Optimize Rewards in Loyalty Point Marketplace

Customer loyalty is the only way businesses can sustain a cost burdening economy. Top brands are in a constant hustle to design highly personalized rewards marketplaces to engage their customers and retain them for the long haul. Loyalty points and rewards marketplaces are the only reliable way to tackle competition and high customer attrition. 

Besides, an effective reward marketplace helps a brand stand out in a cluttered market. Brands that want to ride high on loyalty management must optimize the reward marketplace and rise above the traditional strategies. By injecting some creativity, surprise, and emerging trends into your loyalty programs, you can optimize rewards.   

Let’s take a closer look at how to do it.  

Take Personalization a Step Further  

Personalization is not a novel topic for brands that are taking customer loyalty seriously. It’s the need of modern customers. But what if we take it a step further? Customers want an emotional connection with the brand they engage with.   

Introduce storytelling in your loyalty narrative!  Instead of communicating some offers in terms of discount or free products, you can tell the story behind the reward. For example, Patagonia is this environmental sustainability brand. The reward is more than the discount on a product, but the story of how that product has been ethically sourced. Even better, let a brand team give personal recognition to customers who’ve redeemed a certain number of points, so that they’ll feel you’re seeing and appreciative of their rewards efforts.  

Make your Reward Marketplace More Transparent   

Blockchain technology is one of the biggest disruptors of loyalty. With decentralized networks emerging as a new trend, blockchain-based loyalty points are being explored because they represent a transparent way to manage rewards programs.  

Instead of redeeming points for a product or experience, super-customers are provided with a limited-edition digital collectible—an NFT that grants entry to exclusive events, content, and whatnot. Suddenly, the excitement and exclusivity of such a reward can’t be matched by traditional rewards.  

Create a Cross-Promotional Experience   

Gamification is not a new concept for brands that are already into loyalty management. It’s just that it is no longer just about tiered rewards and leadership boards. You can collaborate with other brands to create gamified and cross-promotional experiences.   

This way, your customers not only earn points by engaging with your brand, but also with partner brands. Let’s say—a sportswear brand can collaborate with a fitness brand and can design experiences that place a customer in a loyalty loop. The fitness app can set some challenges, and winners get exclusive discount offers on the purchase of their favorite sports gear.   

Create “Surprise and Delight” Experiences  

Don’t be predictable with your rewards. Add a layer of surprise to your loyalty points and rewards marketplace. Surprise customers when they least expect it, rather than condition customers to predictable, scheduled rewards.  

Maybe you have a customer pass a milestone, but instead of the usual reward, they get a personal thank-you video made by your team or experience, something like a backstage tour or early access to the new product launch just for them. It is rewarding in ways nobody will ever predict and really makes them feel valued.  

Take Resort in AI and Chatbots   

Technology can contribute greatly towards a better user experience within a marketplace of loyalty points. By using AI-driven personalization, you can offer smart award recommendations for individual customer data and behavior. AI can predict when customers are more likely to redeem their points, and suggest customized ideas to them instead, thereby removing friction from the path of redemption.  

Chatbots will also be a game changer by guiding customers through their loyalty journey. Imagine a chatbot that helps the customer pick out the best possible reward, instantly answer questions, and remind them when they are about to hit the next tier of rewards.  

Make Use of Real-Time Feedback  

You cannot be static when it comes to designing relevant loyalty programs. Customers’ needs are constantly evolving, and brands must consider their feedback as an authentic source of data to make the required changes to the loyalty programs. By tracking customer data in real-time, brands can know what they are liking and what they are not. 

You can use predictive analytics to predict which rewards will appeal to customers. You can collect data through pulse surveys to know how they feel about the recent updates. 

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In a Nutshell  

Optimizing rewards in a loyalty points marketplace is no longer about points and discounts. It’s all about having the experience that engages customers and, at the same time, reaches them on an emotional level.  

This is why, when your customers feel like they belong to something bigger than themselves, they will stick for longer. So go ahead and inject creativity, technology, and personalization into your loyalty program and make it really unique.  

Novus Loyalty can help you with designing robust loyalty points and rewards marketplaces. Their extensive experience in loyalty management makes them an ideal tech partner.