92 Reasons Why Your Business Needs A Rewards Program

1. It is 7 times more expensive to attract new customers than it is to retain existing customers
2. Customers who belong to a good rewards program visit twice as often and spend four times more.
3. A loyal customer is worth 10x the value of a single purchase customer.
4. Loyalty backed with rewards is proven to work.
5. 67% of consumers would be influenced to join a Reward Program if they received 10% of their total bill. 60% would be motivated if they received a $5 gift card
6. In 2006 Total U.S. Loyalty/Rewards Memberships rose to 1.31 Billion
7. Over 85% of U.S. households participate in at least one reward program (are you one?)
8. The average U.S. household belongs to approximately 12 Loyalty Programs ( supermarket chains)
9. Active Loyalty Program Participation is 39.5%
10. Participation in Frequent Shopping programs have doubled from 2006 to 2007
11. Notable big store chains have increased visits among rewards club members by up to 93% and incremental sales by up to 65%
12. Fact # 12 In August 2007, 17% of consumers said they were members of a rewards program vs. 8% in August 2006. Up 53% in just one year! A big jump, would you say?
13. The Growth of Frequent Shopping Programs, such as punch cards for example, are outpacing that of Frequent Flyer and Preferred Guest Programs.
14. In 2007, 54% of consumers who participate in Reward and Loyalty Programs belong to two or more. This is up from 43% in 2006.
15. Working customer databases will nearly double the value of any business.
16. A good rewards program eliminates the need of relying on coupons and discounts
17. Repeat Customers spend 1/3 more than new customers per year
18. Repeat customers are more than twice as likely to refer a new customer. Let’s state that again. Repeat customers are more than twice as likely to refer a new customer.
19. 94% of consumers who participate in a Rewards Program reported that those businesses who have a rewards programs are in the consideration set at least “some of the time”.
20. 11% said they are “always” part of the consideration set.
21. 40% said they are in the consideration set “most of the time”.
22. 43% said they are in the consideration set “some of the time”.
23. Over ¼ of consumers (28%) report they are “Extremely Likely” to increase the number of visits they make to a restaurant or merchant if they offer a rewards program. Almost half (47%) report they are “somewhat likely” to increase visits.
24. 67% of consumers would be influenced to join a Reward Program if they received 10% of their total bill. 60% would be motivated if they received a $5 gift card
25. Loyal customers insulate your business from competitive and economic assault.
26. Loyal customers generate repeat sales at a fraction of the marketing cost and effort required to find, inform, interest and sell prospects.
27. Loyal customers spread good will for your business and bring a tide of new customers.
28. Loyal customers account for higher buying rates and lower marketing and service costs than other customers
29. Loyal customers respond to customer service that costs far less than the cost to recruit a new customer
30. Loyal customers are the best source of qualified referrals
31. Loyal customers lead to a Loyal staff (and vice versa). This is because the longer term relationships create a pleasant environment in which to work and do business.
32. A customer loyalty/reward program allows you to market to existing customers for pennies. Why spend thousands of dollars trying to reach existing customers.
33. Knowing the names, contact information and key information about your customers makes marketing easier and more affordable.
34. Eighty-two percent of Americans participating in customer loyalty/rewards programs have referred friends and family to their favorite loyalty programs, according to the "2004/2005 Customer Loyalty Research Report" by a marketing consulting firm.
35. More than 90 percent of high income members refer one or more people to a program.
36. 64 percent of high income members have referred four or more people to a program.
37. A survey by the U.S National Retail Federation suggested that 8 out of 10 people would include gift cards among their holiday shopping purchases.
38. Instead of giving cash refunds – you can provide a gift card and guarantee a return visit
39. You can pass out $5 gift cards as a thank you, for grand openings and special promotions.
40. First Data research study showed that recipients of gift cards feel more thought has been given to their gift. They also said they are more likely to visit the issuing business more than once, and often spend more than the value of the card and reload the card with a higher value than the original gift.
41. You can get 100% higher click throughs with relevant and targeted email.
42. You reduce the fear of SPAM with opt-in, personalized and single delivery email
43. You can get at least 10% lower inactivity with behavior-triggered messaging.
44. Get 75% customer acquisition ROI with referral programs.
45. Loyalty participation rates for grocery chains is at 65%.
46. Loyalty participation for medium sized to larger hotel chains is at 85%.
47. Loyalty participation for the major airlines is nearly 100%.
48. Loyalty/reward programs are among the most measurable forms of marketing.
49. A major national pizza chain realized a 91% increase in incremental orders as a result of their rewards program
50. By having a rewards program, it provides a direct channel of communication process with your customer.
51. It provides a unique opportunity for customer engagement and interaction with your brand.
52. In a survey of 2000 consumers, 90% said they could be persuaded to switch or discontinue doing business with a company they currently patronize, depending on the incentive – customer satisfaction is not enough.
53. In the same survey of 2000 consumers, 2/3 or 64%, said they are likely or very likely to switch or discontinue doing business with companies they currently patronize – again, customer satisfaction is not enough.
54. Consumers are spoiled and expect to be rewarded for their purchases. They automatically ask “If I give you my business, what will I get in return”.
55. Today’s consumer has more choices and is better informed. You can no longer rely on great service and simply satisfying customer needs. You have to connect with them, reward them and give them a compelling reason to be loyal.
56. It allows you to collect vital customer data that makes customer-centric marketing possible.
57. There is no other marketing medium that provides the same amount of feedback, customer engagement and business intelligence.
58. Without Data – You can’t get the Return on Investment
59. Enhanced customer data can provide a genuine business advantage – the more you know about your customers the better you can fulfill their needs and keep them loyal
60. Enhanced demographic data tied to redemption rates can tell you who and where redemptions are coming from. Then you can target non-customers, who fit that same demographic, instead of wasting your money on mass marketing.
61. 60% of all consumers avoid advertising.
62. 54% of consumers avoid products from companies that overwhelm them with marketing messages.
63. A customer in a strong relationship with a retailer is 1.82 times as likely to recommend the retailer to friends and family.
64. The better you are at growing dialogue between you and your customers – the stronger your brand will become.
65. The best loyalty programs are those that offer instant rewards or coupons when a member hits a certain spending level NOT those that make the customer wait for rewards.
66. Loyalty programs are built on dialogue. Dialogue implies immediate interaction. What your business needs is a completely “automatic” email communication based on specific triggers and events.
67. It allows your business to reward specific customer behavior.
68. It keeps customers engaged by following up on sales or when a member earns a reward
69. It keeps customers engaged by updating them on their rewards earned, balances.
70. You can track customers who are inactive
71. You can send a series of communications to inactive customers with offers in escalating value - motivating them to return – all automatically.
72. Members receive a receipt with their rewards balance on every purchase
73. Every loyalty receipt can be fully customized with your logo
74. Added offers give customers a reason to come back every time they purchase
75. The human brain is “next” oriented. Added offers cater to that need and always give them something to look forward to with every purchase.
76. You can thank customers for purchases – automatically
77. Gift cards are pre-paid, cash in your pocket. This means that 100% of the cash is yours – before paying for product costs. It’s like an interest free loan.
78. 16 to 21% of all gift cards are unredeemed. This means the entire sale is pure profit.
79. Gift Cards provide a flood of promotional opportunities such as – Swipe to Win Sweepstakes, Coupons attached to Gift Card holders, Grand Opening incentives, employee promotions and more.
80. Promoting gift cards during the holiday season results in increased traffic during the slow January and February months.
81. Rewards cards eliminate the threat of fraud typical with paper gift certificates and punch cards
82. Gift cards are easier to manage and require no paper tracking
83. Gift and Loyalty cards act as walking billboards in your customers pocket
84. Gift Cards can be easily reloaded by you
85. Gift cards can be an impulse buy – displayed at the point-of-purchase
86. You can process gift and loyalty cards on the same terminal that is provided to you
87. It is fully automated with little maintenance
88. Loyalty and reward programs give you more promotional and marketing opportunities – prevents you from offering the same thing, to the same people the same way.
89. Everything you need to know about your customers, your program performance, your database are located in one convenient Administration web site.
90. Your Gift and Loyalty Cards can be customized – with your name and logo .
91. Good marketing delivers a message that is relevant, valuable and purposeful
92. It’s less than traditional advertising and IT WORKS!