A Cross-Channel Loyalty Case Study

Loyalty success requires a mix of core business capabilities and technology enablers. One retailer that has found the key to loyalty success is a large men's apparel retailer. This company, with 225 stores in the United States and Canada, operates retail stores, factory outlets, and a direct-to-consumer channel. The main focus of the company's loyalty initiative is to allow customers to engage with the brand on their terms, not based on a time sensitive promotion.

This retailer opened its official loyalty program in 2002, with a credit card rewards program. The retailer utilized both a private label credit card and a co-branded credit card. The main component was to provide benefits to its customers. Select segments of customers received free shipping or free alterations based on dollar thresholds. As the loyalty program took off, this retailer opened a second loyalty program which was a corporate incentives program in 2003. This program allowed for employees of member organizations to sign up and get persistent discounts year-round. This removed the pressure of time sensitive loyalty programs. According to the Director of Customer Contact Center, "The corporate incentives services group allowed for our customers to engage with us around their schedule. The rewards and benefits were not promotionally driven. By allowing the customers to engage with the brand on their terms, we have been able to increase customer satisfaction scores and frequency rates significantly."

Today, this company operates a multi-channel loyalty program, but is in the process of moving towards an integrated cross-channel loyalty environment. According to the Director of Customer Contact Center: "Our brand is removing the boundaries between channels. Regardless of the environment, we have to make sure that customers have the same service level experiences. Products and pricing is homogenous - it comes down to the value proposition of the retailer. As we move from multi-channel to cross-channel, the customer will dictate the terms of product delivery."