We’ve written previously about the underlying science behind why discounts are such a powerful member/customer engagement tool. Aside from the rush of endorphins that comes from getting a good deal, evolutionary science tells us that our brains are hard-wired to conserve our resources and avoid inefficiencies. That’s why saving money is a universal desire.
So it’s no coincidence that virtually every retailer, airline, supermarket and restaurant offers a discount or rewards program. Most membership organizations understand the potential impact of offering a discount program as part of their membership perks because of how such programs drive member retention (among other favorable behaviors.)
With the increasing popularity of using discounts as rewards and incentives, it’s not surprising that more and more discount programs have sprung up, trying to sell their white-label discount network (also called a private-label discount network) to member associations, trade organizations and other membership-based groups.
But not all discount networks work the same. And not all can drive member retention and boost acquisition rates.
If your organization is considering a white-label discount program to help you connect, attract and engage your members, good for you. It’s a wise decision, as proven by the many organizations that have discovered growth through offering discount programs.
Once you’ve decided to offer a discount program, what criteria should you use to find the best one suited for your organization? As the competition for your attention intensifies, so too will the intensity of the competing voices who are trying to win your business.
As a result, be prepared to encounter some rather creative methods with how discount networks compare themselves to their competitors. Here are some of the tricks some companies use to trick you, and how they spin their message to get you to sign on the dotted line.
When membership organizations make bad decisions, we can learn a lot from their mistakes. Here is a tongue-in-cheek look at ten easy ways to scare away member loyalty and engagement. About a 7 minute read.
Sometimes member loyalty is skittish as a kid in a haunted house, tensed to bolt at the first sign that all isn’t well. Some members may fear a horror-filled experience. Others may worry your organization is secretly an identity-snatching zombie.
The worst thing is, they don’t often stay with organizations long enough to find out whether these warning signs are scary monsters or (more likely) simple mistakes.
My role as a marketing consultant has allowed me to work with all types and sizes of membership organizations. From large organizations with a million or so members, to small non-profit and trade groups with just a few thousand members. Most organizations seem to get it. They’ve figured out how to adapt to meet the unique needs of their members, and they can seamlessly integrate our discount platform into their existing suite of member benefits and privileges.
A few others -- dare I say -- are unprepared for success.
They have so many fundamental problems with how they run their organization that adding a powerful engagement tool, even one backed by the best discount program provider, will actually make matters worse.
After more than a decade in working with various groups, I’ve noticed some important patterns among the few groups that struggle the most. The ones that send members fleeing in the other direction.
I think there’s great value in learning from the mistakes of others, so here’s my list of the ten easiest ways an organization can scare away their member loyalty and engagement:
Indeed, we have many articles that dive into these findings on our loyalty blog and employee benefits blog.
This page, however, is for the raw data. For your convenience, we've compiled dozens of loyalty statistics - from how many people are active in loyalty programs to what they're looking to get out of them and how they'd like to be communicated with.
