Hollect Blog

Have we all become promiscuous comparison shoppers, surfing to find the best deal? Indeed, recent studies have suggested a decline in consumer loyalty to travel brands[1]. But not so fast. Based on a recent Market Metrix study into the behaviors of travelers over the past 6 years, results revealed that customer loyalty[2] has increased 14.3% (from 56% to 66%). Loyalty increased in each and every year. - See more at: http://corp.marketmetrix.com/part-1-keep-customer-in-a-virtuous-loyalty-loop/#sthash.yDeLyl9c.dpuf

How can you get the most bang out of your customer loyalty program? The Booth study provides a few smart tips:

Give customers a sense they’re making progress. We’ve already seen how bonus points can jump-start a customer into feeling they’re making progress. Many merchants launch their program with a signup special: get a small freebie just for signing up. Immediate gratification doesn’t have to cost much, but if it gives your customers the glow of achievement, it can accelerate their purchase frequency and amounts.

Remind customers where they’re stand – particularly when they’re nearing a reward. Here’s where  mobile offers shine compared to paper punchcards. You may not dig out that wrinkled, torn punchcard to check your progress, but a well-timed ping on your mobile phone may prompt you to head back to a store you like but haven’t visited lately. Consider bundling bonus points with a  special offer: you’ll not only drive in-store traffic, you’ll also reignite a customer’s motivation to earn enough punches for that next freebie.

As the summer travel season comes to a close, Nielsen looked at the usage of travel-related mobile apps and websites during June 2012. Findings showed that U.S. Android and iOS users spent 95 percent of their time accessing travel information from travel apps, versus only 5 percent from the mobile Web. This discrepancy was largely driven by Google Maps—the top Travel category app and mobile website during June—which accounted for 78 percent of all mobile time spent on Travel.

Americans’ decision on whether to open an app or their mobile Web browser depends on the type of travel information they seek. The Cruise Lines category was exclusively accessed through the mobile Web, while 98 percent of time spent browsing map/navigation information was through an app. The Travel Destinations/Theme Parks category seemed to have the most balanced usage among smartphone owners, as 54 percent of time spent was through an app and 46 percent via mobile Web.

“The variation in time spent across the different travel categories shows that there’s significant room for app development and growth,” said Nichole Henderson, a senior research executive at Nielsen.