What’s in this article:
- Loyalty programs only work if consumers use and understand them
- To ensure you’re both getting the most out of the program, check out these six inspiring copywriting ideas for your next campaign.
Whether you’re looking to grow your loyalty program, nurture existing users, or even a mixture of both, you’ll need strong campaigns to achieve that objective. As any marketer will tell you, one of the most important components of a successful campaign is solid copy. That means your subject lines, headlines, body text, or whatever you’re writing needs to ensure your campaign is hitting the mark. To do that, you need to understand what your brand is targeting.
Set your goal
Before sitting down at the computer or finding a copywriter, you should first decide your company’s goals for the program overall. Here are top ways businesses use loyalty programs, according to the Harvard Business Review:
- 65 percent: Attract new customers
- 57 percent: Build stronger emotional brand connections
- 50 percent: Gain insight and data about customers
- 49 percent: Increase word-of-mouth referrals
- 42 percent: Cross-sell products and services
- 31 percent: Increase customer spending or e-commerce site visits
- 23 percent: Re-engage customers
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How you plan to use your loyalty program will help determine the type of campaign — and ultimately the type of copy — that will best ensure you reach that goal. Just like with any marketing tactic, you’ll never know if it’s successful if you don’t have a goal in place to compare it to.
Once you know what your brand is trying to achieve with your loyalty program, you can begin to craft campaigns that deliver that message. Here are six examples of loyalty program campaigns to give you the copywriting inspiration you need to get started.
Taco Bell
When you know your brand, customers, and goal for your loyalty program campaign, you get an email like this one from Taco Bell. With the subject line, “Let’s see what your points are up to👆🌮🔔,” their subscribers know exactly what they’ll find if they open the message.
This email doesn’t include a ton of copy, however, the text that is there works perfectly. We love the clever header, “We’ll get right to the points,” and also how the body copy ties into the actual program levels — “You’re on a hot streak” and “Current Level: Hot.”
Starbucks
This brand has become the poster child for creating a successful loyalty program, so it only makes sense they would have the copy to back it up. For example, this campaign was designed to alert users that Starbucks now has new payment options available.
They present that information by stating these new options to make the customer’s experience better, followed by telling what those new options are. This campaign also discreetly addresses customers who might not love change by including, “All your favorite features are still here,” followed by listing some of those features. That also serves as a reminder for what they can receive if they use the program.
Bokksu
If your brand follows a subscription model, consumers might assume they have to be a member to join your loyalty program — even if that isn’t the case, like in this example. Bokksu lets consumers know they aren’t required to be a member to earn rewards and takes them through the steps of how they can earn points.
The copy and design of this campaign are clear, informative, and provide value to the reader. Giving consumers a way to earn rewards without even making a purchase is also a win-win, since they will ultimately need to make a purchase to redeem them.
Zoes Kitchen
When someone first joins your loyalty program, you want to give them enough information so that they can get the most of it — without overwhelming them. That’s why Zoes Kitchen takes this approach with their campaign. They welcome the customer to the program and tell them how they earn rewards and redeem rewards.
Knowing what they need to do to earn rewards, whether it’s scanning an app or giving their phone number, takes the guesswork off the customer, improving the chances that they will participate.
Bellroy
Loyalty program campaigns aren’t only for new customers, as you can see here. Bellroy’s campaign focuses on customers who have been in the program for 30 days to check in and see how they’re liking the product and experience so far. They give them the option to rank the product/brand, view social proof, and also purchase additional products.
This campaign covers a little bit of everything, yet the copywriting is cohesive and straight to the point. You want your content to give them just the right amount, nothing less and nothing more. That’s why the majority of loyalty program campaigns are short and sweet.
DAVIDsTEA
We all like hearing or learning about ourselves. There’s no shame in that. So, to celebrate its company anniversary, DAVIDsTEA made it about their loyal customers, instead of themselves, with this campaign. They used the data collected through the loyalty program to create a personalized campaign showing how and when the customer interacted with the brand. That also shows their customers they know them (but not in a creepy way) and care about their experiences.
Not every loyalty program campaign has to be about how to use the program or what rewards were earned. You can also focus on the customer as a whole to build a lasting relationship. And isn’t that the goal anyway?
Find copy inspiration from your brand
If you’re still struggling to put pen to paper for your next campaign, start by thinking about these elements:
- What am I trying to achieve with this loyalty program campaign?
- What’s my brand’s voice?
- What are the most popular features of our loyalty program?
- Are there parts of the program that are confusing the customers?
Once you answer these questions, you should have a clearer idea of what the focus should be for your next campaign. For example, if there’s something that trips consumers up about using your loyalty program, include steps on how that component works. Or, let them know about a key feature they should start taking advantage of. If your campaign provides value to your audience and helps you work toward your goal, you’ll have a winner.