Customer Loyalty

"Getting tired of hearing about Big Data and am ready for Big Insights."

- Justin Honaman, Director of Customer Intelligence, Coca Cola

Customer loyalty is a complex topic and POS and e-commerce systems often provide the data and not the insights. Customer data keeps growing with the sophistication of point-of-service, transactional data, and in e-commerce customer tracks within the website. But insights are not growing as fast. Then the task of converting insights back into analytic driven software is where third parties often enter.

Many stores overlook that emotional engagement is the dominant driver of purchase decisions and brand loyalty rather than price promotions, discounting, social networking, Internet marketing and similar efforts.

"…and if you look at what drives consumer emotional engagement in a category, it’s clear that the rational stuff is but table-stakes. If you don’t have a handle on the emotional side of the purchase and engagement process, you might as well spend your marketing budget on coupons and promotions.”

- Robert Passikoff, President of Brand Keys

Recently I read two pieces on customer loyalty that I want to share because I think each, in its own way, provides college stores with new understandings about possible future actions and investment toward customer intimacy.

First is this one by Kristine Jacobs, VP Customer Success at 500friends

This is a good guide to strategy and tactics, the why and how of actions identified to produce results. It is available for free, if you consider giving your contact information to a marketing company free.

Second is The Power of Emotional Connections by Joe Skorupa at RIS.  As Joe notes, "The customer has the power to control the shopping experience today, but the retailer has the power to control the data."

And I will end with this from the 17th annual 2013Brand Keys Customer Loyalty Engagement Index®:

Brands with highest levels of consumer engagement in their respective categories, based on emotional engagement strength achieved versus a consumer-generated, category-specific Ideal, calculated to be 100 percent:

· Airline: US Airways (85 percent)

· Athletic Footwear: Sketchers (86 percent)

· Automotive: Ford/Hyundai (93 percent)

· Bank: JP Morgan Chase (79 percent)

· Beer (Light): Coors Light (89 percent)

· Beer (Regular): Coors/Sam Adams (90 percent)

· Breakfast Cereal: Cheerios (91 percent)

· Car Insurance: State Farm (82 percent)

· Car Rental: Avis (92 percent)

· Casual Dining: Applebee’s (82 percent)

· Coffee; Dunkin’ Donuts (90 percent)

· Computer (Laptops): Samsung (91 percent)

· Cosmetics (Luxury): Clinique (93 percent)

· Credit Card; Discover (94 percent)

· Diapers: Pampers (95 percent)

· E-Readers: Kindle (92 percent)

· Evening News Shows: ABC (97 percent)

· Flat Screen TV: Samsung (88 percent)

· Gasoline: Shell (89 percent)

· Hotel (Luxury); Inter-Continental (82 percent)

· Hotel (Upscale): Hilton/Marriott (81 percent)

· Hotel (Midscale): Best Western (86 percent)

· Hotel (Economy): Days Inn (88 percent)

· Insurance: New York Life (81 percent)

· Major League Gaming: Call of Duty – Modern Warfare (93 percent)

· Major League Sports: National Football League (86 percent)

· MFP Office Copier: Canon/Konica Minolta (81 percent)

· Morning News Show: Good Morning, America (ABC) (94 percent)

· Mutual Funds: American Funds (79 percent)

· Natural Food Stores: Whole Foods (93 percent)

· Online Brokerage: Fidelity.com (85 percent)

· Online Retailers: Amazon (96 percent)

· Online Travel Sites: Expedia (88 percent)

· Packaged Coffee: Dunkin’ (95 percent)

· Parcel Delivery: UPS (87 percent)

· Pet Food (Canned) for Cats: Fancy Feast (93 percent)

· Pet Food (Canned) for Dogs: Cesar (94 percent)

· Pizza: Domino’s (84 percent)

· Printers: Canon (88 percent)

· Quick-Serve Restaurants: Subway (95 percent)

· Retail Store (Apparel): J. Crew (82 percent)

· Retail Store (Department): Kohl’s (80 percent)

· Retail Store (Discount): Walmart (89 percent)

· Retail Store (Home Improvement): Home Depot (90 percent)

· Retail Store (Sporting/Recreational Goods): Dick’s (83 percent)

· Search Engine: Google (85 percent)

· Smartphones: Samsung (87 percent)

· Social Networking Sites: Facebook (88 percent)

· Soft Drinks (Diet): Diet Coke (89 percent)

· Soft Drink (Regular): Coke (90 percent)

· Tablets: Amazon (92 percent)

· Toothpaste: Colgate (94 percent)

· Vodka: Grey Goose (91 percent)

· Wireless Phone Service: AT&T (87 percent)

From Stacy Waymire, ICBA Executive Director