Strategies for Enhancing In-Store Customer Loyalty

I analyzed 100+ loyalty programs in the last 30 days. Most brands still run loyalty like it’s 2009: Earn points, get a discount, repeat. The top 10%? They’re using loyalty to change behavior- not just reward it. If I were Head of Loyalty at a $10B+ brand today, here’s exactly what I’d do to build a program that drives LTV, repeat purchases, and real retention: 1. Stop Giving Away Loyalty - Make Them Pay for It Costco, RH, Barnes & Noble. When customers pay upfront, they buy in - literally and psychologically. Forget free points. Paid memberships = commitment, retention, higher LTV and emotional sunk cost. 2. Make Loyalty Required, Not Optional - Integrate Directly into Payments Starbucks preloads!!! When rewards are embedded in how people pay, behavior shifts faster, and for longer. This is probably the biggest opportunity in loyalty right now. 3. Forget Delayed Points - Instant Gratification is More Important Immediate dopamine beats theoretical future savings. Slow accumulation = slow engagement. Instant offers = repeat behavior. The 2nd purchase matters more than the 10th. 4. Make Loyalty Emotional, Not Transactional REI, North Face, Sephora. Customers want to belong, not just save. Identity, community, and shared values are outperforming cashbacks and discounts in driving long-term loyalty. Loyalty isn’t just a discount strategy, it’s a brand strategy. 5. Invest in Status + Experiences, not Generic Perks This isn't just theory – with companies like Rapha and Lululemon offering loyalty members exclusive product drops, community events and behind-the-scenes experiences. Lean into waitlists and exclusive product drops. Less financial. More status + psychological “being in the club.” 6. Reward Engagement, Not Just Transactions MoxieLash, Pacifica, Lucy & Yak. UGC. Reviews. Referrals. Loyalty now means participation. The modern flywheel starts before checkout - and lasts far beyond it. ~~ Bottom line? If your loyalty program is still playing a game from 15 years ago, your customers are going to find better options. Today, the best brands in 2025 aren’t just rewarding loyalty- they're engineering it. PS: We analyzed 100+ programs across QSR, retail, travel, and fintech. Next week I’ll share the Top 30 loyalty programs leading the way. Stay tuned🙏

I analyzed over $1.2B in purchases made by 2.6 million customers across dispensaries. The results were shocking! It really puts into perspective where stores are missing the mark. One-time shoppers made up *52%* of all customers... but only *8%* of revenue. Customers who purchased 10 or more times? Just *14%* of the customer base, but ***73%*** of all revenue. Read that again. The small group that keeps coming back is your business. The rest is just noise. So why are most stores still obsessed with foot traffic and first-time promos? Here’s how you can shift focus to the customers that matter: 1. Segment your customers by purchase count > Use AIQ.com (Alpine IQ) or your POS/CRM. Create groups like: 1-time, 2–3 visits, 4–9 visits, and 10+. This gives you a clear picture of where your revenue actually comes from. 2. Build a journey to move people up > Every customer should have a path to become a 10+ visit regular. That means targeted campaigns, loyalty flows, and retention offers that fit where they are right now to get them to the next stage. 3. Protect your best buyers > If a high-value customer goes quiet for even 15 or 25 days, reach out. Don’t wait. You cannot afford to lose the people who make up 70%+ of your sales. 4. Stop over-investing in one-timers > They are important, but not profitable until they come back. Your budget, time, and team should be focused on turning that first visit into a second and third. You do not need more customers. You need more retained ones. If you want to see what your breakdown looks like, I’ll show you. Dispensaries... come get our Free Retention Audit. One report could shift your entire strategy.

One of the biggest takeaways I spotted from Intuit Mailchimp’s analysis of the 2024 holiday shopping season is that the new year is ripe with new opportunities to drive loyalty. Here’s why → 64% of orders from Mailchimp customers with connected stores came from new customers during Cyber Weekend 2024. That's a huge opportunity to grow your loyal customer base! And research we produced with Canvas8 tells us that the best kept secret to driving loyalty is actually grounded in science. Our Loyalty Wheel reveals 4 key drivers of loyalty: 1. Reward: Our brains love rewards. Create a sense of reciprocity by offering exclusive deals, personalized discounts, or early access to new products. 2. Memory: Make it easy for customers to remember (and repeat!) positive experiences with your brand. Design a frictionless customer journey, offer subscriptions for frequently purchased items, and send well-timed reminders. 3. Emotion: Foster an emotional connection that goes beyond transactional exchanges. Align your brand with causes your customers care about, share authentic stories, and build a sense of community. 4. Social Interaction: Encourage customers to share their love for your brand with friends and family. Create opportunities for user-generated content, run refer-a-friend programs, or host exclusive events. And here's how to put it all into action: 🎉 Surprise and delight: Gift your customers with unexpected rewards. And just not generic discounts. Offer exclusive experiences or partner with like-minded brands to create unique offers. 🛝 Streamline every touchpoint: Remove friction in the customer journey with automation. From browsing to purchasing to post-purchase support, make it easy and enjoyable to do business with your brand. 🎯 Prioritize personalization: Craft your messaging and build authentic connections. Use data and AI analysis to understand your customers' values and preferences and use those insights to create content that resonates. 🤗 Give VIP treatment: Make your customers feel like VIPs. Give them early access to new products, invite them to exclusive events, or feature them on your social media channels. Download Mailchimp and Canvas8’s The Science of Loyalty and The Strategic Loyalty Playbook for a deep dive into the science, complete with actionable strategies and inspiring examples: https://bit.ly/49FJayO Make 2025 the year of the loyal customer. You got this.

This is how to drive loyalty with your offline customers 👇 As always, we like to think about everything from the customer journey. What do we know? Customers want a seamless journey & experience with the brand, regardless of where they shop. That’s where Brij comes in – bringing customers into your direct ecosystem regardless of where they’ve shopped. But then you want to provide a value transfer – often in the form of loyalty points or rewards. Enter Yotpo. Brij and Yotpo work together to transform retail shoppers into loyal, digital customers. Let’s take a look at how these platforms complement each other to create a seamless, data-driven customer journey. 👇 1️⃣ Capture First-Party Data with Brij Brij bridges the gap between retail & digital by capturing first-party data from retail customers. Whether it’s product registration, rebates, or sweepstakes, Brij ensures that customers who buy your product in-store don’t stay anonymous. 2️⃣ Activate with Yotpo Once Brij captures key data points (like email addresses), Yotpo steps in to activate them. These customers are seamlessly enrolled in loyalty programs, receive personalized SMS campaigns, & get targeted for post-purchase review requests. But what does this look like in practice? Here’s an example from Health-Ade who uses both Brij and Yotpo. It all starts when a customer picks up a bottle of Health-Ade at Whole Foods. They’re driven to a Brij-powered experience where they can: Place an order online to stay stocked up. Learn more about the beverage and its benefits. Most importantly, enroll in a rewards program designed exclusively for retail purchases. Here’s the magic: Brij captures their email & seamlessly passes it to Health-Ade’s rewards program, powered by Yotpo. Suddenly, that once-anonymous retail shopper is earning points for their in-store purchases. They’re getting personalized offers and updates via email and SMS, building a stronger connection with the brand. But here’s the game-changer: this rewards program isn’t for online purchases—it’s designed to drive retail velocity. Not only are we bringing offline customers into the digital ecosystem, but we’re also closing the loop by incentivizing more in-store purchases. Brij and Yotpo ensure that every retail interaction leads to deeper engagement and higher sales across channels. Using Brij and Yotpo together means no customer interaction goes to waste. Whether they buy in-store or online, you convert, engage, and retain them across all channels. If you’re curious how this synergy could work for your brand, let’s connect. 💬 Tomer Tagrin. Omri Cohen Danna Rabin Sheridan Smith Samantha Felgoise Asaf Frige Liz Stack Guliaeva Logan Tessler Kara Sahota Ethan Cohen Amanda Kwasniewicz Daniel Cestone Itai Bengal Katharine Mancini Ofer Karp Anna Alaverdian Galit Peled🎗️Ally Moore Will Hofmann Kim Winter Kaila Zimmerman Shelby Levine Glory Norman Katie McKeever Jeff Cooper #sweepstakes #rewards #loyalty