Too often companies create loyalty programs as a one-off tactic, rather than embedding loyalty as part of a holistic approach to the business. As a result, the loyalty program becomes one more silo in the business, creating a disjointed experience for the customer and a missed opportunity for the business.
We all share stories about receiving promotional offers from a company we shop with regularly only to be told that the offer is available only to “new” customers. Or we receive offers for products that are completely irrelevant, which is very frustrating. These experiences leave customers wondering why the retailer doesn’t know them any better or appreciate their loyalty.
The disconnect that customers feel is the result of the siloed approach to loyalty programs that many organizations take. All too often “customer loyalty” is delegated to one part of the organization. While one team administers loyalty rewards and communications, a separate team sends mailers to attract “new” customers, not realizing that they are unintentionally targeting the same people. Often, customer data is housed in a separate mart from the organization’s transactional data, which means that different parts of the organization are making decisions based on different information. Customers expect more from retailers and they should.
It starts with the data
One of the most valuable assets retailers have is the data it collects on its shoppers. However, in many companies, this data is not connected and shared across the organization in a way that can positively impact decision-making.
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