How to Create KILLER Loyalty Strategies
If you’re like any other cafe, you are most likely struggling with customer retention and unsure how to incentivise customers to revisit. This is where a loyalty strategy and program comes in. I’ve researched over 100 different customer loyalty programs and strategies to help you create a KILLER strategy for your cafe. This will make your cafe irresistible, offering deals that will make your customers' jaws hit the floor while you rack up increased sales.
The strongest strategies utilise social hacking, ethical social engineering, and psychology to create sales thirst traps that win your customers every time and communicate your deals in ways that enhance how your offers are received.
Daily Deals
Your customers are always looking for value in everything they purchase. Value is the perception of both goods received and goods given. Strengthening this value proposition is a great way to increase the retention of customers. For example, promoting daily deals such as:
Monday Shake and Muffin
Wednesday 2 Small Coffees
Friday Large Coffee
These daily deals can give the impression that the deals you offer are too good to be true. These deals are made even better by slightly inflating prices to match the difficulty of producing small amounts of high-yield products on non-deal days. Additionally, you can capture more simple regulars with everyday favourites at low prices.
This strategy is seen as extremely rewarding, as customers focus on how much they saved rather than how much they spent. Imagine the power of the phrase “Largest saving of any cafe.” Additionally, a mobile app that records these savings would be more attractive, as customers will see huge, increasing savings over time.
Further social hacking can be created through boosting the large savings of the cafe as customers share and boast about their large savings.
Seasonal Deals
How relevant is your business to the lives of your customers? Living rent-free in the minds of your customers is a great way to ensure that your customers will continue to come back to you. Having these seasonal deals is a great way to stay relevant.
By doing these deals every month and notifying your customers of the up-and-coming deals, you create new excitement for your products and enhance the likelihood of customers revisiting as they look forward to your new deals.
Seasonal deals can come in many forms, from public holidays to seasonal holidays, Mother's Day, or even internationally commemorated days like International Coffee Day or International Sandwich Day.
For example, during the summer, you might offer a "Summer Refresh" deal where customers get a discount on iced beverages. During the winter holidays, a "Holiday Warm-Up" deal could offer specials on hot chocolate or seasonal lattes. This constant refresh of deals keeps your cafe top-of-mind and encourages regular visits.
Feedback Rewards
How many customers have you lost due to dissatisfaction? If it is a lot, you might be leaving a lot of money on the table, as each lost customer represents a missed opportunity to create a regular customer, which means thousands of missed revenue dollars.
But there’s a simple way to re-incentivise these dissatisfied customers: Feedback rewards. These can be used positively or negatively. These rewards work by offering customers who left negative reviews an apology and an incredible deal for them to give your business another chance.
These deals can be, for example, 50% off or an entire order replacement.
Any cafe with reasonable margins, average purchase price, and a low customer dissatisfaction rate should consider this strategy a no-brainer.
The opportunity cost of not doing this is years of revenue from a regular customer. By addressing negative feedback directly and offering a compelling incentive for the customer to return, you turn a potentially damaging situation into a loyalty-building opportunity.
Trendy Deals or Promotions
Trendy deals and promotions are another great strategy seen in successful cafes, as they create a strong connection with your customers and a stronger relationship between their needs and your product. Some examples of this in use are:
Tradie deals
SuperMum deal
Power Couple Deal
Get sh*t done deal
Forgot my breakfast deal
These deals succeed because of their unique connection with your customer base. Every business solves a problem, and these deals elevate your solution by conveniently packaging it, enhancing the product’s perceived reliability. Every cafe may produce the same products that go in the deal, but by communicating and packaging your products effectively, you create simplified selections that provide stronger incentives for customers.
These deals can also be customised to suit your cafe’s demographic, allowing for the perfect fit. For example, if your cafe is located near a university, you might offer a "Student Study Break" deal that includes a coffee and a snack at a discounted price. This not only attracts students but also builds a loyal customer base that sees your cafe as a reliable part of their routine.
Loyalty Program
Imagine you are a customer with two cafes at equal distance away with equal speed, quality, and service. You carry a loyalty card with Cafe A but don’t with Cafe B; how likely are you to visit each cafe? Well, research into consumer behaviour shows that you are 80% likely to choose Cafe A over Cafe B because of:
Perceived Value of Loyalty Card: The loyalty punch card represents future savings or free items, making the cafe with the loyalty card more attractive.
Psychological Commitment: The customer might feel a psychological commitment to continue visiting the cafe with the punch card to redeem the reward eventually.
Behavioural Economics: People tend to favour immediate tangible benefits over abstract future ones, but since both cafes offer equal quality, the immediate tangible benefit of the punch card becomes a significant differentiator.
Loyalty programs are the most recommended strategy to enhance customer revisits, and it's easy to see why with these statistics. Loyalty programs not only encourage repeat visits but also provide valuable data on customer preferences and purchasing habits, allowing you to tailor your offerings even more precisely to meet their needs.
Conclusion
Creating effective loyalty strategies for your cafe involves understanding your customers' needs and preferences and finding ways to meet them creatively and compellingly. By implementing daily deals, seasonal promotions, feedback rewards, trendy deals, and a robust loyalty program, you can significantly improve customer retention and boost your cafe's profitability.
The key to successful loyalty strategies lies in consistency and engagement. Regularly updating your deals and programs keeps your offerings fresh and exciting, encouraging customers to return often to see what's new. Personalised communication and rewards show your customers that you value their business and are willing to go the extra mile to ensure their satisfaction.
In summary, the path to creating killer loyalty strategies involves:
Identifying and removing barriers that prevent efficient service and customer satisfaction.
Preparing effectively by ensuring you have the necessary stock, equipment, and maintenance schedules to handle peak periods without disruption.
Planning strategically to position your staff and resources optimally, ensuring a smooth and efficient workflow.
By focusing on these areas and implementing the detailed strategies outlined above, you can create a high-performing cafe that not only attracts new customers but also retains them as loyal regulars. Remember, the ultimate goal is to make your customers feel valued and appreciated, and these strategies are designed to do just that. Keep refining your processes, training your staff, and adapting to new challenges to ensure continuous improvement and success.
By consistently delivering value and a superior customer experience, you can transform your cafe into a beloved local favourite, ensuring long-term growth and profitability.