With 1 in 4 shoppers staying loyal to brands who reward customers for loyalty and make customers feel valued, ‘cracking the loyalty code’ is the hallmark of every marketer and business owner’s success.
Customer demands for deep personalisation, instant gratification and seamless customer experiences means that companies need to continuously explore new and innovative ways to build customer loyalty. One way that has proven to be remarkably effective over the years is gift cards.
This article delves into seven actionable ways companies can use gift cards to foster unwavering customer loyalty.
1. Personalised Gift Card Rewards
In the age of hyper personalisation, gift cards provide the perfect opportunity to tailor rewards based on your customers’ individual preferences and behaviours. Companies can customise the gifting experience by analysing purchase history and demographics to create tailored gift card offers, choosing between store-specific, multi-store or prepaid gift cards. To take a step further, gift card technology companies such as True Rewards offer open loop prepaid Visa gift cards that can be fully branded and seamlessly integrated with your platform through rewards widget and API’s.
2. Tiered Loyalty Programs
By segmenting your customers, you can create a tiered loyalty program with gift cards that incentivises them to achieve higher tiers by making repeat purchases. As customers progress through tiers, they unlock more valuable gift card rewards, creating a gamified experience. This gradual gratification approach keeps customers engaged and motivated to level up their loyalty status.
3. Referral Incentives
Gift cards can be used as incentives to encourage customers to refer friends and family to the brand. When existing customers successfully refer new ones, they receive gift cards as rewards. This not only strengthens the existing customer’s loyalty but also expands your audience’s reach through word-of-mouth recommendations.
4. Survey Participation
Encourage your customers to participate in surveys and product reviews by offering gift cards as rewards. This not only provides valuable insights for the company but also demonstrates that you value the customer’s opinion, enhancing loyalty and engagement.
5. Exclusive Access and Early Releases
A powerful tool for your next promotional campaign, gift cards can be used with limited-time offers, pre-sales, or early product releases. Make your existing customers feel valued with an exclusive offer or attract new customers with a limited-time gift card that creates a sense of urgency to make a purchase.
6. Win-back Customer Campaigns
Gift cards can be a powerful tool in reactivating inactive customers. Companies can send gift cards as an incentive to entice one-off customers or customers who haven’t made a purchase in a while to make a return purchase. By offering a second chance, businesses showcase their commitment to customer satisfaction and rekindle loyalty.
7. Special Occasion and Seasonal Gifting
Timing gift card rewards with special occasions, such as birthdays, anniversaries, or holidays, adds a personal touch to the customer relationship. By acknowledging these significant moments in a customer’s life, companies show that they value the individual beyond their transactional relationship.
On the other hand, Christmas and EOFY present enormous opportunities for any brand to express appreciation to their loyal customers through gift card offerings. This gesture spreads joy and goodwill while solidifying the customer’s loyalty to the brand.
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Gift cards have proven to be a versatile and effective tool for building customer loyalty. By incorporating personalised rewards, tiered programs, referral incentives, and more, companies can create meaningful connections with their customers. These strategies not only encourage repeat business but also foster emotional engagement and advocacy, leading to a loyal customer base that sustains and propels business growth. When used thoughtfully and strategically, gift cards can become the cornerstone of lasting customer loyalty.
As part of the iGoDirect Group, True Rewards support companies to build, monitor, and deliver end-to-end gifting solutions to their customers. Our comprehensive platform and card services gather real-time analytics when a loyalty program or promotion is up and running so you can monitor progress and make adjustments as needed. Talk to an expert on 1800 043 656 to decide if these solutions are a good fit for your business.
