The age of the internet: Digital customer loyalty
Digitalization is advancing and with it the relevance of digital customer loyalty is increasing rapidly. In the digital information age, customers have long been using a wide variety of devices on many new channels, whether in the B2B or B2C sector. The internet plays a central role in this.
More and more customers want direct, digital and, above all, uncomplicated communication. The desire to always be "up-to-date" is growing. Digital customer loyalty makes precisely this type of customer relationship possible.
And it is precisely this relationship with customers that requires a lot of work. Trust also plays an important role in digital customer relationships. It is not only important to know the customer inside out, but also to listen to what they have to say.
Digital customer loyalty: Targeted use of customer relationship management
Customer relationship management in various forms - be it on websites, via customer cards, with discount campaigns or through various ways of addressing customers digitally on the basis of valuable customer data - is becoming increasingly important - an overarching goal and well thought-out strategies breathe the necessary life into the individual measures.
Digital customer loyalty is more important than ever
The fact is: customer loyalty pays off. Regular customers are an important factor for a company. Compared to new customers, they generate more revenue. Customers who come back to the same store again and again and shop there also spend much more on average than "impulse buyers" or "first-time buyers".
Digital customers value the following above all:
Reward for their loyalty
Personal support
Appreciation
Emotions during the shopping experience
Above all, emotion is one of the most important aspects of all. It is the key to their loyalty and to a successful customer relationship. Companies in the digital age must offer their customers a customer journey that creates a positive experience with the brand. And this begins even if there is no intention to buy.
Strengthening customer loyalty through digital customer loyalty programs
The reason why digital customer loyalty is becoming increasingly important is that two strong trends can currently be observed. On the one hand, our society is increasingly using smartphones, the willingness to switch is increasing in all age groups and there is a growing desire for one-to-one communication.
Measures needed to counter the high willingness to switch
The range of products on the market and people's mobility are growing rapidly. The so-called Generation Y is described as the most international, most flexible and most willing to change. This trend can also be seen to a lesser extent in older generations. It is therefore very important for entrepreneurs to increase customer loyalty.
As a result, more and more companies are gradually turning to customer loyalty programs designed to generate loyal customers, for example in the form of a loyalty app for the company.
In the future, this step will become extremely important for many companies in order to survive on the market: Relying on the right customer loyalty measures and the right tools and always staying in direct contact with customers via smartphone.
Information, purchases, news, jobs and much more can be accessed and completed using a cell phone. It is precisely this potential that companies should exploit. Whether on the train, on the sofa at home, when traveling, in the waiting room or at the desk - the smartphone is always with you and fulfills the best prerequisites for reaching customers wherever they are.
Advantages of digital customer loyalty
If you combine these two trends ("customer loyalty is becoming important" & "smartphone trend"), then it is obvious that digital customer loyalty via the smartphone brings many advantages for the company.
Expansion of the customer base
Savings in customer acquisition
Creating trust and improving the relationship with customers
Increased sales through satisfied customers
Digital customer loyalty allows you to get feedback and a direct line to your customers
You can set yourself apart from the competition with digital customer loyalty measures.
Digital customer loyalty allows you to create an emotional bond with your customers
Accurate and personalized marketing measures through the targeted use of customer data in your marketing mix
Instruments for digital customer loyalty
The most important tools for digital customer loyalty in the digital world are CRM systems, a digital "customer card", customer engagement, push notifications and email marketing. These tools can be used to strengthen the bond between companies and customers. However, traditional customer loyalty tools such as high service quality, bonus systems, customer feedback, customer journey management and referrals can also be digitized.
Although we are still in the midst of digitalization, it is already very advanced, especially in this area. As an innovative company, it is therefore important to discover relevant opportunities for yourself now so that you are not overtaken by the competition.
Effective interaction with your customers
Companies therefore need to understand their target group(s). One of the most important reasons is certainly direct contact with customers. This is the only way to address your own customers directly, respond to their individual needs and wishes and react to their problems and complaints.
If a company has a customer loyalty program, ideally in the form of its own loyalty app and thus its own customer database, this contact data can be used and customers can be addressed in different ways.
Customized messages can be sent: Whether push messages, SMS, email or postal mail - it can all be easily customized to the recipient. This personalization is an effective way to retain existing customers. And the best thing about it is that it is exactly what consumers want.
How companies can react accordingly:
demonstrate reliability and respond promptly to inquiries, complaints etc.
Be conscientious, attentive and courteous
If regular customers suddenly stop buying, every company is at risk.
Analysis and evaluation of your customer data
How does this work? Nowadays, customer loyalty programs are directly linked to the CRM or customer database. This allows real-time data to be collected and analyzed in a structured way. The aim is to get to know customers and their behavior better.
Habits and interests are collected in the CRM database over the course of the customer journey. This detailed customer information can be used in future to offer personalized offers, newsletters and special rewards based on purchase history. Customer communication in the digital age is no longer about the masses.
Take advantage of the opportunity of digital customer loyalty via smartphone and get to know and understand your customers! In this way, every single customer can receive messages tailored to them and their situation via their preferred channel.
The more customers register in your digital customer loyalty program, the more data is collected and can be evaluated and analyzed in more detail. You need a clear tool for this. Because only if you know your customers can you adapt the offers, the stores or the product range to their purchasing behavior or user behavior and thus increase the shopping cart, frequency and, subsequently, sales.
You will continuously get to know your customers better, know their preferences and can therefore respond to their needs in a more targeted manner.
Broad range of features
You know the total turnover of your company, but you don't know who your customers are? How often do they visit and what are the demographic and behavioral characteristics of your customer segments? With your own loyalty app, the customer can be identified via iBeacon technology and you know when and how often they have been here.
Photo of the invoice or QR code scan
After the purchase, the entire invoice or the QR code is scanned and this allows you to analyze exactly which customer prefers which products and what quantities are purchased.
Ratings
To increase customer satisfaction, it is important to create positive experiences. Take advantage of this opportunity: integrate the option to post positive reviews or experiences with your company directly from your customer loyalty program on Facebook. After all, customers who have had a positive experience are happy to tell their friends about it. If you offer these satisfied customers an easy way and a small reward in the form of loyalty points to invite friends and acquaintances to join the loyalty program, your customer base will grow on its own - at no additional cost.
Free rewards
Your regular customers bring you new customers and increase your reach. With a digital customer loyalty program, don't just think about the free rewards you offer your customers.
Competitions, check-ins, postings
Integrate competitions, engage your customers in a fun way, award loyalty points for registering, a Facebook check-in on site, posting a photo on Instagram, inviting friends and much more.
Important: Check the functions of the customer loyalty program before purchasing - because simply providing rewards is only the basis of your own loyalty club.
