Welcome back to our series on customer loyalty. In parts one and two, we discussed the importance of loyalty programs and how to conduct a loyalty health check. In part three, we’ll dive into some outputs, best practices, and success stories for your channel sales incentive program. 

Loyalty Comes in Many Forms 

Over our 45 years in business, we’ve created and delivered most forms of B2B customer loyalty. Today, we’re delivering a mix of standard points-based loyalty programs to the customer, programs that include partner sales incentives, and multi-audience programs that start with employee incentives. And the rewards in our programs range from instant eGift card delivery, all the way to group travel rewards.

A Few Commonalities 

While each type of program has its unique characteristics and design elements, there are a few best practices that we have found effective. 

1. Target Your Customers Carefully: Use data to identify high-value customers and gain insights into which segments have the highest potential value going forward. 
2. Create A Strong Value Proposition: Provide rewards that matter to the most important customer segments. This can include business service support, store credit, discounts, merchandise, gift cards, experiences, and individual travel. 
3. Keep Things Fresh: Continuous programs can drive repeat purchases, but period-based promotions and add-ons can create the most attention for your brand and the greatest lift in your sales. 

Loyalty Does Not Stand Alone 

Loyalty programs perform best when integrated with your other incentives and channel marketing programs. Start from the inside and work your way out:

• Align Your Employee Base. Recognition programs that reward employees for training, steps to the sale, and sales support ensure everyone is moving towards the goal of retaining and growing your customer base. 
• Incentivize Your Sales Teams: Get your sales teams involved. Sales incentives can ensure your sales teams have reason to embrace loyalty, complimenting your customer adoption strategy. 
• Engage Your Partners: Engage manufacturers and all other partners in your efforts to solicit customer participation. Provide sales kits and override incentives to ensure they promote your loyalty program on your behalf.

Loyalty Drives Success

Using these tips and best practices, our combination of sales incentives, incentive travel solutions, and points-based customer loyalty programs delivered year-over-year sales growth of $400 million and a 22.7% ROI for one distributor client. Another manufacturer loyalty program exceeded the goal of a 10% increase in sales, with contractor payouts being only 6% of the overall lift. 

Trusted Partners and Best Practices 

Loyalty programs can be complex, but a proven third-party provider can offer great value. Partners can save time and money on development, maintenance, and updates, provide best practices, insights, and support from experts, and leverage an established network of partnerships to deliver maximum value for your customer and channel loyalty program. Contact us today to schedule a demo of our loyalty program solutions.

This is Part Three in a three-part blog series on contractor loyalty. Make sure to check out Part One and Part Two in this three-part blog series.