Traveltech Lab and Collinson ask: ”Is brand loyalty dead?”
On Tuesday morning, 4th September, Traveltech Lab was joined by Collinson to host a five-star panel at London & Partners Tower Room, discussing loyalty in an age of diminishing brand affinity.The panel of experts was moderated by TTG Media‘s Pippa Jacks, and included:
Tamara Lohan – founder and CTO of Mr. & Mrs Smith
Adrian Maseda – co-founder, Cheerfy
Flemming Viktor Andersen – founder and board member, PointVoucher
Peter Gerstle – head of travel products, Collinson
TOP 4 WAYS TO MODERNISE BRAND LOYALTY
Offer extraordinary experiences and value. Tamara Lohan focused on the value you must bring to the customer; loyalty has to be earned through offering an extraordinary experience whenever a customer interacts with your brand. The business traveller will not want to be rewarded with points for the same hotel for her holidays, but allow her to build points to use at a different hotel and you have something of value to offer.
Believe in your universe. Flemming Viktor Andersen talked about the importance of offering your customer something easy or fun. The offer also has to be a real offer, perhaps a 2-for-1 offer; something that says ‘I believe in my universe and I want you to try it, because I know you’ll come back to me after that,’ rather than a small discount.
Make sure your offers are personalised. Adrian Maseda stressed the value of personalised, frictionless experiences – in the moment. A reward that is suited to you will have more impact than a generalised offer. He also noted how consumers can get disenchanted with apps for small businesses, so don’t underestimate the power of your communications through existing channels.
Be relevant. Peter Gerstle, Collinson’s representative knows a thing or two about loyalty. To have true engagement you must become relevant to your customers beyond your core business. A rich loyalty program ecosystem allowing for a shorter earn/burn cycle can provide engagement even at lower transaction levels. Instant gratification is now more important now than the distant promise of a (not really) free flight. Many airline loyalty programmes’ designs still only motivate a small segment of their members. To generate wider brand engagement you need to consider greater choice of rewards and offers through innovative and relevant partnerships and new concepts, such as paid loyalty and in-store earn and redemption.
We will be sharing a press article on the event very soon, which will dive deeper into the discussion. If you want to stay in touch with Traveltech Lab’s ongoing news and events, sign up to our newsletter today.
