Apadmi has published its Apadmi Digital Customer Loyalty Report 2024, which outlines how the digital loyalty landscape is changing. The report canvases opinion from leaders in loyalty across retail, financial services, utilities and travel and leisure with the aim of understanding how digital, and more specifically digital products, are supporting personalisation, which audiences are being targeted and where the future focus will be. The report provides insights from more than 100 market-leading brands. Apadmi designs, develops and optimises mobile apps for global brands, integrating with complex systems.
According to the report, 25% of respondents say they are currently in the process of developing a loyalty programme. 15% say they are planning to create one but do not have the procedures lined up as of yet.
Despite the current lack of incentives in place, it seems that most businesses are actively striving to implement loyalty programmes, with a promising 87% of corporations saying that they will implement a budget to increase their loyalty presence.
The report challenges whether companies are taking full advantage of everything digital loyalty has to offer. According to the research, almost two-thirds of businesses are still playing catch-up when it comes to digital loyalty.
With loyalty experts’ survey data from nearly 100 leading European companies, the study highlights the opportunity to improve customer retention and increase revenues through delivering great digital loyalty experiences.
Instrumental to shaping loyalty
The report also found that the majority of brands are planning further investment to improve their current loyalty offerings. 87% expect spend on digital customer loyalty to increase or significantly increase in the next 12 months.
According to Apadmi’s Group Content Director Jake Sargent, “Digital products are becoming instrumental in shaping loyalty. The value they can create for both businesses and customers is hard to ignore. But what’s really exciting from our survey results is the potential to do even more. It feels like the surface is only just being scratched.
“The combination of knowing customers through better data and then creating tailored, seamless digital experiences is making a real difference. Not just with retaining existing customers, but also with bringing in new ones.”
Attracting new customers is a useful loyalty by-product with 69% of survey respondents agreeing or strongly agreeing that their digital loyalty programme has driven new customer acquisition.
Increasing lifetime customer value was the number one cited objective for digital loyalty programmes for all survey respondents. Revenue remains the ultimate driving force. 35% of businesses who took part in the survey believe that customers who are app loyalty members spend more than those who aren’t.
Enterprise Times: What this means for businesses
Customer loyalty is vital now, more important than ever in today’s competitive marketplace. There’s been a digital transformation of loyalty over the last 20 years – from plastic cards and paper to web and app. Consumers are given more ways to engage, earn and redeem.
Businesses are benefiting from greater insight, visibility, reach and retention. It is a priority for every business and enterprise. Digital experiences have changed the way customers want and expect to interact with the brands they buy from.
Apadmi’s report provides an interesting read advising businesses on how to take full advantage of everything digital loyalty has to offer. Businesses have to consider the effectiveness of platforms being invested in. Furthermore, enterprises have to ensure they encourage positive customer experiences to drive retention and growth. As a result, in today’s digital consumer world, offering loyalty incentives has become an essential channel in which businesses retain customers and build their credible portfolio.
Last year, research from MuleSoft suggested the economic turmoil is causing consumers to become fussier than ever. 81% say they are reassessing budgets as they become more sensitive to the need to get value for their money. Furthermore, the majority of consumers say they expect a better experience from their brands. This spells problems for brands that fail to address rising customer expectations for seamless and more personalised experiences. Many retailers risk losing wallet share if they do not plan for the backbone of customer loyalty in their digital real estate. Personalisation and user experience.
