| Building a loyal, core customer base is, for sure, a long and complex process, with countless factors influencing whether or not people will do business with you again. However, one way of boosting your chances of repeat custom may actually be quite straightforward – offering free perks.
According to a study by BankingRefunds.co.uk, 35% of consumers appreciate brands that offer extra benefits, even if the perks are covered in the cost of a purchase. Indeed, 23% said these additional incentives help to inspire a connection and long-term loyalty.
But what kind of perks should you be offering? And will giving away freebies work for all your customers? Let’s dig a little deeper into the survey to discover what kind of approach may yield the best results.
Tailor perks personally
Businesses of all sizes often try to reach out to existing customers by targeting them on their birthday. But brands can go a step further than offering a generic discount by tailoring their perks on an individual basis, just as you would with somebody that you know personally. Some 36% of those polled said this would help them feel special and potentially encourage them to spend money. Businesses could therefore benefit from actively collecting data on their customers and analysing it to gain meaningful and actionable insights. For instance, a tin of biscuits would be ideal for somebody with a sweet tooth or a pedometer or water bottle would be well received by those into fitness. Understanding each individual’s unique tastes and preferences is vital if you want to offer a tailored gift that will be well-received, so it pays to mine your dataset for potentially useful information.
Young people more attracted by perks
One interesting finding of the study was that offering perks tends to be more effective with the millennial generation than with older people. In fact, 35% of 18 to 24-year-olds said they’d be happy to receive a basic product or service if it meant they got something extra. Furthermore, 37% of 18 to 30-year-olds agreed that perks help to inspire brand loyalty. This suggests that if you’re predominantly targeting a millennial audience, offering a few extra incentives could prove highly successful.
Millennials expect brands to offer incentives
Many of the brands that young adults engage with routinely offer perks – and that’s fundamentally influencing their wider expectations. Indeed, the survey found that 29% of young consumers expect incentives from organisations, so those that don’t deliver on this could inadvertently be driving people away.
Of course, the fact that young people tend to value and expect perks more than their older counterparts doesn’t mean brands shouldn’t offer them to older customers too. If anything, it’s a reminder to them of the importance of ensuring perks are tailored to people on an individual level and carry genuine value to the recipient. Age is not the defining characteristic of a person. Their unique tastes, preferences and circumstances are far more influential when it comes to making marketing decisions, so it’s these that should be considered first before any perk is given away.
Sources / Further reading
Businesses can cultivate more brand loyalty and sales if they offer perks, report claims Startups.co.uk |
