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.

Is Your Content Classic?

Epiphanies and pop music

Epiphanies – those magic Aha! moments that change our thinking – often occur at the most unexpected times.

I had an Aha! moment of my own recently as I sat in my favorite diner, eating nachos and reading a challenge from Fame Foundry's Tara Hornor to return to tried-and-true marketing tactics. As a writer, I was naturally prompted to think about that challenge in terms of how it pertains content development.

In today’s Information Age, the best way to build trust with and win over new customers is to go above and beyond in giving them value, and content is one of the most effective tools we have to deliver that value. Indeed, content is king, but in the push to fill every corner of the Web with our "thought leadership," videos, photos, posts and tweets, we've created such a vast cacophony of information that it’s simply impossible to take it all in. So – it begs the question – how can your singular voice rise above the din to be heard by your clients and prospects?

Suddenly, my thoughts were disrupted by heavenly tones descending from the speaker above my table and into my psyche. It was Roy Orbison singing "Only the Lonely."  In that moment, I had an epiphany.

More than 50 years after he recorded it, Orbison's pop-music masterpiece – his form of content – is still loved by masses. He and so many great artists like him poured themselves into a few dozen songs, a handful of which have become classics that continue to be discovered and adored by new audiences decades later.

What if the content we produce as marketers had that kind of staying power?

Here are six key strategies that can help you create classic content that resonates with readers and stands the test of time.

Keep calm and carry on.

There's a lot of pressure these days to produce content at breakneck speeds for an increasingly diverse array of mediums. If you cringe when a hot new social media network emerges because you dread having to master and manage yet another touchpoint, you are not alone.

So give yourself permission to hit pause on the content-o-mattic. Take a breather, set aside the “How much?” for a moment and reflect on the “How?”.

There's no denying the value of producing content. We're going to keep doing it. But let's think about how we can do it better. How we can make more of our content classic?

Know your stuff.

There's an old saying among writers: "The best writers are prolific readers."

The idea here is that consuming a steady diet of the thoughts and talents of others will inspire and enhance your own. Essentially, you're standing on the shoulders of others as you reach for even greater ideas and insights.

We can easily apply this principle to our marketing content. It's important to have a broad understanding of the greater conversations that are taking place in your industry as well as a keen awareness of the primary players and messages that are buzzing about your own market niche.

Keeping up with what others are saying is often a great source of inspiration for new perspectives that haven't yet been considered. Alternatively, you can also avoid rehashing subject matter that has been entirely overdone so that you don’t waste your time developing yawn-inducing content that seems unoriginal and redundant.

Balance timeliness with the timeless.

Providing commentary on current trends is a proven content strategy because it shows that you have a finger on the pulse of your market.

The problem with this type of hot-topic content is that it can have a short shelf-life. So to stretch the value of this content, find a way to tie trends to timeless principles. Demonstrate to your readers where these “of-the-moment” opportunities fit into the bigger picture. This kind of insight can still be valuable weeks, months or maybe even years after the market has moved on from the news that inspired it.

Call in the experts.

It takes time to get input from experts, but the payoff in credibility is huge.

Your company probably has a good many subject matter experts (SMEs) already on the payroll who can provide valuable insights for prospects and customers – and can do so from the perspective of your company.

Identify the SMEs in your company, and invite them to lunch to chat about the pieces you're working on that relate to their specialties, and if possible, give them credit as contributors.

And don’t forget to venture outside of your organization to seek the input of other resources, such as university professors, journalists or consultants. These individuals are usually happy to have an outlet to share their expertise and advice on the subject matter that they’re most passionate about.

Focus on substance and style.

Making your content classic is as much about style as it is substance. Roy Orbison built a hip, sophisticated look with his shades and suits that complemented his brand of smooth songwriting.

When it comes to your written content, following the basic principles of good writing will help your content resonate with the greatest number of people and for the longest period of time possible.

First, write well. If you don't have writing talent on staff, pay someone. If you have a decent writer, pay an editor to give you feedback and guard the voice of your brand.

Second, avoid hype, clichés and stereotypes. Don't simply squawk about your products and services. Making unsubstantiated, too-good-to-be-true claims is a sure-fire way to kill your credibility. And nothing says "lazy and unoriginal" like expressing concepts using the same examples and references as everyone else.

Speaking of which, illustrations and examples are important to helping your readers understand complex concepts, but don't use ones that may be irrelevant in six months. For example, a story that draws parallels to the philosophies of Martin Luther King will be relevant long after one that references whichever celebutante is making tabloid headlines today.

Third, don't use obscure references that the majority of your audience won't understand. The effect you create by doing so is very off-putting to readers, like being in the room when someone makes an inside joke and you don't get it. You feel out of the loop at best or left out intentionally at worst. The exception here is if you’re writing for a niche audience that you know will get the reference (for example, jokes about what Klingons eat in an article written for a Star Trek blog), as this can show your audience that you’re really one of them.

Finally, proofread. Sure the culture of the Web has made casual writing the norm, but punctuation errors, misspellings and poor word choice will diminish the perception of expertise and professionalism you want to convey. A tweet with a typo is no big deal, but a white paper riddled with misspelled words is quite a different matter. Never publish content that hasn't been proofread by someone else. Better yet, keep an editor on retainer for that purpose.

Be a Buffet.

Inevitably, when it comes to content marketing, there are demons to battle, such as writing to advance your SEO objectives at the expense of reader experience or producing "fluff" pieces that deliver little real value just to keep the insatiable content machine fed.

We can learn a valuable lesson here from the world of investment, where there's a lot of energy wasted on getting in early and growing by building buzz. However, this kind of Bernie Madoff behavior will eventually catch up with you and undermine your relationship with your readers.

Instead, you’ll always be better served by taking the Warren Buffet approach: focusing on the big picture, building on what you know and refusing to sacrifice long-term gains for a quick payoff.

So when you find yourself facing the temptation to take shortcuts or chase trends, remember which approach has been proven to be the most influential over the long term. After all, which of these men will be remembered as a fly-by-night shyster and which a luminary?

Let's Get Visual: Four Tips for Using Photos to Engage With Your Customers

It’s a mantra we’ve repeated time after time: content is king.

While that is unfailingly true, it’s important to remember that content is more than words on a page. There’s good reason for the saying “A picture is worth a thousand words.” Sometimes there’s simply no better way to drive home a message, evoke an emotional response or bring your brand to life than through the impact of an image.

Here’s how you can harness the power of photography to forge deeper relationships between your customers and your brand:

1. Just do it.

You’re not a professional photographer. You don’t have the thousands of dollars of equipment necessary to stage the types of perfectly polished shots you see on the pages of glossy magazines.

Don’t sweat it. A modern smartphone or digital camera is all you really need to get started. Worry less about technology and technicalities and more about the effect you want to achieve.

There’s no more important objective for today’s marketer than establishing bonds of trust between your brand and your customers. And there’s no easier, more efficient way to plant those seeds of trust than by pulling the curtain back and giving them a peek behind the scenes.

Tiffany & Co. is a high-end brand with high-dollar price tags to match. The company uses its Instagram account to share photos of its inner working with the world, showing that there’s more inside that classic turquoise box than merely a status symbol.

2. Let your customers do the snapping.

These days, everyone walks around with a camera in their pocket. As such, mobile photo sharing has become an integral part of today’s culture of the Web.

Let this trend work in your favor by putting your customers behind the lens generating great content that shines a spotlight on both your brand and the people who love it.

Warby Parker, an eyewear company based in New York City, invited their fans and customers to join them on a photo adventure through NYC called “Walk of the Town.” Over 100 fans participated, resulting in nearly 700 photos generated and tagged with #warbywalk.

This is a fantastic marketing concept on two levels. First, what cooler way to showcase the company’s unique, funky frames than against the backdrop of one of the world’s most iconic cities for style and fashion? Second, consider the residual PR value that results from each of these 100 fans sharing their photos with their own followers and Facebook friends, who also likely commented on and shared them with their own circles in turn.

3. Branch out.

When it comes to using social media to connect with customers, most companies focus on the big four: Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and LinkedIn. But there are a number of niche social sites that offer excellent opportunities to use images to gain exposure to both your existing customer base and new prospects alike.

For example, in addition to Instagram, Warby Parker is also active on Pinterest. As its name implies, Pinterest is a pinboard-style social photo sharing website. Users “pin” photos on boards they self-classify by category, allowing them to keep track of anything and everything they find appealing, from recipes to fashion to home decor ideas and more. The social aspect comes into play when pinners follow others users and can like, comment on or “repin” images to their own boards.

People of the Second Chance, a faith-based nonprofit, uses Pinterest as a vehicle to boost awareness of their organization, advocate for their mission of spreading love and grace and drive donations. They feature products for sale in their online store as well as inspirational images that represent core elements of their mission.

By being willing to experiment with these smaller niche networks like Pinterest and Instagram, you can gain exposure to your existing customers in new ways and catch the eye of new customers, too. It all begins with a little daring and a little creativity.

4. Think before you snap, but don’t over-think it.

In the age of social media, once you send something out into the world, it’s really out of your hands. So before you get too snap-happy, take a second look at your photos and make sure you’re sending the message you intend so you don’t accidentally invoke a negative backlash.

That being said, don’t be paralyzed by aspirations of perfection, either. There’s no better way to let the personality of your brand shine than through quirky, unique, cool, artsy or clever images.

There’s a reason why Facebook’s EdgeRank algorithm puts such a high value on posts that include pictures: People love looking at photos. At the end of the day, it’s just that simple.

So have fun, be creative and take a few risks. After all, one great photo really can do the work of a thousand words in conveying what it is that your brand stands for.