4 Ways Mobile Apps Can Boost Customer Loyalty

In today’s fast-paced digital market, convenience is key when it comes to retaining customers. As the demands of daily life continue to stack up and the list of competitors vying for consumers’ attention continues to grow, consumers have to be more selective these days about where they choose to spend their precious time, and for this reason, mobile commerce has grown dramatically over the last few years.  

Aware of the enormous potentials of this new frontier, in the digital landscape, businesses from all industries have been adapting their models to include more digital commerce in recent years-- particularly in the form of mobile apps. In fact, according to forbes.com, “as recently as 2016, it represented 52.4%” of all online sales-- meaning “almost three out of every four dollars spent on online purchases are coming from mobile.” However, despite the great promise of this number, an important variable to consider is that not all online dollars are being distributed evenly: meaning that some vendors are much more successful than others, and the sharks are quickly outpacing the little fish.  

For savvy retailers, focusing on improving customer retention has become a top priority--since retaining customers is cheaper than acquiring new ones, and loyal customers make up 80% of all profits-- which is why mobile-friendly loyalty programs have also become an industry-standard in recent years. For this reason, given the importance of loyalty programs, we’ve decided to share four ways that mobile apps can help to boost customer loyalty and improve retention.   

Mobile Apps Improve Engagement  

It’s no secret that people spend a lot of time on their phones these days, and that can work to retailers’ advantage, by allowing online vendors to connect with customers like never before. With mobile loyalty programs, retailers can send deals, special offers, and notifications to customers at any time, and increase engagement through gamification.  

Gamified mobile apps allow customers to compete with both themselves and others to complete challenges and earn rewards points--keeping them entertained and making them want to engage more often with the app. By giving customers more reasons to visit your app, other than just to shop, you can create meaningful connections between both the brand and users that goes deeper than the typical buyer-seller relationship. Instead, with gamified mobile apps, you can provide an outlet for entertainment that users can turn to when they’re looking for relief from feelings of boredom or ennui. These small interactions tend to be remembered by customers, because the brand created value for them outside of commerce, and the same interactions also can have positive effects for brands, as they help to raise brand credibility in the customer’s eyes and increase the likelihood of referrals and customer retention.  

Mobile Apps Offer Convenience  

Service speed is on top of every customer’s priority list these days, and with one-touch access, customers can usually find what they’re looking for in a matter of minutes without much additional hassle. In effect, the bar has been raised fairly high when it comes to fulfilling customer expectations, which is one of the reasons why mobile apps have become such an industry-standard in recent years.  

For most customers, loyalty comes first through convenience and then gets strengthened over time through repetition and emotional connection. However, in the initial stages of customer acquisition, making a service fast and simple is easily the best way to create a repeat customer. To do this, suppliers simply need to ensure that they make a quality mobile app that runs smoothly, does its function, and is consistent (meaning that it works every time--without complication). In this way, by creating a fast and easy way for customers to find what they’re looking for, retailers can begin to develop real customer loyalty by creating a positive experience for users, and all it takes is creating a service that does what it’s supposed to do and actually works!  

Mobile Tracking Can Improve Analytics and Targeting  

One of the biggest benefits of using mobile apps is that they can allow you to collect user data directly from your customers, which can then be used to send targeted ads and content straight to their phones; in doing this, companies can create a greater and more personalized experience for their users, which, in turn, can boost customer engagement and improve loyalty.  

With mobile apps, you can gain accurate user insights into your target customer’s preferences, habits, and tastes, which can then be leveraged to your advantage by allowing you to create personalized incentives that can be sent during peak hours when users are on their phones. With better user data, you can create a better and more personalized user experience on your loyalty apps, which can then help you to make relevant content more accessible to users and improve your overall customer retention.   

Mobile Apps Can Make Users Feel Special  

Another benefit of mobile loyalty apps is that they can be used to promote exclusive deals and sales that are only available to users who have the app. As brands such as Tesla, Rolex, or Mercedes have shown, the idea of exclusivity has a broad appeal when it comes to marketing products. However, the same also applies to information--and opportunity. After all, knowledge is power, and knowing information about an upcoming sale can give users a feeling of being advantaged over others.  

Moreover, giving users the idea that they have access to exclusive opportunities and information can encourage loyalty and increase customer retention--since no one wants to give up having advantages or opportunities. With mobile apps, this means that users who download an app for a loyalty program will be more likely to maintain their accounts even if engagement decreases over time: meaning, the right campaign or promotion will be all it takes to get them to engage again.  

Looking for a Better Way to Improve Loyalty?  

With Loyal~n~Save, you can make it easier for customers to spread the love, with team-sharing and collaborative point-building features. Loyal~n~Save is a premium loyalty rewards program designed to increase customer retention and improve engagement. With it, businesses can create a personalized, gamified experience for customers that’ll allow them to build points and earn rewards just for shopping.  

Loyal~n~Save also comes with a host of convenient features designed specifically to help business owners gain retention, including tools for campaign planning, easy sharing, and user-based pattern recognition, which can help you to create a more personalized experience for your customers. Loyal~n~Save also gives users the option to build teams, send gifts, and earn points easily just from having other active shoppers on their team.  

If you’re curious about Loyal~n~Save and would like to know more, then contact one of our loyalty specialists @ https://loyalnsave.com/ or call our toll-free number @ 845-796-9944. You can also follow us on any of our social media @ https://www.facebook.com/LoyalNSave/ or @  

https://www.linkedin.com/company/loyal-n-save/, or you can subscribe to our weekly blog to get more useful tips and tricks about how to increase customer retention.  

Thank you for taking the time to read our blog today. We hope to hear from you in the future!  

This article was written by Loyal-n-Save, an omni-channel customer loyalty solution for retailers looking to increase customer retention and new customer acquisition.