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Best Loyalty Apps in the UK for Small-to-Medium Businesses

Written by 
Brad Davis
 - 
February 6, 2022

With so many loyalty card apps and programs available, you’re probably a little overwhelmed with trying to figure out which is the best loyalty card app for your business.

Well, you’ve come to the right place – hopefully we can help you narrow it down and guide you to choosing the loyalty app that best suits your business goals and needs.

Obviously you’ve done your homework, which is why you already know that a loyalty card app is one of the best ways to retain customers, gain insights into consumer behaviour and stand out from your competitors… but which one is the best for you?

Here are some loyalty card apps in the UK for rewarding customer loyalty, increasing sales and retaining customers, along with their ratings in the Apple Store, Google Play or GetApp:

LoyalZoo (3.8*)

LoyalZoo keeps the process of earning points and redeeming rewards straightforward for both the business and its customers. Once a customer has registered with the LoyalZoo app, it sends reward offers by SMS, email and push notifications.

Pros:

  • The platform features simple staff training tutorials to educate your employees on how LoyalZoo works
  • Merchants can use computers, tablets or mobile devices to run the loyalty program in-store, or alternatively they can implement one of LoyalZoo’s integrated POS solutions
  • 7-day free trial
  • Operates on either a points-based system or subscriptions-based system, depending on what works better for your business and customers
  • No lock-in contracts

Cons:

  • LoyalZoo doesn’t offer flexibility in assigning different points values to different products
  • There are many reports of lag times between customers checking in and the data appearing on the merchant’s screen
  • Reported integration issues with certain POS systems

Fivestar (4.1*)

Fivestar is an integrated payment and loyalty system that automates sign-ups, rewards, payments and even tips through a single streamlined Customer Touchscreen device. The device essentially replaces your credit card reader, as it accepts all the major payment types but also snowballs a fully automated rewards program into the transaction.

Needless to say, this is convenient for your staff and customers alike, as it essentially removes the middle-man. However, Fivestar has its drawbacks as well.

Pros:

  • Serves as a one-stop solution for POS payment and loyalty program
  • Provides actionable insights based on the data from customer transactions
  • The software helps staff to learn customers’ names and shopping preferences

Cons:

  • Businesses must commit to a 12-month contract
  • There are much more cost-efficient alternatives available
  • Fivestar is heavily technology-based, making it an unsuitable choice for businesses with non tech-savvy target markets
  • The signup process requires a phone number, but then customers who switch numbers lose access to their existing account (and any accumulated points/rewards along with it)
  • If a business cancels Fivestar, any customers with points towards a reward at this store are left in the lurch with no recourse

Bink (4.2*)

Bink is a little different to your standard loyalty program provider, in that it uses a unique payment-linked loyalty technology that enables a customer’s payment card to function as a loyalty card for your business. This means that customers are identified and rewarded every single time they shop.

It works for businesses that already have a loyalty program as well as ones that are starting from scratch.

So for example, if the reason that you’re looking for a loyalty app in the UK is that your current rewards program needs sprucing up or expanding, Bink will drive loyalty engagement every single time a customer shops with you.

Whereas if you don’t have a rewards program at all just yet, Bink will help you introduce a scalable rewards offering that attracts new customers and boosts engagement for your brand.

Pros:

  • Collect data from every transaction, for actionable insights to consumer behaviour and personalisation opportunities
  • Gain exposure to over 9 million potential customers when Bink features your brand on its own app and those of its banking partners

Cons:

  • Doesn’t work for cash payments
  • Payment linking technology presents risks of customer data breaches
  • It can take up to 7 days for loyalty balances to be updated, and this timeframe also varies between retailers

Swapi (4.6*)

Swapi is also quite different to your standard UK loyalty app provider, in that it allows shoppers to redeem expired supermarket loyalty points. It serves as an e-wallet for all your loyalty cards, as well as a platform for spending points and getting rewarded.

Customers can trade in their expired points from participating brands (300 so far, including Morrisons, Ocado, Selfridges, Deliveroo and Fortnum & Mason) and receive in-app currency called Swapi Points in return.

It consolidates a shopper’s various loyalty cards and allows you to spend them across all your favourite retailers in one convenient digital marketplace.

Pros:

  • Helps you acquire newly engaged customers
  • You can target dormant and inactive customers and balances
  • Allows you to increase engagement and sales from your existing customers
  • You control which brands your customers can swap with
  • It frees up your brand from loyalty point liability and side-steps the negative impression that points expiry can leave on customers
  • You’re rewarding customers at a zero cost redemption

Cons:

  • Gift cards can take up to 7 days to appear in a user’s wallet after spending the necessary amount to qualify
  • It only works with participating partners; not every retailer that your customers might shop with
  • All of the rewards have expiry dates

CandyBar (4.6*)

CandyBar doesn’t actually use an app or POS integration. Merchants simply install a tablet or similar device at POS, with the CandyBar login webpage open. Customers are prompted to sign up on the spot with the usual basic details (no payment card information), and from then on they simply enter their phone number each time they make an in-store transaction to earn points and redeem rewards.

Pros:

  • Quick setup
  • 30-day free trial

Cons:

  • Customers must use their phone number to sign up – there is no email option
  • Many businesses that have trialled the loyalty scheme have reported lag-time between the customer-facing side and the employee-facing side at POS
  • Only caters for brick-and-mortar shops and in-store customers

Stamp Me – (4.9*)

Stamp Me is one of the best loyalty card apps in the UK, due to its simplicity. We take the traditional ‘Buy X & Get Y Free’ style paper punch card approach and make it easily accessible on your customer’s phone. We’re proud to be the world’s leading digital stamp card provider.

The reason Stamp Me has been so effective for thousands of merchants is because customers are already familiar with the punch card concept. It’s intuitive, so there’s no need for a complicated explanation.

What’s in it for your customers is that they don’t have to carry around yet another punch card which is easily lost and often forgotten, and your business saves time, money and the environment by not having to print paper punch cards.

Having an app on your customer’s phone also serves as a reminder for them to visit your business to continue collecting stamps and earning rewards. And in case they forget, you can communicate with them via our SMS and Push Notification feature to send a friendly reminder to swing by, or let them know about special offers or events to get them back through the door.

Implementing our UK loyalty card app is also a seamless process for your business. There’s no need for a tablet, no complicated POS integration, and no need to hassle customers to enter their phone number on a device each time they visit (which can be fiddly, time consuming and hold up queues).

Try Stamp Me free

Instead, Stamp Me uses QR Codes that users can easily scan to receive stamps using their own phone.

It’s that easy! We also have other validation methods, if you prefer.

Our digital loyalty program helps your business gain insights into the who, what, when, where and why of your customer base, and this allows you to better target your marketing to appeal to each individual customer. We provide you with full access to this information, unlike some other loyalty platform providers.

Want to give Stamp Me a try for free? Click here to get started.

So there you have it! Some of the best loyalty card and rewards app providers in the UK. We hope this helps you select one that’s right for your business. You’re certainly on the right track to growing your business with a customer loyalty program – good luck!

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