72% of US adults belong to at least one loyalty program. — Source

Customer loyalty is an invaluable asset to any ecommerce brand. But it is not something that can be built out of thin air—you need to earn it.

In today’s highly competitive ecommerce scene, maintaining devoted customers is increasingly becoming more difficult. That’s when great customer loyalty program ideas can help.

These programs are nothing but methods to reward your best buyers for their continued patronage, and by doing so you can ensure that they remain actively engaged with your brand. And they are quite popular among online brands.

Despite its popularity, only a few companies succeed in creating a loyalty-driven culture through their program. In fact, many companies still struggle with choosing the right program for their business and implementing it effectively.

We have put together a list of the best customer loyalty program ideas for your ecommerce brand, and a lot more in this guide.

What Makes a Great Loyal Program for an Ecommerce Brand?

Leveraging customer loyalty program ideas can be a great way to increase your ecommerce sales and the returns on your marketing efforts. Here are some good reasons why you need to try it at your online store:

 

 
#1: It Encourages Them to Shop More at Your Store

 

Customers are most likely to spend their money where they are rewarded. They want to feel appreciated and encouraged, and what better way than by offering them benefits in exchange for shopping?

A loyalty program is a type of encouragement that customers love.

 

#2: It Makes Marketing Easier for Marketers

In the current scenario, every business owner understands the significance of developing brand awareness for their marketing purposes. But what if we told you that it can be made easier?

An effective loyalty program leads to higher brand awareness, and if designed well, it can be created on a budget.

 

#3: It Ensures Customer Retention

Implementing good customer loyalty program ideas on your ecommerce brand can help you retain your existing customers for their future purchases. It includes incentives and other value additions such as free shipping, early access to sales, birthday discounts, or even VIP treatment providing a dedicated customer support representative.

Whatever the case may be, it is important that your customers feel incentivized enough to visit your store again.

 

#4: It Sets You Apart from Your Competitors

Loyalty programs can differentiate you from other brands in your niche. Give your customers special offers, giveaways, or exclusive privileges that others do not have access to. You can also hold competitions and games to encourage customers to stick around.

As a result, they will flock towards you instead of other online brands.

 

#5: It Allows You to Collect Customer Feedback

Having proven customer loyalty program ideas implemented on your store can also be used to collect valuable insights from your users. This approach helps businesses to identify market opportunities, understand customer behavior, and evaluate their competitive positioning accurately – all of which can be used to refine their strategies.

Now on a basic level, there are two ways in which ecommerce brands can go about setting up their loyalty programs.

 

1) Closed Loop System

 

The first option involves a closed loop system. In this case, you need to create a segment of repeat customers that have already purchased from your store.

Once it is ready, you can then send them personalized offers for certain products or services going forward, mostly via emails.

If they agree to pay for the purchase using coupons or gift cards, their details are then added to your customer loyalty program database.

 

2) Open Loop System

Another option is the open loop system, where you send promotions across various channels including email, SMSes, and social media networks.

These are often triggered by certain events such as a big sale or flash sale. The setup requires minimal effort on the merchant’s part because it runs automatically based on pre-decided rules and algorithms.

 

Customer Loyalty Program Ideas that Work

When it comes to customer loyalty programs, you can’t just sit back and run the same old program time after time.
 

It’s not enough to offer one or two bonuses; you need to make sure that your customer rewards program is exciting and keeps your customers coming back for more. 

Let’s look at some customer loyalty program ideas that you could leverage for your ecommerce brand right away:

 

Idea #1: Points-Based Loyalty Program

A points-based loyalty program is a fairly simple concept that consists of giving your customers points every time they buy from you.

For example, you could give them one point for every one dollar they spend. The more they spend, the more points they get. And when they accumulate enough points to level up, they’ll be given rewards like free shipping or product discounts.

Here’s how to set one:

Step 1: First, determine the value of a single point. There are various theories as to what this number should be, but it’s best to use the one-point-equals-$1 formula to keep it simple.

With that, you can determine how many points a customer will have to accumulate before they can redeem their reward. For example, if the customer gets a point for every dollar they spend, then you set the reward threshold at 2000 points.

Step 2: Once you set this, you can now generate a customer loyalty program page on your website. If you use an ecommerce platform like Shopify that offers integrated loyalty programs, then the process can be completed quite easily.

 

Idea #2: Assortment-Based Loyalty Program

One of the most popular customer loyalty program ideas is an Assortment-based loyalty program, which is to the points-based model. However, it requires your customers to collect a certain type of reward before they can redeem it for something else.

For example, you could require them to earn 5 mugs or 10 t-shirts in order to get a free pair of jeans.

Here’s how to set one:

Step 1: Determine which items will be the reward for your main product. For instance, you can give customers a pack of socks for every 5 mugs they buy or 2 scarves when they purchase 10 t-shirts.

Step 2: You can display the offer on the main product page itself to encourage more sales.

Step 3: Then create a table with counters that track their progress in earning rewards. This way it will be easier for them to track their progress and they’ll know when they’ve hit the threshold.

 

Idea #3: Coupon-Based Loyalty Program

With a coupon-based loyalty program, your customers get rewarded with printable coupons or online coupons for their purchases.

You could give them $5 off of their next purchase for every $100 spent or even $10 off if they spend more than $200 within a month. This helps incentivize your customers to keep coming back and also gives them something to use on their next purchase.

Here’s how to set one:

Step 1: First, create a table to track the number of coupons customers should receive. It could be something like if they purchase $100 worth of items then they could probably get a $10 coupon.

Step 2: Assign coupon values based on the order total. The more they spend, the bigger their discount will be. This not only incentivizes them to spend more but also rewards them with bigger coupon values.

 

Idea #4: Purchase-Based Loyalty Program

Purchase-based loyalty programs are great for increasing purchase frequency from your buyers. You can set it up by giving a percentage off of their next purchase after they buy something.

You could give them 5% off or $10 off for every $50 spent when they buy from your store again. By doing so, you’ll see an increase in the number of purchases they make which will eventually translate to more Average Order Value (AOV).

Here’s how to set one:

Step 1: First, decide how much of a discount you want to give. Then, choose the interval for your rewards. Every $50 spent, for example, earns them $10 off on their next purchase.

Step 2: Once they reach the discount threshold then it’s time for them to claim their reward. You can send an email to let them know that they’ve hit the threshold and need to redeem it before a specific date.

 

Idea #5: Lifestyle-Based Loyalty Program

If you want to make your customer loyalty program ideas stand out, a lifestyle-based loyalty program is a great way to do it. This can be done by understanding your audience’s lifestyle so you can offer real-world rewards that they’ll be interested in.

If your customers are mostly parents then you can give them discounts on groceries or free coffee.

Or maybe even let them book babysitting appointments just by collecting points. By doing this, your program will not only be unique but also give customers an incentive to participate.

Here’s how to set one:

Step 1: First, choose an icon or symbol that represents your company’s values and the kind of lifestyle you want to portray. Like, Netflix could give customers a DVD to represent watching movies or Hulu could give them a remote control.

Step 2: The next step is to create an award system based on the different types of lifestyle rewards you want to give away. They’ll receive one token which can be exchanged for something that matches their lifestyle.

 

Idea #6: VIP Reward Program

If you want to give your loyal customers more than just one-time rewards, then a VIP reward program is the way to go.

You should offer them other benefits like early access to sales and other exclusive offers that they can use at their discretion. Or maybe dedicated customer support just for them which they can access any time.

Here’s how to set one:

Step 1: First, consider the types of rewards your VIP members should get.

Step 2: Pitch your rewards to them and get their contact info if they’re interested.

Step 3: Send them the exclusive offers they can use during their next purchase.

If you want to look at how some companies are implementing customer loyalty program ideas to get more customers and business, here’s a couple of quick examples for you:

 

1. Muscle and Strength Rewards Program

 

Muscle & Strength offers a great reward program for their customers. The loyalty program demonstrates how fun physical awards can be and how businesses may maximize the value of doing valuable activities.

• Customers earn 2 points for every $1 spent.
  
  
• There are also bonus points for referring a friend or uploading proof of a workout, which can be used to save money on their next purchase.
  
  
• Customers can share their purchases on social media during the checkout process to earn referral bonuses.

 

2. The “IKEA Family” Program

 

Unlike other businesses, IKEA doesn’t use points in its program. Instead, they rely on members-only perks, services, and unique content.

The “IKEA Family” program gives you a certain number of points whenever you shop at IKEA stores.

These points increase when you complete activities such as test driving kitchen cabinets, having lunch at IKEA, and more. You can then use these points to get freebies like a shopping spree, and also get:

• Access to free events and workshops.
  
  
• No-cost filtered coffee and free.
  
  
• Delight and surprise offers that are sent to you via emails.

 

7 Useful Tips to Get Results with Your Customer Loyalty Program Ideas

Before you set up any of the customer loyalty program ideas that we discussed above, here are some things to consider:

Don’t Just Create a Program Because Everyone Else Is Doing It

While it’s true that customers like loyalty programs and expect you to have one, do not create one because everyone else is doing it. Your program must be coherent with your brand’s identity and the reason why you’re giving rewards.

Base Everything on What Your Customers Want

Remember that the loyalty program is usually intended to reward customers for buying from you. You need to set everything up in a way that encourages your customers to buy more instead of just receiving rewards.

 

Make Sure That the Rewards Make Sense with Your Business Model

The best way to come up with ideas for the rewards is to base them on your product or service.

You don’t want to give out rewards that you can’t keep in stock because it might be a total waste of time and money, not just for you but also for your customers.

 

Incentivize Customers with Rewards That They Want

You’re basically giving free or discounted stuff in exchange for buying your products. Just keep that in mind when you’re coming up with customer loyalty program ideas. You could offer discounts or rewards that are closely tied to your business model so it’ll make sense for both parties involved.

 

Make Sure That Your Rewards Don’t Feel Forced

You want customers to feel like they deserve these rewards even if they haven’t bought anything yet.

This is why you need to hire a professional for the job and someone who knows what they’re doing when it comes to incentives and rewards because when done right, these things can make your customers come back again and again.

 

Always Base Your Decisions by Studying Your Customers

While creating a great loyalty program, it’s important for you to understand your customer. You need to think about it like this – if the program isn’t beneficial enough then you’ll end up losing customers in the long run.

 

Set a Proper Budget

Once the planning and ideation are done, you need to set up a budget because it’s going to help you keep your expectations realistic. If you don’t have a good idea of how much you’re going to spend then there’s no point in even creating one.

 

2 Shopify Apps to Execute Your Customer Loyalty Program Ideas

If you don’t execute your customer loyalty program ideas well, you’ll end up not reaching your goals. Here are two Shopify apps that you can use to execute your ideas properly:

 

1. Gift Cards & Loyalty Program

The Gift Cards & Loyalty Program app allows you to design, mint, and track gift cards in your store. It also has a mobile-ready loyalty program feature so customers can sign up for a reward program from their smartphones.

 

2. Joy: Loyalty Program

This app creates an experience that makes your customers feel appreciated when your customer loyalty program ideas are launched. It offers an automatic and powerful reward system that’ll help you retain your existing customers and attract new ones.

 

Conclusion

Getting the most out of your loyalty programs is easier than you think. All it takes is creativity, time, and dedication to come up with any of the above customer loyalty program ideas that’ll not just motivate your customers but also get them interested in buying more of your products every single time.