Loyalty programs are one of the oldest ways of customer retention and have been around for centuries. During the 18th century, merchants gave their customers copper tokens to redeem discounts when they purchased something from them in the future. This was a great way to retain customers, so it's not surprising that the concept stayed until the present, and is still working well.

But the days of relying on traditional physical customer loyalty programs are over. With approximately 4.32 billion active mobile internet users today, many brands and companies now recognize the power of digital loyalty programs, but they struggle to know how to implement and maintain them. In this post, we will discuss the advantages of digital loyalty cards for your business and how to quickly implement your own.

1. Attract & Acquire New Customers

It’s 6 times more expensive to win a new customer than retain an existing one.  With Digital Loyalty cards, you can attract and acquire new customers more easily. Digital coupons can be posted on the company’s website, sent via email, placed on Facebook, and even published in a magazine. They are an effective way to generate sales and keep customers coming back for more with no printing costs and unlimited digitized promotions.

For example, a customer may receive a coupon for $10 off their next purchase if they refer a friend. The company would then record the order and credit the customer’s account through a mobile app. Customer loyalty programs can also be used to create an incentive program that rewards customers for being loyal. For instance, customers could be rewarded with discounts for referring friends and family. You could also offer a special product or service for a limited time only. For example, offer a one-time free shipping deal, or a free gift for opening an account.

2. Improve Conversion Rate

Digital loyalty cards can help improve your conversion rate by creating different types of discount cards and coupons with your custom design, logo, and contact details. Your cards could also have a customer referral option to help your service go viral.  According to the research, as many as 84% of consumers say they’re more likely to stick with a brand that offers a loyalty program.

3. Increase Average Customer Spend

Whenever you offer customers discounts and rewards, they will be motivated to keep shopping and buy more. 66% of consumers say the ability to earn rewards actually changes their spending behaviour. You can also trigger customer spending by offering promotional terms and using PUSH notifications and messages directly to their mobile devices, for example on their birthday or if they are within a certain distance of your store.

4. Stimulate Repeat Customer Purchases

43% of customers made repeat purchases to stores that run a digital loyalty program. To encourage repeat purchases, you can offer various types of automated push messages and services. These can be sent to your customers based on their purchase history.

For example, if you are a restaurant owner, you can send your customers a text message when they order their food, and then give them a discount when they make a second or third order. If you are an online store, you can provide an automated discount code when they purchase multiple items, or a discount coupon for their next visit to your store.

5. Improve Customer Loyalty

Digital loyalty programs have been very helpful for businesses to increase their customer loyalty. 78% of customers claim that a loyalty program will make them more likely to stay with a particular brand. They are not only used to reward customers, but also to remind them that they are valued customers. A good way to do this is by offering discounts to those who have visited your store before. This is a great way to reward loyal customers and encourage repeat visits. Did you know that a 5% increase in customer retention can lead to a 25-100% increase in profit for your company?