5 Customer Loyalty Strategies to Make Your Loyalty Program More Effective

💡 How our retail and restaurant clients use their loyalty programs to boost engagement, increase repeat business, and build more lasting customer relationships

• Rewarding much more than just purchases: app downloads, customer reviews, newsletter sign-ups, profile completion, or CRM interactions… Brands are now using their loyalty programs to encourage all behaviors that create value.
• Structure loyalty programs around motivating tiers: progression, exclusivity, premium benefits, and recognition help strengthen engagement among top customers and encourage repeat purchases.
• Create truly desirable rewards: experiential benefits, personalized rewards, charitable donations, or exclusive services… Today’s most engaging programs go far beyond simple discount coupons.
• Gamify the experience to maintain interest over time: monthly challenges, fun mechanics, and contests create regular touchpoints with members and drive frequency and repeat purchases.
• Turn the loyalty program into a business management tool: in-store traffic, channel adoption, product launches, average basket size, or conversion rates… loyalty mechanisms can also support very specific, short-term business objectives.

For decades, loyalty programs have played a central role in the marketing strategies of retail brands. Initially designed around simple mechanics (earning points, receiving discounts, and accessing exclusive benefits), they have since continued to evolve to meet the needs of consumers who are increasingly demanding in terms of experience, personalization, and engagement.

Today, an innovative loyalty program is no longer limited to rewarding purchases: it has become a powerful tool for building relationships and a key differentiator. But in practice, which strategies really work? Which initiatives succeed in fostering customer loyalty, driving repeat business, or enhancing customer insights?

To answer these questions, we explored our database of client brands. The goal: to identify programs that are inspiring, effective, and easy for retailers to implement using the Splio customer loyalty software Splio Loyalty. In this article, discover five concrete loyalty initiatives implemented by brands that are reinventing customer loyalty beyond traditional models.

1️⃣ Reward all customer behaviors you want to encourage

Loyalty programs have long focused on a single behavior: purchasing. The more a customer spent, the more they were rewarded. But today, the most successful brands go much further.

Why? Because customer value is no longer limited to transactions alone. Downloading an app, filling out a profile, leaving a review, or interacting with the brand’s emails are all actions that strengthen the customer relationship and deserve to be encouraged.

Loyalty programs are thus becoming true drivers of omnichannel customer engagement.

Reward the transaction… of course

Purchases remain the foundation of customer loyalty, as they are the most tangible way for a brand to determine the monetary value a customer brings.

But brands are now refining their point-assignment mechanisms to address their own specific challenges:

• Promoting a specific sales channel: Why not award more points for in-store purchases than for purchases made elsewhere, to drive foot traffic to the store and encourage impulse buying?
• Boosting traffic to certain stores: Why not direct traffic to one store (or restaurant) rather than another to support the launch of a new location?
• Promote a specific product category or offer: Why not offer more points (or a reward!) to shoppers in the “sweaters, cardigans, and sweatshirts” category—the ones you’re trying to clear out before summer?

While making a purchase is no longer the only behavior to be rewarded, it remains the driving force behind loyalty programs. And for good reason: consumers still expect tangible recognition for their spending. According to Deloitte, nearly 3 out of 4 consumers say that a loyalty program encourages them to spend more at a particular retailer.

Rewarding Customer Engagement

The most advanced retailers in terms of customer loyalty now use their loyalty programs as a full-fledged CRM tool. Every meaningful interaction can become an opportunity for customer engagement: enriching customer insights, expanding theopt-in base, encouraginguse of the mobile app, or boosting customer reviews.

Our clients in the retail and restaurant industries certainly don’t lack imagination when it comes to the behaviors they can reward! The reward mechanisms they choose are extremely simple to set up on the platform, yet they really resonate with customers:

• The incredible €5 welcome bonus when you sign up for the program—a benefit available with your next purchase to encourage you to make your second purchase as soon as possible.
• Jott uses its loyalty program to gain a better understanding of its customers, particularly by rewarding them for entering their birthday and phone number in their profile.
• Quick is encouraging users to adopt the app as the hub of their customer experience: according to the latest reports, 10% of members have already earned the 30 reward points associated with it.
• GoodNews rewards downloads of the pass mobile wallet by awarding 2,500 points—enough to treat yourself at a coffee shop!
• Bleu Forêt invites its members to subscribe to its newsletter to earn 20 extra points.
• Les Georgettes rewards its customers for engaging with its emails by offering 2 points for each email they click on, up to twice a month.
• Quick rewards its customers with points for posting a review on the Avis Vérifiés platform.
• Other brands reward engagement on social media (such as following the brand’s account on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, X, YouTube, or Reddit).

As a result, the loyalty program is no longer used solely to reward spending, but to foster an ongoing relationship with the customer.

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Reward key moments in the customer journey

Finally, the most engaging loyalty programs know how to capitalize on key moments in the customer journey.

These gestures can take various forms:

• Anniversary rewards: the customer’s birthday, as well as the customer’s anniversary with the brand (the date the customer joined the loyalty program, for example). Jeff de Bruges also offers a choice of a chocolate bar with any purchase made within 31 days of the customer’s Jeff Club anniversary.
• Benefits upon a status upgrade (rewards or points): Wolfberger offers a €10 discount on purchases of €25 or more on the first purchase following a status change in the program (upgrade from the 1st to the 2nd status). The Vanessa Wu brand , meanwhile, awards 50 bonus points for a status upgrade.

Beyond the reward itself, these mechanisms help create opportunities to build relationships with customers, recognize their long-term loyalty, and strengthen their emotional connection to the brand.

2️⃣ Choose membership tiers that structure and incentivize the progression of your loyalty program members

Another key feature of loyalty programs focuses on the very essence of the program: the introduction of membership tiers.

Regardless of how customers achieve higher status—whether through more points or a higher or lower spending threshold—these programs offer a unique sense of exclusivity and thus remain one of the most effective ways to boost engagement. By introducing tiers to achieve, brands create a progression system that encourages customers to return to make purchases (or earn points in any way) to gain access to more exclusive and premium benefits.

It's also a way to focus the most exclusive benefits on the most engaged and most active customers.

To further encourage this, many retailers offer benefits that vary depending on a customer’s status:

• At Jovoy, the anniversary reward varies depending on the member's level: 10%, then 15%, and up to 20% off.
• Bleuforêt offers gifts each time a customer advances to a new status level, with a premium reward for the highest level: a pair of socks embroidered with the customer's initials.
• Dr. Hauschka offers a 30-minute consultation with a skincare specialist to its premium members.
• The JOTT down jacket brand, for its part, offers exclusive services such as product repairs and in-store returns without a receipt.

Beyond the rewards themselves, loyalty tiers are primarily a way to foster a sense of appreciation and exclusivity that is particularly engaging for the most loyal customers.

3️⃣ How to build a catalog of loyalty rewards that are both attractive and effective?

The mechanics of a loyalty program aren't everything. To build lasting customer engagement, you also need to offer rewards that are perceived as useful, accessible, and unique.

And on this topic, the most successful brands no longer limit themselves to traditional discount coupons. They are building comprehensive reward catalogs designed to meet a variety of expectations: savings, exclusivity, experiences, surprises, and even charitable giving.

Focus on a diverse rewards catalog

Offering a variety of rewards helpsprevent burnout and keeps members engaged over time, both with the program and the brand. It’s also a way to add value to the program by tailoring it to each member’s profile and motivations.

Some brands are therefore focusing on benefits that are very tangible and easy to use:

• Cojean offers its non-customer members a pastry when they make their first purchase at a restaurant.
• At L’Atelier d’Amaya, customers can redeem 200 points for a €15 discount.
• Maison Pierre Marcolini offers discounts based on the purchase amount.
• Harcour offers free shipping with no minimum purchase for members at the highest membership levels.

Incorporate rewards that promote solidarity

More and more brands are also expanding their programs to include a focus on social responsibility or solidarity.

Customers can, for example, convert their points into donations to a nonprofit or contribute to a local initiative. This is the approach taken by the Luxembourg-based restaurant chain Cocottes, which allows its customers to convert their loyalty points into charitable support for Stëmm vun der Strooss, a nonprofit that provides daily assistance to people in precarious situations.

This mechanism helps give loyalty greater meaning while strengthening brand attachment. These are two elements that are particularly sought after today by customers who want to consume intelligently and find ever greater meaning in their relationships with brands.

Going Beyond Transactions Through Experiences

Experiential rewards are particularly effective at evoking emotion and reinforcing a sense of privilege.

Rather than just a discount, some retailers offer:

• invitations to private sales or early access to sales, such as Lingerie Le Chat, which invites its best customers to pre-sale events and private sales.
• exclusive workshops, such as those organized by Vanessa Wu, who offers customization workshops.
• member-exclusive experiences, such as EK France, which offers access to online cooking classes.
• or even premium content.

These benefits are often highly valued by customers, while costing brands less than a monetary discount.

Adjusting the validity period to encourage repeat visits

The way a reward is enjoyed is almost as important as the reward itself.

Some brands deliberately choose relatively short validity periods to create a sense of urgency and encourage customers to return quickly to the store or the e-commerce site.

If we take a closer look at the awards mentioned earlier:

• The complimentary pastry offered to non-member participants in the Cojean program is valid only within 30 days of enrolling in the program, to encourage them to make their first purchase as soon as possible after joining.
• Special discounts offered by Wolfberger are valid only for 3 months after receipt, in order to maximize customer value as quickly as possible.
• The €15 gift certificate from L’Atelier d’Amaya is valid for only 6 months, with the aim of quickly building customer loyalty to the brand.

When used effectively, these strategies canencourage repeat visits and repurchases without compromising the customer experience, provided that the timing remains consistent with the brand’s purchase cycle.

4️⃣ Gamify customer loyalty to maintain customer engagement

Gamifying a loyalty program—that is, making the experience more fun and interactive—is also an effective strategy for increasing purchase frequency, encouraging certain behaviors, and maintaining customerinterest over time.

Challenges, collection mechanics, and contests help create regular touchpoints with members and foster customer engagement beyond just purchases.

Create recurring challenges

Some brands launch limited-time challenges to encourage customers to return more often.

At GoodNews, for example , “Monthly Challenges” take the form of recurring challenges related to the consumption of beverages or food:

• "Drink Challenge": By drinking 20 cups of coffee in a month, members unlocked an additional 5€ to spend.
• "Cookie Monster Challenger": For every 15 cookies purchased in a month, the coffee shop gave away one cookie and credited customers' loyalty cards with 5,000 points.

These challenges help create concrete and motivating goals for customers while directly addressing visit frequency and purchase volume.

Promote the loyalty program with contests

Contests are also an excellent way to energize the loyalty program and generate short-term engagement with the brand.

For example, Bagel Corner organized a contest offering a free year’s supply of lattes as a prize. The rules were very simple (customers had to scan their loyalty card when purchasing a latte during a specific period, followed by a random drawing), yet effective, as they encouraged repeat business and helped the brand gain a better understanding of its customers.

Beyond the reward itself, these activities help make the program more engaging, entertaining, and memorable for members.

5️⃣ Launch tactical campaigns to support your strategic goals (traffic, conversion, adoption, repeat purchases, ROI)

A loyalty program isn't just about rewarding long-term purchases. It's also a powerful marketing tool that cansupport very specific business objectives: driving traffic, accelerating the adoption of a sales channel, supporting a sales campaign, or increasing the average order value.

The most successful brands thus use their loyalty program as a standalone engagement tool, with one-time promotions activated throughout the year based on their business priorities and the key events they have selected.

• Create highlights to liven up the program: one-time promotions help maintain the program’s appeal, surprise customers, and boost activity during certain periods. This is the approach taken by Cocottes, which doubled the points on all vegan products during Vaganuary, and by FAUCHON, which does the same during the holiday season.
• Supporting a sales channel to influence certain purchasing behaviors is a very effective way to boost that channel’s commercial impact. Some choose to double points for a specific period: this was the case with Lola Casademunt, which launched a promotion in April for purchases made through its e-commerce site, and Quick, which offered a “Happy Hours” promotion for orders placed between midnight on Saturday and 6 a.m. on Sunday in March to maximize sales during a slow period of the week.
• Supporting a product or offer launch and boosting sales performance: L’Incroyable has awarded 200 additional points on its exclusive offer featuring the “Siesta” long necklace. Artcraft, an Italian fashion brand, is awarding 10 bonus points for orders over €100 to optimize customer retention and average order value.

By combining loyalty mechanisms with specific business objectives, brands are transforming their programs into powerful tools for sales management and CRM.

Loyalty programs are no longer limited to earning points or transaction-based discounts. Today, they have become powerful engagement tools capable of supporting a variety of objectives, including customer insight, repeat purchases, traffic, channel adoption, and brand loyalty.

But loyalty isn't built solely through a rewards program. Customer experience, personalization, service quality, emotional connection, and brand engagement also play a key role in building a lasting relationship with consumers.

The loyalty program thus remains a powerful tool… provided it is designed as part of a broader customer retention strategy.

To learn more about all the customer loyalty tactics that are easy to implement on our platform, contact us !