5 Must-Know Customer Loyalty Statistics

Customer loyalty is an ever-evolving phenomenon. It’s constantly adapting to new technologies, new industry trends, and new consumer behaviours.

The last few years have been a clear indicator of this, as global events forced brand loyalty into a purely digital space. But even before the pandemic, customer loyalty had already moved far beyond transaction-based activities and was more concerned with the customer’s experience.

So, given the ever-changing landscape of brand loyalty and customer retention, here are some interesting customer loyalty facts with statistics to keep in mind when considering your loyalty marketing strategy.

1. Email marketing is still crucial

According to statista, the number of emails sent and received around the world has been growing since 2017. Estimated number of emails sent and received daily globally is expected to increase from 319.6 billion in 2021 to 376.4 billion in 2025.

In Belgium and Germany, the advertising email click-through-rates were 5.5 and 4.3 percent respectively - compared to the 1.3 percent global average CTR for social media during the same time period (statista).

By asking for a customer’s email address as part of the loyalty program registration process, you can rapidly build a newsletter list, which you can then use to spread the word about exciting new products, industry news, exclusive promotions and other engaging content.

This not only helps to establish your brand as a reputable and trustworthy authority in the industry, but it helps to create a community around your loyalty program. Send people updates on their loyalty status, with gamified functions like leader boards and badges.

2. Customers want personalized experiences

Nearly 90% of Americans are willing to have various details of their activity tracked in exchange for more personalized rewards and brand experiences (Bond Brand Loyalty).

Research suggests that most consumers aren’t just indifferent about having brands collect data on their shopping habits – they actually want the brands they shop with to track their data, if it leads to a more personalised experience.

Digital loyalty programs (in particular, digital loyalty apps) are the single most useful tool for a business to collect valuable customer data and use it to tailor each customer’s experience to cater for their individual needs and preferences.

With a decent mobile rewards app, you can send your most loyal customers targeted communications, personalised offers, recommended products and more.

3. Good CSR is great PR

Did you know consumers are 4 times more likely to purchase from a brand with a strong purpose? (Zeno)

Since Millennials and Gen Z shoppers are more and more conscious about the possible effects on the environment, needless to say they will definitely take that into consideration when making a purchase decision.

In 2024, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is no doubt an important factor that brands cannot overlook. It’s not just the right thing to do but inevitably has great impacts on customer’s perception of the brand. 

Your customers want to know that you’re giving back to the community and doing your bit. Otherwise, they’ll go elsewhere. Again, loyalty programs are a nifty tool for implementing CSR initiatives, and for showing your customers what your brand’s core values are.

For instance, MAC Cosmetic’s “Back to MAC” recycling scheme rewards customers with discounts and loyalty points for bringing their discarded lipstick containers and other makeup packaging back to MAC outlets for reuse.

See how this strategy incentivises recycling, displays the brand’s values and encourages loyalty program encouragement all at once? Clever!

4. Brand-created content is falling short of expectations

72% of consumers believe that reviews and testimonials submitted by customers are more credible than the brand talking about their products. (Tint)

User-generated content (UGC) is content that discusses a brand or its products, but isn’t produced by the brand itself. For example, if someone puts together a YouTube tutorial on how to build an IKEA bedside table, this is UGC. The same goes for someone’s blog on their experience flying with Singapore Airlines, or a podcast reviewing the latest Apple iPhone.

So, how do you get your customers to create quality content for you? Reward them for it! Simple.

By rewarding customers with loyalty points and other incentives for creating UGC that promotes your products and services, you can build an ever-expanding pool of quality content that can be shared in newsletters, social media pages and other channels.

5. Customers will jump ship if they smell a better deal elsewhere

A recent survey of over 13,000 consumers all over the world conducted by Salesforce shows that 71% switched brands at least once in the last year.

In the same report, 56% of consumers admitted that they would be more likely to purchase from a brand with a loyalty program.

This is where you can kill two birds with one stone with a loyalty program that can help retain your loyal customers and with the data it collects, you can gain an understanding of who your customers are and what they want. Meeting your customer’s needs is the best way to tighten the relationship between brand and customer.

How? A digital loyalty app is arguably the most efficient way, as it creates a direct line of communication with each customer. It transforms the relationship they have with your brand, from being an in-store or online experience to literally being in their pocket, with:

• Personalised offers based on their previous interactions
• Gamified functions for increased engagement
• Birthday rewards and other milestone prizes

Perhaps it’s time to invest in a digital loyalty app for your business and its customers

At Stamp Me, we provide businesses of all shapes and sizes all over the world with a highly interactive and intuitive mobile rewards app that serves as a convenient replacement for traditional “Buy X, Get Y” paper punch cards.

Not only does it offer all the perks and benefits listed in this article, but it’s remarkably quick and easy to set up, with a 30-day free trial so that you can “try it on for size” before committing to a month-by-month subscription.

To speak with a friendly member of our professional team about how Stamp Me can help your business retain more customers and boost brand loyalty, don’t hesitate to get in touch. Otherwise, you can get started today!