Supercharge your marketing program with a great rewards program
Nobody's quite sure when the words "rewards" and "program" were initially paired, but you'd be hard-pressed to find someone living in today's society who hasn't subscribed or ascribed to this type of marketing. Frequent buyer plans, bonus points for purchases and the awarding of targeted premiums are among the popular marketing tactics that have proven to lift response when attached to a long-range plan for product or service brand building. If you've decided that your constituency could use a powerful incentive---to buy more, perform better, stay loyal or jump ship from a competitor---use this article as a jumping off point to build your bottom line and customer base.
Instructions
1. Figure out what behavior you want to reward. Incentive programs don't bestow rewards on people who believe they deserve to be stroked; you're seeking to make a behavior change in their buying habits, the frequency of their contact with you or you're reinforcing their loyalty. Once you understand the specific behavior you're seeking to change, focus on that goal as you formulate all of the details of your program.
2. Be bold about defining exactly whom you're trying to reach. Segment business audiences from consumer audiences, then further drill down to entice those who fit the audience you are seeking to attract or coordinate parallel programs for both. For example, if your rewards program is to incentivize purchasers of diapers, you'll want to target moms and caregivers for the consumer segment of your program and businesses, such as nursery schools and day care centers for the other.
3. Spread the word. A rewards program is only as good as the success you attain by reaching your universe of responders. Pull out all the stops by using as much media as your budget will allow to spread the word about your rewards program. Include TV, radio, print media, coupons, FSI inclusion, Internet, social networking and other places that deliver your buyer. Use appropriate language that appeals to your audience. For example, "Buy one get one free" may appeal to the over-50 crowd, but "Yo! Double your take" is more appropriate if you're reaching for a young demographic.
4. Spell out legalities. Rewards programs have risen and fallen on a single mistake made by marketers who have failed to have their program and language vetted. Appropriate disclaimers and restrictions must be added to materials listed in Step 3. There's no better example of the importance of this step than the airline industry. Had frequent flyer program administrators not set deadlines for using frequent flyer miles, they might still be honoring consumer accounts from a decade ago.
5. Inform employees that you plan to introduce a rewards program and give them plenty of advance notice. If the manager and clerks at the ice cream shop have no clue that you've sent out letters offering free cones on a set date, your clever idea for new customer recruitment could go south fast. Give folks in your pipeline an early head's up. Not only do they love to get the "inside scoop" but they'll be prepared for the traffic when folks begin to show up at the cash register with their letter.
6. Monitor your rewards program from start to finish to ascertain whether you're seeing a lift in sales, customer numbers or interest. This isn't easy to do without a baseline from which to factor in fluctuations. Hopefully, you tracked pre-rewards program activity for a healthy amount of time before you rolled out the program. Ideally, coded response vehicles---coupons, ads, direct response vehicles and other collateral with trackable codes---will give you the most comprehensive accounting of your efforts.
7. Know when to pull the plug. Savvy marketers make no secret of the dates they set for ending a program; they put these dates on collateral in bold print. Follow this practice for several reasons. First, you need a time line so you can prepare to wrap-up the program. Additionally, you want to convey a sense of urgency to responders so they don't miss out on claiming rewards before they expire. You can always extend the life of a successful rewards program, so be prepared for this happy possibility.
8. End on a positive note. Future rewards programs will be easier to plan and execute if you keep tabs on activity from start to finish, then compose an analytical wrap-up at the conclusion. Numbers aside, don't forget to do a qualitative analysis in addition to your quantitative one. Measuring high levels of satisfaction from customers as a result of your rewards program is---as MasterCard likes to remind the world---priceless.
