How to Successfully Create and Reward Loyalty


loyaltycardsCreating and nurturing customer loyalty is a worthy goal for any business. So what’s up with loyalty lately among franchises?

In their recent post, “Loyalty Deserves Rewards: Create a Rewards Program That Suits You (And The Customer!),” Franchising.com’s Jack Mackey offers a round-up of some of the latest thinking he shared with participants at a discussion group on loyalty.

Just as we at at Sintel Systems share our vast point of sale (POS) experience and expertise with startup owners in order to help them make the best decisions from the very beginning, we are happy to share articles, advice and commentary about the retail restaurant market.

The Franchise.com post has lots of valuable insights and remarks by a leading loyalty program marketer on what to consider in creating, or perhaps revamping, an effective loyalty program. Here are some of the highlights of what makes a customer loyalty program successful:

• Mackey says the best loyalty programs do the following four things:

– Help you continuously engage and remain “sticky” with your existing customers

– Allow you to understand your customer’s buying behavior 

– Drive more revenue, greater retention, and higher lifetime customer value 

– Make customers feel appreciated

• So-called loyalty programs are really rewards programs; customers are invited to sign up for a shopper card to get savings on purchased items in exchange for supplying valuable purchasing data.

• Grocers were the early adopters, using advanced business-to-consumer tech in real-time point-of-sale systems that were tightly integrated with marketing.

• Many large companies pay for such loyalty programs by creating an app which allows repeated purchases. Customers download the app, share personal information, and load the app with a store-valued gift card. The use of such apps instead of a credit card means transactions are outside of the transaction fee-based banking system, saving millions.

• Holiday store-value plastic gift cards may be easily flipped over to reload-able gift cards, thus eliminating credit card transaction fees.

• Offering a free premium item or service as a reward for purchasing a certain number of regular items or services is a simple way to create customer loyalty.

• Consider a give-away to all new customers to create a high-impact first impression, and then later on give holiday gift baskets to your top customers as a thank-you.

Mackey says, “Remember, the best loyalty/reward programs make customers feel appreciated.”

As the only full-service POS provider — from software development to franchise incubator to ongoing support — part of Sintel’s commitment to our customers and industry is to share ideas and information. Whether you’re a first-time franchise hopeful, a small business owner or an established chain, it’s always smart to stay on top of the latest loyalty program best practices to achieve financial success.

If you are interested in learning more about Sintel’s POS systems and how our knowledge and support can impact your future success, call us for a complimentary phone consultation.

Read the full Franchise.com post here.

Sintel Systems is the only direct to end user full-service provider of tailored Point of Sale systems across retail, restaurant and service industries, including frozen yogurt shopspizzeriassushi restaurantscafés and retail stores.

As a single source for business solutions, our experienced, knowledgeable team negotiates the complex POS landscape for you to enable you to find the right POS system for your business and budget. Hardware – Software – Support

Questions or Comments: Contact us 855-POS-SALES www.SintelSystems.com

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