Negative influence on the formation of customer loyalty. Factors influencing the formation of customer loyalty. How to create a loyalty program for regular customers

The dream of any entrepreneur is to increase the number of sales of goods or services offered to the consumer. In order to achieve a result, a businessman needs to answer to himself two fundamental questions: and how to win regular customers.

The answer to the first question is not as difficult as it seems. Usually, a business owner sets himself the goal of optimizing the business after opening his own business (retail outlet, salon, workshop, and so on). Therefore, we are talking only about the selection of goods within a deterministic assortment, which greatly simplifies the task.

A simple example can be cited as confirmation of the thesis. Choosing to his taste, the entrepreneur decided to stop at the opening of a clothing and footwear store for children. It is quite logical that in this case, the basic assortment will include precisely items of clothing and various footwear for children and adolescents, but not snowmobiles, winter tires or, for example, elite wine. The business owner can fill his point of sale goods of different brands and price categories, without going beyond the boundaries of a predefined assortment - otherwise the store will simply not be able to satisfy requests target audience, which means it will be unprofitable.

Second question in Lately becomes more and more relevant; the reason for this is the heightened competition to the limit and, in large cities, an excess of shopping centers and stores offering the customer similar or identical products on different conditions... Of course, according to the theory of probability, customers will make purchases in each of the available stores, but the entrepreneur is not interested in the fundamental possibility of selling the product, but in the favorable distribution of the total number of sales.

This can be achieved in two ways:

• an increase in the total flow of customers;
• building a base of regular (loyal) customers.

The achievement of the first goal is mainly due to the conduct of large-scale advertising campaigns, covering as large a percentage of the target audience as possible. Such promotions will inevitably be costly: the business owner will have to pay for the competent placement of advertising materials in newspapers, on television, radio, on the Internet, as well as, ideally, for the creation and promotion of relevant groups in in social networks(SMM).

Oddly enough, you can cut costs by working on the second task in parallel. After all, a loyal client will most likely recommend his favorite establishment to his friends and acquaintances, acting as an advertising agent of his own free will and completely free of charge. This means that by investing in customer loyalty programs, an entrepreneur will achieve two goals at once. Nevertheless, one should not completely forget about traditional advertising campaigns: even a large number of regular customers does not guarantee a stable and constant increase in customer flow.

Customer loyalty is ...

There is no definitive definition of customer loyalty. Loyalty signs include:

1. Willingness to repeatedly apply for a product or service to a chosen entrepreneur.
2. Higher frequency of purchases and / or calls compared to the average customer.
3. Desire to use additional services and participate in promotions conducted by him (for example, receive or purchase a loyalty card).
4. Increased resistance to suggestions from other entrepreneurs.
5. Willingness to make small sacrifices in order to receive a service or purchase goods from a favorite seller (wait for delivery, overpay a little).
6. Emotional attachment to the institution / brand: the buyer recommends them to his friends and acquaintances, writes real reviews on social networks and on websites, including leveling out negative reviews from dissatisfied or “ordered” customers.

In today's market, it is important for an entrepreneur to understand that passing through and forming a primary attachment is not enough: the mood of even a loyal customer can change quite quickly due to many factors.

For example, a loyal customer will be willing to put up with a slight delay in the delivery of the product he likes - about 25-30% of the expected time. If the item is to be delivered in 14 days, a loyal customer will wait 18–20 days without much dissatisfaction. However, if the waiting period exceeds 1–2 months, and this happens on an ongoing basis, the loyal customer will almost certainly be lost.

The situation is the same with the value of the goods. A loyal buyer is ready, for the sake of special conditions offered by the seller, to overpay a certain amount (the exact percentage in this case cannot be named), but within reasonable limits. A product for 20,000 rubles, if its price in another store is 10,000 rubles, will not be purchased even by the most regular customer.

It is especially important to maintain the quality of products or services. Various loyalty programs are used to develop a base of regular customers.

Loyalty program is ...

A loyalty program is a set of activities aimed at creating a stable emotional and behavioral attachment of a client to a brand / outlet / institution.

There are three main types of programs:

1. Loyalty bonus program. For each purchase, the client receives bonuses in the form of points, points, and so on, in order to exchange them for a real purchase or service in the future.
2. Discount program. A regular customer receives a document (usually a plastic discount card) giving the right to further purchase goods (any or from a limited list) at a discount.
3. Accumulative program. Unlike the bonus, the client receives an additional product or service (for example, free shipping) when the total amount of purchases he made earlier reaches a certain mark.

Increasing customer loyalty can be achieved without the involvement of professional marketers: today you can find many examples of successful programs on the Internet and, applying them to a specific situation, achieve success.

This is especially true for small settlements with a relatively low level of competition (and sometimes complete absence such). For example, when deciding, an entrepreneur should first of all pay attention to unoccupied or weakly occupied niches - in particular, computer technology... In a small settlement, the more distant from the regional center, such a store, with the likely absence of competition, will be in demand among young people and middle-aged people who do not want to waste time traveling to a big city.

The situation is more complicated in large cities, in which any new establishment is doomed to compete with existing ones. In such a situation, simply copying a customer loyalty system that has worked for a third party will not be enough, and an entrepreneur is best to resort to the services of a marketer, advertising manager and other specialists.

Stages of becoming a loyal customer

The customer will not become loyal after the first purchase, let alone a simple visit to the establishment. Customer loyalty is formed in several stages:

1. First visit.
2. One-time purchase.
3. Re-acquisition.
4. Affection for the store.
5. Loyalty.

One-time visit

A variety of factors can induce a potential buyer to visit:

• targeted advertising;
• recommendations of relatives or friends;
• simple curiosity.

Having visited the store and familiarized himself with the assortment, the visitor can come to one of three solutions:

• buy nothing;
• buy something later;
• buy the product you like right now.

In the latter case, one can already start talking about the formation of loyalty, but no guarantees can be given. The buyer may not like the quality of the purchased product (or service) or service. In addition, the location (too far from home or in an uncomfortable area), opening hours of the institution, or other factors may be unacceptable for him. In the end, the client can be lured away by competitors - for example, more low prices or attractive offers.

In other words, you can start fighting for customer loyalty from the very first purchase, but you should not rely on it. Advertising brochures, online mailings, offers for participation in discount promotions for newcomers and so on can be used as campaign materials.

Returning customer

After a customer has purchased a product or service and was satisfied with the quality of the purchase and service, he is likely to think about a visit to the store again with a probability of about 25%. After returning and making a purchase again, the buyer goes to the third stage of loyalty formation.

Returning customer

Gradually, a person ceases to purchase the corresponding goods or services from competitors, giving preference to a favorite institution. Such a customer is called a returning customer and, as statistics show, they make purchases 45% more often than first-time visitors.

Loyal customer

This term refers to a customer who is emotionally and behaviorally attached to a particular brand or store, ready to defend it, oppose critics, and recommend it to family and friends. At this stage, the formation of loyalty can be considered complete, but it is still not worth relaxing: a gradual deterioration in the quality of goods and services or, for example, the emergence of competitors with a more attractive offer can lead to an outflow of not only one-time customers, but also regular customers.

Customer loyalty programs - examples

For example, we can consider two loyalty programs - successful and unsuccessful:

• In the first case, an entrepreneur, opening a new store, launches a wide advertising campaign to attract one-time customers. After the formation of a steady stream, he begins to screen out regular customers, offering visitors a bonus loyalty program, which allows, upon accumulating a certain number of points, to receive one unit of a medium-price category product for free or for a small surcharge. The vast majority of clients will decide to participate in the program, but a minority will purposefully accumulate points (the exact percentage in this case cannot be named, it depends on many factors). Having accumulated them and received the promised goods, the client will not only receive moral satisfaction from the purchase and service, but will also want to participate in the promotion again, and therefore will make even more purchases. For buyers who have collected the required number of points more than two times, the entrepreneur provides additional discount without reducing the number of accumulated points. In this way, he will finally win over the consumer, and he will bring along new potentially loyal customers.
• An unsuccessful option for a loyalty program is a bonus campaign, but with restrictions on the range of goods sold or offered as a bonus (for example, an entrepreneur will try to sell unclaimed or low-quality products). Unnecessary goods will simply not be sold out; moreover, clients will not want to exchange honestly earned points for it. Another unfortunate example is the bar raised too high: if, in order to receive the simplest bonus, a client needs to buy goods worth several tens of thousands of rubles, he, most likely, will simply consider participation in such a promotion inappropriate.

How to develop your own customer loyalty program?

Self-development of a loyalty program includes several basic stages:

1. Demand study. Before forming an offer, an entrepreneur needs to find out exactly what the buyer wants from him. For example, if a store sells children's clothing, it would be logical to arrange seasonal discounts on summer clothes, swimwear and school uniforms.
2. Selecting the program format. The entrepreneur decides whether it will be a bonus program, the participant of which, having accumulated the required number of points, will be able to exchange them for goods from a pre-compiled list, a discount program, the participant of which will be able to receive a discount on the purchased products, or of some other type.
3. Clarification of conditions. The business owner determines which goods can be obtained through the promotion, the amount of points required to receive a particular item, or the gradation of discounts depending on arbitrary factors (the total amount of purchases, the time of working with the client).
4. Delivering information to the target audience. For this purpose, advertising events are carried out in the media and on the Internet, banners are hung, mailings are carried out in social networks and other actions are taken in accordance with the financial capabilities and needs of the entrepreneur.
5. Promotion and further retention of buyers. It is important for an entrepreneur to fulfill all promises made to them: to provide discounts, accrue bonuses and allow them to be realized. Otherwise, even the once-positive brand reputation will be quickly lost, as will loyal customers. It is possible to restore the shaky situation in the future, but this will take a lot of time and require considerable financial investments.

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As you can see, the general principles of developing a loyalty program are quite simple and can be easily implemented by any business owner. All that is required of an entrepreneur is to correctly determine the direction of movement and conscientiously fulfill their obligations. In this case (even with a relatively modest offer for the loyalty program), the flow of grateful customers will be ensured, and with it, the long-awaited growth in sales.

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Loiko Alina Alekseevna

Master student of the Department of Marketing, Commerce and Logistics, Far Eastern Federal University, Vladivostok, Russia

Abstract: The article examines the existing methods of forming customer loyalty. The classifications of methods of forming loyalty are given, according to the research of various authors. It is noted that the development of an effective loyalty program can provide a company with long-term and mutually beneficial relationships with consumers.

Keywords: consumer loyalty, loyalty formation methods, loyalty program

The methods of formation of customer loyalty

Loyko Alina Alekseevna

Master "s Degree student Department of marketing, commerce and logistics Far Eastern Federal University Vladivostok, Russia

Abstract: The article provides an overview of the current methods of formation loyalty. A classification of methods of formation of loyalty is revealed according to research by various authors. It is noted that the development of an effective loyalty program is able to provide companies with long-term and mutually beneficial relationships with customers.

Keywords: customer loyalty, methods of formation of loyalty, the loyalty program

Scientific adviser: Romanova Irina Matveevna, Doctor of Economics D., Professor, Head of the Department of Marketing, Commerce and Logistics, Far Eastern Federal University, Vladivostok, Russia

V modern conditions increasing competition in the market, increasing promotion costs, increasing customer expectations, the need to use the concept of relationship marketing is actualized. The most profitable from an economic point of view are long-term relationships with consumers, as the number of constant purchases increases, the cost of attracting customers decreases, the number of buyers increases due to positive recommendations from loyal consumers. According to the latest research, organizations spend 5-10 times more money on acquiring new customers than on retaining old ones.

Building customer loyalty provides a firm with a sustainable competitive advantage. Loyal customers are distinguished by the fact that they constantly buy the goods they need from one company, follow the news, recommend the brand to their environment, and also remain insensitive to similar offers from competitors.

Building long-term relationships with consumers is strengthened with the development of their cooperation with the company. The so-called “loyalty pyramid” is gradually formed (Figure 1) - the loyalty formation technology proposed by K. Balashov, in which the stages of commitment correspond to the stages of the buyer's life cycle.

At the first stage of the formation of the loyalty pyramid, consumer awareness of the company and its services and a positive attitude towards its activities are formed. The second stage is characterized by active and stable consumption of goods and services of a certain brand for a long time, which indicates a deep customer satisfaction (third stage). At the fourth stage of the pyramid, brand satisfaction determines the formation of positive emotions in cooperation with the company, which leads to the final stage of customer loyalty. With the strengthening of relations with consumers, the steps of the loyalty pyramid do not change, but complement each other. Thus, the above methodology forms both behavioral and emotional customer loyalty, therefore, it can be used as a technology for creating complex loyalty.

According to research by many authors, loyalty is not absolute, but relative value, which changes over time with the development of the client's relationship to the company. For example, D. Aaker cites the following stages of customer loyalty formation:

1. Potential client - the consumer has not yet felt the need to purchase a product from this company. Building commitment in this group will begin by gaining attention through a variety of promotional tools.

2. Random customer - the consumer has already made the first purchase, which means it is necessary to create a need to contact the company again. To do this, it is necessary to provide a high level of service and a decent quality of goods so that the client is satisfied with the interaction with the company.

3. Client - the consumer repeatedly uses the services of the company. Creating a positive emotional background for the buyer, additional benefits in cooperation with the company will make him a regular customer.

4. Regular customer - the consumer regularly purchases goods of this brand. It is necessary to reveal his hidden needs, personalize the offer in order to increase his loyalty.

5. Adherent - a truly loyal customer. The main task when interacting with the client at this stage is to maintain the high quality of the product and the level of service so that the buyer always remains satisfied.

For each stage of loyalty level development, recommendations for interaction with customers are developed, as well as incentive methods aimed at increasing the level of loyalty.

According to American researchers J. MasBride and T. Sansburr, a brand to which customers are loyal costs 5-7 times more, since they are ready to spend 67% more on its products than new consumers. According to a series of studies conducted by the American Marketing Association in 2012, companies spend $ 48 billion on loyalty programs annually. This adds value to their customers' products.

In world practice, various methods can be used in the formation of a loyalty program, depending on the goals pursued and the resources available. The main methods of forming consumer loyalty to the brand are presented in Table 1.

Table 1 - The main methods of forming consumer loyalty to the brand

According to this classification, there are methods of loyalty formation based on the provision of valuable (monetary) benefits, as well as discounted methods of loyalty formation. According to research, companies tend to use methods based on the provision of valuable (monetary) benefits. These are effective methods, the effectiveness of which has been proven by many years of experience of Western brands. But some firms in developed countries have tried to abandon such practices in recent years, as they lead to loyalty of convenience that is volatile and short-lived. In their view, consumers may find more value in non-monetary or discounted rewards. Companies that can provide value to the customer in ways other than money can truly develop a high level of commitment.

Thus, the formation of true loyalty among consumers allows you to maintain a stable position in the market and achieve your goals. To build long-term and mutually beneficial relationships with clients, it is necessary to develop an effective loyalty program aimed at various groups of the company's clients.

Bibliography:

1. Aaker, D. Creation of strong brands / D. Aaker. - M .: Ed. House Grebennikov, 2003.440 p.

2. Balashov, K. Building customer loyalty systems / K. Balashov // Marketing. - 2007. - No. 2 (93). - S. 78-90.

3. Rudenko, A. Customer loyalty: three models of behavior [ Electronic resource] / A. Rudenko. - Access mode: http://www.management.com.ua/marketing/mark023.html

4. Jill McBride or Tim Sansbury. $ 48 billion worth of consumer loyalty reward points dispensed each year, yet one-third are never cashed in [Electronic resource]. - 2011. - Access mode: http://www.colloquy.com/press_release_view.asp?xd=95

5. Tierney, J. Customer Behavior Management at the Core of Loyalty Program Success / J. Tierney // Epsilon & Walgreens. - 2014. - No. 4. - S. 15.

Loyalty programs are used as an integral part of the overall strategy of the company in the field of promoting and attracting customers, as well as to maximize profits. In the modern sense, it is a complex organizational structure with many participants, including the organizing company, the administration, external and financial partners and the participants themselves.

According to research from the Study Center retail at Northeastern University, only 12-15% of buyers are loyal to a particular brand. But this small group of buyers generates about 55 to 70% of the company's sales. Some food retailers noted that approximately 65–95% of their sales come from loyalty program members (53% of grocery stores offer loyalty programs for 3/4 of their customers, who use their cards in about 88% of cases at least once per month) .

The main problem with loyalty programs is that they are developed with unclear goals, just as many people often confuse a loyalty program with a customer reward program. This is a fundamental mistake most marketers make. Loyalty brings loyalty to the brand, not accumulated points.

Basic principles loyalty programs:

• 1) moderation is a key factor in a loyalty program. The size of the award is significantly less important than the perceived value. A changing list of rewards can be much more beneficial than a permanent one. A prerequisite the advertising message is special attitude and appreciation;
• 2) the loyalty program reduces the complexity of the choice for the client;
• 3) the loyalty program helps the buyer to distinguish the right choice from the wrong one;
• 4) loyal customers increase sales;
• 5) the promotion of the loyalty program depends on the awareness of customers.

Any loyalty program includes the following main components its construction.

• 1. The most famous and most widespread component in Russia is discount programs. Their essence lies in providing the client with benefits in the form of returning part of the paid value of the goods directly at the time of purchase (discounts).
• 2. The second, also quite common, is prize draws among customers who have made certain purchases in certain period time.
• 3. Accumulative discount programs. In them, the benefit depends directly on the client himself: the more often and for a large amount he buys, the more benefit he receives.
• 4. Bonus programs. When making purchases, the client receives certain conditional points, having accumulated a certain amount of which he has the right to exchange them for a product or service at his own discretion, which this consumer most often desires and needs.

An important component of the customer loyalty program is gift certificates in the form of a plastic card. This option is much more practical and presentable than a regular, paper certificate. The gift card will reflect form style companies, advertising the organization, and after use can be presented as a discount card or used in a prize drawing.

A revolutionary innovation was the introduction of co-branding strategies. Their goal is to make it profitable for the client to purchase and service a card in a strictly defined bank. The strategy introduced a package of additional services into the standard for this payment system.

Co-brand card- local projects in the territory of one city or region with one or several companies. The bank and the company conclude a cooperation agreement, which is "endorsed" in the payment system. The implementation of such projects allows banks to increase the number of issued cards and the turnover of funds on them, shops - to attract new customers.

It has long been thought that customer satisfaction is solely based on customer satisfaction, but research has shown that customer satisfaction does not necessarily translate into repeat purchases and increased sales. Moreover, at least half of "satisfied" consumers change service providers. This gap between loyalty and satisfaction indicates the possible presence of other components that influence the formation of loyalty.

The components of behavioral loyalty are the simplest to measure; their values ​​can be obtained from a database of consumers. They are defined as follows:

• 1) cross-selling - the number of additional products of the company purchased by the consumer in a certain period of time;
• 2) increase in purchases - the amount or share of an increase in the size of purchases of the same product over a certain period of time;
• 3) repeat purchases - the number of repeat purchases;
• 4) maintenance by the consumer of the achieved level of interaction with the company - the relative constancy of the purchase amount of the same product for a certain period of time.

The components of perceived loyalty are more difficult to measure, since in this case the company is dealing with the preferences and opinions of consumers. In this case, the main method of obtaining information will be consumer and expert polls. The following will act as loyalty indicators:

• 1) awareness - the degree of awareness of the company's activities in the target market. In addition, awareness can be measured as the number of recommendations from existing customers leading to the attraction of new customers;
• 2) satisfaction. Despite the highlighted limitations of satisfaction as an indicator of loyalty, its value cannot be underestimated. Of all the factors listed above, satisfaction is the most difficult. Customer satisfaction is made up of three components:
  • - the quality of the key benefits;
  • - the quality of the service delivery process;
  • - perception of the value of the service.

The attitude to the product, service, and price is formed under the influence of factors: personal, social, situational.

Gathering preference information at the time of enrollment for prospective program participants should be a central part of any enrollment process. A key factor in making sense of the customer database is questions about customer preferences. You can also follow up on these individual data through focus groups or surveys to obtain Additional information about general preferences.

To build a loyalty program, a company needs to determine the most effective way of delivering information about prizes and incentives to customers. You also need to find a suitable way to deliver the rewards themselves.

An important question when creating a customer incentive program is whether a program is being created for a specific company (group of companies) or the participation of unrelated, and, possibly, competing companies is expected.

If the program implies the presence of several partners, the best solution seems to be the creation of a special department or even a separate company that will deal with the issues of maintaining the program and regulating relations between its participants, i.e. operator of the program.

If a coalition scheme is initially chosen, it is necessary to carefully approach the issue of choosing partners. They must be equivalent, i.e. if possible, be market leaders, have developed retail networks, have overlapping audiences, but not overlapping sales markets.

In this regard, it is worth noting that when developing a coalition loyalty program, partners necessarily stipulate the conditions for joining: the size of the initial payment, the cost of equipment and software for connection, monthly payments for information support, marketing and advertising.

To develop an effective loyalty program, it is very important to choose a scheme that is most optimal for implementing a strategy, as well as a technology platform, i.e. software for database maintenance and its synchronization with terminals. In this case, you should not forget about the relationship of these parameters with the selected client identification scheme.

Since designing a loyalty program involves conducting research into the preferences of a company's customers, the result is that the company must know how to reward them. Further, it remains only to make efforts to implement the conceived promotion strategy.

Marketing, applied directly within the program to business value customers, can achieve results that cannot be achieved with conventional mass marketing. And by moving the majority of program participants to the desired, higher category, the program creates a more profitable and fruitful relationship between the company and its customers.

On the the present stage the company itself must take a personal interest in customers through direct contact. Clients become committed to the company because they are personally interesting to its employees, i.e. the company solves their specific problems and offers individual conditions.

It is necessary to learn how to maintain relationships in different ways and use all possible communication means.

The organization of any loyalty program includes several stages that should be considered in more detail, paying attention to their features and potential weaknesses.

When creating loyalty programs, it is worth considering the following aspects:

• 1) it is necessary that the loyalty program is thoughtful, convenient and understandable for the client, in this case the company will be successful;
• 2) in relation to the client, the loyalty program must be incorruptible. If the client actually cooperates with the company, then he gets something in return;
• 3) you should not use unnecessary obsession;
• 4) when a coalition loyalty program is invented, absolutely all of its members are obliged to close their personal programs and switch to one single card;
• 5) the loyalty program is obliged to strengthen the brands of partners;
• 6) the correct choice of a gift. The loyalty program participant must be presented with exactly the prize he wants. An employee of the company, if there is a client base, can collect this information using surveys on e-mail or telephone surveys;
• 7) the stagnation of the program should not be allowed, it needs to be updated, at least once every two or three years. It is necessary to improve the service, simplify the conditions of the loyalty program, change the package of privileges, but never forget to keep in touch with customers.

Consider stages of organizing a loyalty program.

1. The most important step in planning a loyalty program is precise formulation of the goals and objectives of the program and identifying the appropriate target audience. Most often, the goal of the program is either to attract new customers or to retain existing ones. The methods of implementation in both cases are different, therefore it will be more effective to dwell on one option, and not to try to achieve everything at once by some universal method - the probability of a successful outcome in this case decreases.

In order to maintain long-term mutually beneficial relations with the client, the program should also be designed for a long time, otherwise this complex of measures would be more correctly called simply advertising campaign... Perpetual privilege is significantly better perceived from a psychological point of view, and the goal of the loyalty program is still to improve the subjective attitude of the client. The company's management must be prepared for the fact that the results will not be immediate - the program is strategic in nature.

The target audience should also be defined as clearly as possible. The more specific the characteristics potential clients, the more accurately you can identify needs, and, accordingly, the higher the likelihood of success.

• 2. At this stage it is necessary assess the level of existing loyalty the selected segment of the target audience, determine the corresponding priorities and needs.
• 3. At the third stage, the question of the direct implementation of the loyalty program arises. Necessary determine the methods and ways of carrying out the relevant activities, determine what kind of privileges will be granted to a particular segment.

Particular attention should be paid to maintaining a balance between material and non-material bonuses: if the consumer focuses only on material benefits, then there is no question of company loyalty. And, conversely, correctly selected methods of non-material incentives often bring much greater efficiency.

Consideration of the main tools for organizing loyalty programs begins with the most common option - the introduction of a system of bonuses or discounts for regular customers. The essence of all such schemes is the same - with repeated or regular purchases, the client receives some kind of, usually material, encouragement. There are many varieties of such schemes. This can be the use of a cumulative discount card, with a discount for purchases for a certain amount. Sometimes a gradation is introduced: the size of the discount depends on the total cost of purchases, or some scheme is introduced that involves the receipt of a prize (not always associated with the product) or simply the possibility of such receipt (lottery tickets and other draws) upon accumulation of a certain number of points or points.

To maintain a relationship with a client throughout long term more effective can be such a system of discounts when the size of the discount or bonus increases in proportion to the time of cooperation, by analogy with a fairly common scheme for increasing staff loyalty, when the amount of bonuses and benefits increases according to the length of service in the organization.

The use of any permanent discounts and bonuses must always be economically justified, the lack of preliminary analysis can lead to bankruptcy of the company. Many companies raise prices by an appropriate amount before granting a discount, however, if discounts are provided only to regular customers, then the company risks depriving itself of new customers; and in the case of a public discount, such a promotion has nothing to do with the loyalty program.

During the third stage of preparation for the loyalty program, it is necessary to calculate whether, in practice, the price reduction and the use of other instruments will lead to an increase in turnover. If the client is consistently loyal for some reason (for example, he is used to and is satisfied with the design of clothes or equipment), or the company has no close competitors, then the organization of a loyalty program may not make sense. Customers will be satisfied, but the volume of trade will not increase, and the company will simply reduce its profits. In this regard, the subsequent cancellation of bonuses may well cause a negative reaction.

Such a scheme of material incentives in the sector B2C used by either retailers or brands with their own branded points of sale. Many experts do not consider direct price incentives to be tools for increasing loyalty; the creation of a system of discount, bonus and any other cards is now becoming necessary for most large companies with a more or less numerous client base.

First, the absence of this system, when used by almost all competitors, psychologically can alienate a potential consumer.

Second, the creation of a system electronic cards(taking into account a well-designed initial questionnaire) greatly facilitates the conduct of marketing research existing customers, helps to identify any trends in needs and, with the proper approach, helps to determine promising directions of development. The existence of a personal card helps to find an individual approach to the consumer, to assess the preferences of a particular client. The simplest example is that a company can wish a client a happy birthday or name day, which will already create the impression of a special attitude and, accordingly, increase loyalty.

Especially important is the assessment of the forthcoming costs of the program and the possibilities of covering them. The costs are associated with the costs of accruing bonuses, providing discounts, making advertising and souvenir products, plastic club cards, purchasing or developing specialized software, remuneration of employees responsible for the operation of the program. Coverage of expenses can occur through the annual contribution of members, redemption of a club card, etc.

• 4. During this stage loyalty program preparation important point is an quality control. Quality means not only the product itself, but also the parameters and timeliness of delivery, the possibility of deferred payment, service, warranty and post-warranty service. If in the sector B2C this may not play a decisive role, then for B2B Timeliness of delivery or delay in payment is often of paramount importance, because a partner company cannot have a subjective psychological assessment, respectively, the main criterion is reliability and ease of interaction.
• 5. The next step is direct delivering information about the program to the target audience. In most cases, fairly traditional ones are used for this. advertising media, most often information about the conduct of the action is included in standard advertising messages, or is published on the company's website. With a developed system of discount or other cards, SMS-informing or sending by e-mail are widely used.
• 6. One of the last stages, but at the same time playing almost the most important role in the loyalty program, is organization of a feedback system. The importance of analyzing consumer response to the campaign is difficult to overestimate: if any difficulties arise, this will help to somehow correct the unfortunate moments, and if the outcome is effective, to assess the impact and effectiveness of using each factor. The creation of a customer database plays a primary role in the organization of marketing research. Loyalty program is an effective tool for collecting and accumulating customer data. Before starting the program, it is worth deciding what data and in what volume should be entered into the database, how and with what frequency it should be analyzed, what resources, both technical and human, will be required for this. Many companies with loyalty programs and large databases do not use them effectively. The reasons for this are ignorance of how the collected information can be rationally applied, how to develop individual proposals for each customer segment, technical difficulties in the implementation of analytical processes, data inaccuracy, etc.
• 7. One of the most important stages - closing the program, which few people pay attention to when starting because of the optimistic attitude at the beginning of the journey. However, do not forget that any project has its own life cycle... There may come a time when the program is no longer effective. It is necessary to determine in advance the critical indicators, upon reaching which it is necessary to curtail the program. Therefore, it is necessary to answer the following questions: Will it be transformed into something new? If not, how will the staff serving it be disbanded? How will the database be used? These and other questions are worth considering in advance.

Necessary requirements to create a loyalty program:

• the rules for entering the program must be made understandable, structured and clearly stated. The client should be able to access information about the status of his bonus account, regularly receive information (mailing, calling) about the events of the program. The client should be provided with feedback, while constantly focusing his attention on the fact that by becoming a participant in the program, he receives special privileges and personal service;
• maintaining a special attitude to the program and among their employees, their personal interest in success will benefit both themselves and the company, ensuring high quality of work and results. Otherwise, no investments in the development of the program will have an effect, since they will be leveled at the stage of the client's contact with the company's personnel;
• the program should not only be bright and creative, but also constantly working, developing, keeping up with the client, interesting for him at any stage. The loyalty program developed in this way will become the most effective tool marketing the company. There will be an undeniable competitive advantage, the ability to use the customer database for assessment, analysis and operational decision-making. And also there will be a flexible system of interaction not only with clients, but also with partner companies, which will allow expanding the database at the expense of client bases of partners.

• Official site of Northeastern University, Boston. URL: northeastern.edu
• Kuryalov K. Event Marketing, or new instrument allowing to keep the buyer // Marketing communications. № 5. 2009.
• Martyshev A.V. Relationship marketing: textbook, manual. Vladivostok: Publishing house of the Far Eastern State University, 2006.

True customer loyalty is akin to a successful marriage when both parties are happy with each other.

What is customer loyalty? In repeat purchases or an emotional connection, for example, when a client recommends your company to his acquaintances? True customer loyalty is a bit like a successful marriage. It is a relationship in which both parties are satisfied with each other. They don't worry every day that their partner will stop loving or leave for someone else. They went through misunderstandings and disputes, keeping their bonds inseparable and even strengthening them.

Strengthening these bonds of loyalty between the company and its customers is at the heart of database marketing... Loyal customers are more valuable than regular customers. They are usually:

• have a higher retention rate;
• have a higher level of expenses;
• characterized by more high level dissemination of recommendations;
• have a higher aggregate value;
• require less maintenance costs;
• make more expensive purchases.

Loyal customers are more valuable than regular customers

Loyalty-building communications

Communication serves as the link between loyalty and database marketing, as loyalty is created and maintained through two-way communications between the company and the customers. The latter make purchases, and the former thank them for their financial support.

One of the most inexpensive, but effective ways learning about customer preferences - getting them to provide information about their own service needs. This can be done by writing them a letter or calling them, but today the Internet is used more often. Building a customer profile that includes preference information has a double benefit: the company learns more about the customer, and the customer, in turn, feels like they are being listened to.

Of course, in order for the wishes of customers to be properly taken into account, it is necessary to have a deployed database. The information from it can be used on a daily basis to provide clients with personal services. The company will be helped in this by using automated intelligent system.

Example (subscriber identification system):

Today, when customers call on hotline bank, the call-center operator addresses them by name, for example: “Hello, Vladimir Yuryevich. How can I help you?" This suggests that even in such a conservative area as banking, customer loyalty is being worked on.

However, many companies have not yet realized that the same method can be used for their customers. To do this, you can use the subscriber identification system, which allows you to recognize the client even before the operator answers the call. The record from the database should be automatically displayed on the computer screen. Thanks to this, the caller does not have to say his client number, address, etc.

Creating a customer profile has a double benefit: the company learns more about the customer and the customer feels like they are being listened to.

Loyalty program

A loyalty building program is understood as a system in which the client specifically subscribes to participate in the program. He receives a name card, which he uses when making purchases. The card has a dual purpose: it provides the client with some privileges that cannot be obtained without it, and the company - valuable information that can be used to build loyalty.

Before introducing a loyalty program, you need to answer the following questions:

• What customer behavior should be rewarded?
• Need to attract more customers or better customers?
• What's more important: increasing sales or profitability?
• What changes are required to attract and retain more valuable customers to the company?

The loyalty program is used to solve many problems: customer acquisition, customer satisfaction, the right choice location of points of sale, assortment of goods and their quality, proper service. Today, loyalty can be generated or increased by providing customers with reward points or bonuses.

The main idea is to refuse discounts on the product. The transition from discounts to bonuses brings a very powerful economic effect. The explanation is quite simple: when a business gives a buyer a discount, he loses "real" money, instantly reducing his revenue. Bonuses are accumulated by the client for each visit. Subsequently, they can either pay off or receive some kind of gift. Clients easily forget where and what discount they received, but remember well where they can spend the already accumulated points.

When a business gives a buyer a discount, he loses "real" money

The discount is not always valuable to the customer, especially if the amount is not large. And in the bonus program, you can go much further: not only use the “X rubles = Y points” scheme, but also offer an assortment of gifts. Such bonuses, even the smallest ones, are much more enjoyable.

Receiving a gift for bonuses is perceived as something festive and evokes positive emotions in the client. He is glad that he received something for free, and this gift will be remembered for longer than a discount.

Receiving a gift for bonuses evokes positive emotions in the client

Three basic rules of customer loyalty

The first steps in managing a loyalty-based system are finding and acquiring the right customers - those that can provide the firm with consistent cash flows and return on investment for years to come, that is, customers whose loyalty can be won and maintained. Companies based on customer loyalty have three rules of thumb to remember:

1. Some customers are inherently predictable and loyal no matter what company they interact with. They just prefer a stable long-term relationship.
2. Some clients are more profitable than others. They spend more money, pay their bills faster, and are less demanding on service.
3. Some customers will find your products and services more valuable than your competitors' products and services.

No company can give everything to everyone. Your strengths better match the needs and capabilities of a certain segment of customers. Thus, to develop successful business First, you need to attract the right customers, and then develop programs to strengthen and maintain their loyalty, which should be based on the company's attitude towards these customers. Loyalty is two-way: if a company wants customers to be loyal to it, it must be loyal to them.

For customers to be loyal to the company, the company must be loyal to them

Formation of customer loyalty is one of the most important directions of the company's marketing activities. Much of the effort is directed towards meeting the needs and preferences of consumers. Loyalty is the image of a company as seen by its customers. The image can be both positive and negative. Most often, companies pay attention only to positive reviews, try to introduce some additional bonuses customers who are satisfied with the quality of goods or services. But do not forget about the negative experience, according to research, a satisfied buyer will tell 3-4 acquaintances, and an unsatisfied buyer will tell about 10 people the impression of this organization.

It is necessary to conduct constant work with such clients, ask what exactly they are not satisfied with in your product or service, what changes they would like to make, as well as what kind of reaction they expect from you. Also, do not forget about a sincere and informed apology for causing inconvenience to the buyer. More often than not, just the right words are enough to change a person's opinion. You can also resort to a creative approach to this situation, the main thing is not to overdo it with efforts and win over the client, and not push him away even more.

The customer's impression of a product or service is also influenced by the chosen loyalty program itself. It is important to find the right option for this market segment. There are several well-established and working loyalty programs:

1. Traditional discount cards.
2. Bonus cards.
3. Coalition loyalty program.
4. Co-branded cards.
5. Gift certificates and coupons.

It is also important to assess the risks that an enterprise may endure when introducing a loyalty program. Do not forget also about the administrative costs for the production and maintenance of cards, technical support for clients, the solution of controversial and conflict situations... You need to realistically assess your capabilities, correctly define the goals and objectives of this event. It is necessary that the loyalty program is relevant and effective for the segment you have chosen. To do this, you need to assess the effect of the implementation of this development. Often, companies cannot stop their loyalty program when it really stops working. Leaders fear that they will suffer large losses from the termination of the program.

There is a strong relationship between customer satisfaction (especially its emotional component) and customer loyalty, and retaining old customers is cheaper and more expedient than attracting new ones, managers need to pay special attention to how the customer “feels” about the service provided. In particular, they should try to obtain information on customer satisfaction. It seems plausible that managers fail to discuss customer emotions in their efforts to use accurate scientific measurements of satisfaction and therefore fail to adequately assess the strength and importance of the impact of those emotions. But organizations must seize the opportunity to manage the emotional component in order to maintain or increase customer loyalty.

In 1997, a scale of emotions was developed, which included 7 characteristics: happiness, hope, pleasant surprise, anger, depression, guilt, humiliation. The emotions of customer satisfaction can be divided into two groups: positive and negative. Positive emotions are happiness, hope, pleasant surprise, etc., and negative ones are anger, depression, guilt, humiliation. Although researchers have not yet come to a conclusion about which way of measuring emotions is considered the best, the literature often analyzes positive and negative emotions, and also compares the degree of their influence.

Table 1

It seems plausible that managers fail to discuss customer emotions in their efforts to use accurate scientific measurements of satisfaction and therefore fail to adequately assess the strength and importance of the impact of those emotions. But organizations must seize the opportunity to manage the emotional component in order to maintain or increase customer loyalty.

The classical theory explaining consumer behavior is based on the belief that people make their choice of a product or service quite consciously. They weigh the options and choose the one that suits them best. The process of making a purchase decision itself is divided into five stages. First, a person realizes his need. Then he starts looking for information about how to satisfy it. Having identified products from the desired category, he begins to compare them.

Having chosen the best product, he decides to buy it. The last stage is the reaction to the purchase, the assessment of the correctness of the choice. This sequence can change in different situations... For example, when you buy again, the intermediate links in the chain are omitted. So, if a person is thirsty, he can automatically select the drink of the brand that he liked the last time, skipping the selection steps. Many researchers argue with the idea that decision-making is completely rational.

Psychologists note that at the moment before buying, people usually experience strong positive emotions (desire to possess, anticipation of pleasure and new opportunities). On the other hand, after a purchase, they become very vulnerable and often feel remorse. The more effort, time and money a person spent on a purchase, the stronger his feeling of devastation.

While most manufacturers believe that they should provide the consumer with as wide a choice of products as possible, in reality they only complicate the selection process. A person who has to choose one of 100 variants of cheese is stressed by the impossibility of calculating all the pros and cons. He hates the thought that his final choice cost him not two or three, but 99 missed opportunities.

There are two types of emotions that affect the decision-making process: those that a person is experiencing at the moment, and those that he intends to experience in the future. The main emotion of the future is the fear of error, loss, consequences wrong the decision, and not the anticipation of the pleasure of making the right choice. Emotions of the present affect how quickly and deliberately a person decides what risk he will be willing to take. So, people who are angry or hungry make decisions faster than calm ones. Happy people do not make risky decisions. Frightened and upset people refuse to make a decision altogether. Therefore, for example, the seller will not sell the car if he talks about its safety, because he will make the buyer mentally go through the accident.

The decisions people make are limited by the information they possess, their personal cognitive characteristics, and the time during which they must be made. Any person simply does not have enough resources and knowledge to make an optimal, ideally balanced decision. Therefore, people tend to oversimplify existing options to cope with the stress of choice. Bounded rationality also explains why people can go to a more expensive and inconveniently located store with the owner they know well and not buy the same products cheaper from a faceless store near their home.

Lack of awareness in the markets affects the price level. The buyer knows that there is a possibility of stumbling upon a low-quality product, therefore, in order to minimize his risks, he is ready to pay a lower amount than if there were only high-quality goods on the market. As a result, sellers are in the most disadvantageous situation quality goods who are forced to reduce the price.

There are several reasons for unexpected decisions to buy an item that a customer has just seen. People are more susceptible to impulse purchases if they are hungry, tired, upset, or have already made multiple purchasing decisions that day. That is why stores place small items like candy and gum in front of the checkout: customers come there prepared by other, larger purchases. Another common reason is the so-called "projection thinking". It makes the mind believe that the present state will continue into the future. So, for example, when it's very hot outside, people buy convertibles and don't buy black cars.

The sudden urge to buy also appears due to the “anchor effect”. Its essence is that we tend to judge a thing in comparison with the things around it, and do not understand its objective value. Stores use this effect by placing discounted TVs on the shelf between two very expensive TVs to make the bargain price seem more attractive. The same is done in restaurants, including very expensive wines on the menu, to make the prices of "average" wines seem more reasonable.

Thus, when forming consumer loyalty, it is necessary to take into account a number of factors, such as: the existing level of consumer loyalty, the type of loyalty program, the risks that the company bears when using these programs, and also do not forget about the emotional component that affects the level of consumer satisfaction. In addition, you need to conduct ongoing research on the results of loyalty programs.