Prioritising your customers is the first step to getting started with building a customer incentive scheme. In recent years customer incentives have changed drastically – we’ve seen a big shift in digital, customer data and insights, as well schemes that are unique and offer personalised experiences.
March 1, 2021
When a customer incentive scheme is done right they can not only boost profits, they will improve customer retention. Unsure of where to start? Don’t worry we have got you covered.
A good customer experience plays a huge part in building a customer incentive scheme. If you want to build an effective scheme you need to ensure you are delivering a seamless experience and service across all customer touchpoints. Loyal customers expect a positive experience from your brand every time they interact with it and if they don’t feel value, you might lose them to competitors.
Before you implement any scheme, do your research! It’s vital that you have a clear objective, analyse your business and your competitors to create a scheme that helps you accomplish your business goals. There are many different types of schemes on offer, from point programmes, prize draws to targeted rewards and redemptions. Don’t forget to also consider customer behaviours, expectations, and current market trends.
Keep your customer incentive scheme simple. Ensuring that your sign-up process and incentive tracking are simple and easy to follow will keep your customers engaged. If you overcomplicate your incentive scheme, there is always the chance that customers won’t understand it. If that happens, it will just end up being ignored and forgotten.
Personalisation can play a huge part in attracting loyal customers. Creating targeted incentives and messages for different users shows that your brand can deliver in ways that your competition can’t, whilst letting customers know that you understand their needs. Remember, each customer wants something different out of your rewards programme, so offering various options helps keep them interested and motivated.
Referred customers are proven to have a longer customer lifetime value as it is generally regarded as the most trusted and honest form of marketing- usually word of mouth from a known source such as family, friends, and colleagues. Consider incentivising your customers to become brand advocates by offering them an attractive reward for customer referrals. This is also a great motivator for your sales staff, the more they refer the scheme to your customers the bigger the chance of them also hitting sales targets or rewards themselves.
Marketing your incentive scheme is something that you should invest in, you could have a fantastic incentive scheme but unless your customers know about it, it’s not going to get you very far. Using the marketing mix will ensure you cover all bases and in turn reach new customers. Be sure to incorporate some tactical marketing throughout your scheme – tying this into national events or holidays is a great way to instil some extra excitement and motivation into your scheme.
Customer incentive schemes go beyond loyalty points or referral rewards and at the end of the day, it’s about listening to your customers and appreciating them for their support.
Implementing the right incentive scheme for your customers and managing it well, can help to ensure long-lasting success and customer retention.
If you’d like to find out more about the customer incentive options we can offer your business, call us on 0113 887 8620 or drop us an email at [email protected].
Whether you’re looking for answers, would like to discuss our services, or just want to know a little bit more about how we have helped our other clients, simply get in touch and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can!
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