep in mind, the main objective is not to simply to look professional but to build your reputation as an expert in your field, and hiring a professional can help you find that focus.

Content to cart with Amazon.com

While Amazon.com has built an e-tail empire hawking content such as books, movies and music, the brand's approach to connecting with customers through content is just as impressive.

Unlike Williams-Sonoma, NAR and probably 99 percent of other companies using content to grow their businesses, Amazon has chosen to buy rather than build, to purchase a stake in pre-existing communities and their rich content rather than producing their own. And boy have they picked winners.

IMDB.com (Internet Movie Database) is essentially the Wikipedia of film and television. The content is entirely created by the user community, covering cast lists, photos, trailer clips, script overviews, production notes, trivia, industry news and much more. It's the destination site for lovers of film and television.

Similarly, DPReview.com (Digital Photography Review) has been providing in-depth reviews of cameras and photography equipment for years, building a large and engaged community of pro and amateur photographers who share their questions and insights in forums and their photos in galleries.

It's not difficult to see why Amazon would want to tap into these content communities. Ads and obvious calls-to-action allow site visitors to easily move from an article about a movie or camera to the corresponding product page on Amazon.

But Amazon has very impressively exercised much restraint here, choosing to be present in the content but not dominate it. In other words, Amazon didn't start meddling with what the community had built. To do so would have meant a breakdown of user trust and therefore site traffic and sales. They don't care which camera or movie you buy, as long as you're buying it from Amazon.

Connecting with content communities

Amazon is a trail-blazing company in many ways, and their decision to to plug in rather than publish on their own is a path worth considering, especially for organizations just starting out with content marketing.

You don't have to build a great content site if you can buy one that's already providing great content and has a loyal following. If that sounds too expensive, then look for a small but respected blog in your niche market to use as a test project.

If you can't buy at all, you can still make the most of other people's content by growing your own presence in their communities. Engage in forums and contribute content to their sites.

If you do buy a site, stay out of the way. DPReview's press release about being acquired by Amazon includes a reassuring "we-won't-break-it" quote from Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos: “DPReview.com is by far the most authoritative source anywhere for straight talk about new digital cameras. We at Amazon.com have been their fans for a long time, and we extend a big welcome to the dpreview.com team.” The release goes on to reassure everyone that the site "will continue to function as a stand-alone operation."

It will be tempting to try to bend the conversations and content in your favor and promote your products extensively, but such heavy handedness is a quick way to kill an online community. Don't ruin the trust that's already been created between the site and its followers.

These themes of building trust and providing value are the common threads that connect Amazon, the National Association of REALTORS, Williams-Sonoma and every other company that's doing content marketing well. It is without a doubt the most important lesson we can learn from their examples.