Challenge: A major consumer goods company, with a century-long history and a 97% household penetration rate in the US, faced a significant challenge. Despite their extensive market presence, they lacked direct connections with their consumers. This limitation restricted their ability to collect valuable first-party data and hindered their capacity to influence consumer purchasing behaviors effectively. Previous attempts at loyalty programs had failed due to their clunky and non-engaging nature. The company needed a solution that could overcome these barriers and create a meaningful, engaging loyalty program.
Solution: While working for a different agency, I developed a digital loyalty program to bridge this gap. The solution focused on gathering rich first-party data and creating deeper connections with consumers that would help build intrinsic loyalty while providing them with beneficial rewards and clear value. My approach was based on extensive research and strategic insights into consumer behavior and loyalty program trends.
Key Actions:
- Consumer-Centric Design:
- Conducted extensive research, including consumer interviews, to understand motivations for joining loyalty programs.
- Designed the program to encourage data sharing through engaging activities, such as personality quizzes and surveys, and incentivized receipt scanning to capture critical purchase data previously unavailable to the client.
- Engagement Mechanics:
- Implemented a gamified system where consumers earned Experience Points (XP) for various activities, mimicking video game mechanics to maintain engagement.
- Introduced “seasons” to refresh the program every three months, ensuring continuous consumer interest and engagement.
- Reward Structure:
- Developed a tiered reward system with “leveling up” mechanics, where consumers unlocked rewards at different XP milestones.
- Included a mix of rewards, from branded merchandise to free product coupons, ensuring high perceived value.
- Incorporated seasonal sweepstakes with high-value prizes to attract and retain members.
- Brand Team Engagement:
- Created brand teams to foster competition and engagement within the program, with leaderboards tracking team performance.
- Allowed for flexibility in brand representation, ensuring all company brands could participate over different seasons.
Outcomes: The program is set to launch mid-2024 with a beta season in the spring. Preliminary business case projections for the first full year (2025) include:
- 5 million registered members.
- 35% of members expected to increase their spend on the company’s products.
- Projected additional revenue of $79 million in the first year.
- Estimated cumulative ROI of 290% within five years, generating over half a million dollars in gross profit.
Key Takeaways: This digital loyalty program exemplifies how a consumer-centric approach, combined with innovative engagement and reward strategies, can transform a traditional consumer goods company into a digitally savvy, consumer-connected brand. This case study highlights my expertise in designing loyalty programs that not only drive consumer engagement but also deliver substantial business value.