Mobile loyalty card apps are on the rise. How do they work and what can they do for your business?
Customer loyalty programs are certainly nothing new. Companies have used this valuable marketing strategy for decades, rewarding consumers with points, discounts, and gifts to encourage loyal buying behavior.
Rewards programs generally operate on the idea that keeping existing customers is more cost-effective than attracting new ones. A recent survey conducted by Manta and BIA/Kelsey of the nearly 1,000 members of Manta’s online directory found that 61% of businesses generate more than half of their annual sales income from returning customers.
Additionally, loyal customers often spend up to 67% more than new customers. Of those businesses surveyed, only about one third reported having a customer loyalty program in place at the time. In other words, many small to medium businesses (SMBs) are missing out on a large amount of potential profit that’s easily within their reach.
The rewards program marketing strategy is getting even more attractive as it merges with the world of mobile apps. Apps provide businesses with the ability to start and build their presence in previously inaccessible areas. They’re a cost-effective and user-friendly way to improve customer experience, which in turn increases customer retention rates.
How Do Loyalty Card Apps Work?
There are a number of customer loyalty apps on the market today that allow users to consolidate all of their cards into one seamless interface. StampKey stores a digital image of each card in an organized database where it can be easily retrieved and scanned by a cashier when needed.
KeyRing actually scans a loyalty card’s barcode or QR code and will then automatically recognize and select the business and their specific loyalty program. While each app may have its own approach, they all purport to simplify and organize the checkout process.
Gone are the days of heavy key rings and overstuffed wallets. These apps are an effective antidote to both clutter and forgetfulness. Customers no longer have to lug all of their cards with them everywhere they go or run the risk of missing out on special deals and discounts. And as the technologies improve, customers are increasingly inclined to embrace them. It’s hard to ignore such a straightforward way to improve your life.
A Two-Way Street
Loyalty apps don’t just make things easier for customers–they’re an extremely useful and economical way for businesses to gather information about consumer purchasing habits. They can serve as tools for monitoring the progress of specific rewards programs and even provide insight into the efforts of individual employees.
Embracing the mobile app platform puts valuable data and consumer research tools directly into the hands of business owners. This provides not only an opportunity to increase profits, but also information on how to run their business more effectively in general.
It All Adds Up
However, developing apps can be a costly endeavor. The process requires hiring developers, designers, and product managers, in addition to the costs of testing and tweaking, infrastructure integration, and the validation process.
Considering all of the time and energy expended, it’s easy to see how apps with an average level of complexity typically add up to anywhere between $35,000-$150,000. Even some of the simplest apps have remained out of reach for some.
The good news is that there are options available for those on a tight budget. BizAPPBiz allows users with zero programming experience to create apps for their own businesses and organizations. Cutting out the middleman saves time and money, allowing more SMBs to take advantage of these invaluable marketing strategies without breaking the bank.