When it comes to choosing a loyalty marketing program, customers are looking for freedom of choice.
Loyalty marketing programs have been around for decades, and come in various types and iterations. One very common loyalty marketing program is the point card system, where a business creates a reward program that designates points for various purchases, and at certain levels those points can be redeemed for in store purchases.
These loyalty programs are great, although the rewards are often limited to redemption inside that store itself. This is good, and it's nice to have the ability to cash out your reward points for in store purchases, but what is truly respected by customers is the freedom and choice of where their reward points can be spent or redeemed.
The most effective loyalty programs listen to consumer demands, and give them the flexibility to shop wherever they please.
One solution is to develop a loyalty program that rewards customers with branded prepaid credit cards, which can be used at any retail or online store that accepts Visa or MasterCard.
By simply re-purposing your point system to provide actual cash value through a custom prepaid credit card, your business does not have to conduct drastic changes to the current point system in place, and in turn your customers will appreciate your program in a different, more organic way.
Plus these prepaid credit cards can incorporate company branding and imagery on them, which not only looks great but will continuously remind shoppers where their funds came from every time they swipe their card. It's not like receiving a gift card that's limited in use, or cash which is impersonal and difficult to disperse. Instead consumers are constantly reminded of the exact source of those valuable funds, and they get to buy whatever they want with their rewards, whenever they want.
In turn, companies gain a greater level of customer appreciation and loyalty to their brand. The key to loyalty programs is providing participants with the most meaningful and valuable rewards. And what better reward than the freedom to choose whatever reward you want?
