Loyalty Examples

Loyalty Program Examples: Sephora vs Ulta

Category titans Sephora and Ulta both have powerful loyalty programs, in fact according to Newsweek’s “America’s Best Loyalty Programs 2021” survey they are at parity with each receiving a 7.6 rating from consumers . This article provides a thorough review of each program, digging in to how they are applying loyalty design and best practices. Both programs are strong, with Beauty Insider delivering over 80% of Sephora’s revenue and Ultamate Rewards delivering over 90% for Ulta. However, they take dramatically different approaches, and the contrast provides insight to practitioners who are considering their program design and how it plays to their brand’s strengths.

Review of MyMcdonald's rewards program

McDonald's is rolling out their Rewards program, so as part of our Loyalty Program Examples series I wanted to take a quick look at how it compares to other fast food programs, in this case Chick-Fil-A One.   McDonald's is usually not the first, but rather takes the time to learn from competitors, coming in later in to outflank them with an informed strategy.

What are the design characteristics of an effective loyalty program?

Often, the executive order comes down to launch a loyalty program, or perhaps overhaul the current one. It is a challenging assignment, because if you ask 10 people what makes an effective loyalty program, you’ll get as many different answers. For example, the CEO might be a frequent flyer and believe that it’s all about earning miles, while the CFO may be more in favor of a recognition program that doesn’t carry points liabilities. Meanwhile executives in operations could be more interested in a program that improves the customer experience and reduces strain on front line staff. So, what’s the right answer?!

LoyaltyLevers Balanced Scorecard: Measuring Engagement

As noted in Loyalty Measurement: C-Suite Needs a Balanced Scorecard, executives need a balanced presentation of results to gauge program performance.  Engagement, one of the three elements of the LoyaltyLevers Balanced Scorecard, is a leading indicator of Loyalty Program success. The five measures of loyalty program Engagement are detailed in this article.

LoyaltyLevers Balanced Scorecard: Measuring Loyalty Sentiment

As noted in Loyalty Measurement: C-Suite Needs a Balanced Scorecard, executives need a balanced presentation of results to gauge program performance.  Loyalty Sentiment is one of the three elements of the LoyaltyLevers Balanced Scorecard, with measurement of the appeal of Loyalty Program Benefits and Member Affinity.  These key indicators gauge the equity you are building with positive Loyalty Sentiment and Emotional Loyalty.  This article dives deeper into measuring Loyalty Sentiment.

LoyaltyLevers Balanced Scorecard:  Measuring Behavior Changes

As noted in Loyalty Measurement: C-Suite Needs a Balanced Scorecard, executives need a balanced presentation of results to gauge program performance.   As part of that, loyalty practitioners must measure and optimize the incremental impact of their programs. LoyaltyLevers Balanced Scorecard provides a unique solution to the challenge of causality.  This article goes deeper into measuring Behavior changes and translating that into an estimate of incremental margin attributable to the program.

Loyalty Measurement: C-Suite Needs a Balanced Scorecard

Ask your loyalty program owner to report out on their program results, and you might hear answers like “It’s hard to measure ROI”, “Redemptions are improving” or “Total revenue is up!”.  This article is written especially for the busy CEO, CFO or CMO who wants a reliable yardstick, and it outlines the LoyaltyLevers Balanced Scorecard which provides a unique solution to measurement and optimization.

Using Surprise & Delight to Build True Loyalty Sentiment

Surprise and Delight is a well-established component to great brand experiences and loyalty programs, harnessing the Decision Affect theory that unexpected outcomes have a greater impact than expected outcomes. Though best suited to service oriented businesses, others have found ways to side-step the challenges of scaling this approach, succeeding brilliantly in deepening emotional connections with their customers.

Most loyalty programs are poised to miss this moment of opportunity

Have no doubt, this is a moment of opportunity for loyalty programs. Data privacy laws continue to tighten, which only increases the importance of first party, permission-based data. Consumers know the importance of their information, and loyalty programs can provide an important value exchange for the permission to use it. Presto -- loyalty programs are now becoming THE foundation to all data driven marketing, quite a turnaround for what brand marketers once viewed as a promotional side hustle.