The Art of Communication

They say that at the heart of every good relationship, communication is key. Bearing this in mind, creating new avenues for your business to grow and building a stable communicative relationship with your customers should be the primary ethos in the overarching paradigm of communication. By building a bridge of constant interaction you are able to understand the needs and desires of what your customer likes and dislikes. 

It is these principles that make or break a loyalty program.

Communication of loyalty programs is an important element of the whole operation which, if done correctly will bring in the best results. A successful loyalty program needs mechanisms of support that will allow customers to learn about the potential of your program. This will allow the entire program not only to be successful but allow for it to spread by word of mouth.

Have you considered what solutions are possible to ensure such success? In this article, we will explore the fundamental practices that will ensure the highest standard of communication. 

Step 1:
Think about what you want to notify your audience about

The beginning of successful communication is good planning of its content. You need to consider the information about which you can inform the client or customer. Get inspired by the products and services of different companies that you use yourself. Seeking inspiration from others isn’t forbidden and it can spur new ideas which you can flaunt as your own. Also, you can try to create new offers, revamp notifications, suggest favorable discounts, and try special messages prepared for the selected program participants. Being inventive and courageous is what will truly allow you to shine and be different from the competition. 

Once you have considered your messaging tactics, make sure that you tailor those messages to your most loyal customer base. This point can not be ignored as your most loyal customer base create the proverbial spine of your program and are the ones who do the most business with you.

Creating a stable pipeline of information is key to keeping your loyal customer informed and also aware of what is going on with your business. A great idea is to schedule messages that will inform your most loyal customer base on how to interact with your loyalty program at any given time. Certain questions or reminders can be considered: 

• Perhaps your customers have a limited amount of time for which they can use their points? 
• Do you want to remind your customers of the benefits you can exchange points for? 
• Or maybe right now there is a chance to duplicate their number of points by using the special offer? 

Also, consider special dates in the year and actions during which you want to contact your customers, i.e birthdays, sales periods or special invitation events.
 
These are just a few ideas worth considering. 

Step 2: 
Learn about the possibilities of reaching program participants through various communication channels

Now that you know what you want to convey, it's time to get to know the channels of reaching out to your most loyal customers. 

Do you have a mobile application dedicated to your activities?

Applications are a convenient and easy-to-use solution, which also has an additional advantage. It allows you to generate push notifications that can be checked on any smartphone. Their additional advantage is the quick redirection of the client to the application, where he can take up the activity you encourage them to participate in. Additionally, notifications can be not only in the form of messages appearing on the main screen of the phone, but they can also see them after logging into the application.

Another common method is email, which can provide specific information about giving interesting possibilities when it comes to sales periods. This is also an opportunity to gather information from your customer base which can translate into personalization. These details that are gathered could include a customer's birthday, or perhaps a wedding anniversary - all dependent on which type of service you provide.

Another option is the use of SMS, which when combined with push notifications from a digital application, provide a powerful combination in regards to using everything we know customers possess: a mobile phone. (However, you can choose a solution created by our experts at Sparta Loyalty, especially for your program which can target the demographics you wish through other mobile-related channels.) 

How else can you communicate your loyalty program? Information about your loyalty program should also be included on the receipt you provide (digital or hardcopy). This is where you can prepare a short message that can provide additional information for the customer who buys in your store or uses the services offered by your business. 
Another unusual solution is communication through other applications dedicated to messaging. An example would be the use of Viber or Whatsapp in some cases. But be wary when considering this option as depending on which country you are in, privacy laws have to be observed.

Step three:
Should a loyalty program be communicated only to customers?

If you think about the communication of your loyalty program, you probably intuitively focus on direct messages to customers. However, it is equally important that the employees of your brand - including salespeople, remain up to date with important news and campaigns carried out in the program. A solution that works well in such situations is notifications on the cashier's screen or perhaps preparing a social media campaign targeted at new customers once they purchase your goods/services. Once again, this has to be done in accordance with privacy laws. 

Don't forget the basics and always plan ahead

If the program you are running is unattractive to the client even the best communication will not help. Prepare appropriate mechanisms in your loyalty program and think about the rewards/offers you can give to the participants. Prepare mechanisms that will bring your customers the real benefits that they actually desire. You can find further inspiration and explanations on how to prepare these sorts of targeted campaigns in our library of articles. 

If you plan to implement a loyalty program in your company - contact us and our experts will help you as best as they can. We will guide you through the entire process - from set up to function. Remember, at Sparta Loyalty, we always strive to be ahead of the competition.