Loyalty is temporary, and it always makes me giggle. It’s a phrase I frequently hear business owners and marketers say when lamenting the poor results of their incentives and rewards programs, disengaged clients, and unsuccessful acquisition attempts. However, the proverb is simply: proverbial. Today, marketers have access to tools that may foster enduring loyalty and foster continuing connections with current, potential, and new consumers. And payments, one of the most effective methods for fostering loyalty, are frequently disregarded.
Using money to support your incentive and reward programs is a good marketing idea. Placing your rewards and incentives in an experience that your consumers can’t skip or ignore (paying) can ensure that your efforts won’t be in vain as marketing noise continues to grow.
Payments are frequently classified as just transactional aspects of daily life unrelated to marketing. However, they are not only a one-time event that concludes at the point of sale. Instead, they have developed into worthwhile experiences that marketers can use to forge enduring, intimate bonds between customers and businesses. Additionally, for optimal impact, contemporary digital payment apps might incorporate incentives and prizes into the process. In the following section, you will see how marketers can meaningfully combine rewards and payments:
APPLICATION OF POINTS
I dread to think about how many points I have accumulated in different incentive systems, mostly since I can’t utilize the points in the manner I’d like. I start to doubt if it’s even worthwhile to gain points in the first place when I’m forced to pick from an outdated item catalog or from a constrained selection. Making it possible for incentives to be utilized as useful and widespread money is the next marketing frontier. Using loyalty and reward points to pay for anything appeals to 60% of customers, according to Leger’s online survey study, which was carried out on behalf of Blackhawk Network. You may boost the possibility that rewards will actually be used and lead to the desired behaviors by allowing users to pay with points. Taking the uncertainty out of choosing loyalty rewards is made easier by accepting points as payment in-person, online, or through a mobile wallet. Additionally, accepting points as payment might increase customer spending on your company. Your loyalty program participants are a captive audience, so you can maintain their interest by interacting with them often and assisting them in making effective use of their points.
CREATING NETWORKS FOR DIGITAL PAYMENTS
Due to the pandemic’s record-breaking traffic to online and mobile shopping channels, digital payments have reached a tipping point. According to research, 88 percent of buyers polled now use a digital wallet of some type, and 78 percent of respondents said they intended to continue their pandemic-inspired buying habits indefinitely. Marketers who include digitally friendly incentives and prizes in the new routine payment procedure will benefit. No matter where they are, digital payments allow customers to interact with your business, and making rewards and incentives available for digital delivery and redemption is a particularly efficient and fast approach to increase consumer “stickiness” and long-term engagement. The adaptability of digitally enabled incentives, which may be redeemed in-person, online, or on a mobile device, gives individuals the freedom to customize their purchasing experiences to fit their changing preferences or circumstances. Having my incentives close at hand enhances the probability that I’ll utilize them, which builds my loyalty to the businesses, adds touchpoints, and encourages consistent engagement.
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INVITING FUTURE MARKETING OPPORTUNITIES
After the point of sale, powerful incentives and rewards may offer advertisers high-value touchpoints. Rewards, incentives, and loyalty points can be incorporated into the checkout process so that marketers can collect customer information that they are willing to provide in order to guide future strategies and create personalized promotions and offers. These acts, such as inviting clients to join a loyalty program, requesting their email address, providing a prize for installing your app, or rewarding customers for completing specific transactions with your brand via your mobile wallet, can pay off in the long run. Additionally, they can provide room for cross- and up-sell promotions that draw in more consumers, raise the value of current ones, and expand basket sizes, thus increasing ROI. Like many customers, I consider generic promos to be weak motivators and frequently ignore them. However, I’m more inclined to connect with and purchase from the company when I receive customized marketing offers throughout the checkout process. My interest wanes if I have to open another app or check my email in order to receive prizes.
Almost every day, everyone makes some kind of payment. There is no way to avoid the procedure. When savvy marketers include incentives and prizes into the payment process, they widen communication channels and strengthen consumer relationships. However, if incentives aren’t modernised, they might not be as effective as they could be. Payments may help you improve your programmes and foster brand connections that promote engagement, foot traffic, sales, and reward value both now and in the future.
