As we wish Bert Tansky, chief executive of Neiman Marcus, best of luck in his upcoming retirement, it’s a great opportunity to take a look at the retailer’s InCircle customer loyalty program --- what many call the gem of the industry.
So, why is this program so successful? Complete commitment from the C-Suite drives the success of any customer loyalty program --- and InCircle has benefitted from that commitment (and blessing) since its inception. Further, InCircle program is a universal program across all of Neiman Marcus brands and channels. It is understood, supported and embrace by all employees --- from assistant buyers to sales associates to the executive team.
Much of its success can also be attributed to the fact that InCircle is not as much about the award or the discount as it is about the experience and service. Loyalty is NOT about the discount or the reward in all cases. It is about the comprehensive understanding you can attain of (for) your customer. Service, support, and high touch still have their places, and we have this strategy rebound in the performance of several high-end companies. Not every brand can (or should) compete on price. The development of an effective loyalty program --- and the deep, rich behavioral insight you will glean from the program --- is tantamount to success.
Continue ReadingLoyalty 360 recently sat down one-on-one with Brian Koma, Vice President of Research at Vovici, Inc., to delve into some key issues impacting today’s loyalty programs and customer experience. Vovici is the leading provider of online survey management and enterprise feedback solutions. Powerful, scalable and easy to use, Vovici’s solutions help companies engage customers, employees and partners to increase loyalty, facilitate innovation, and influence critical business decisions. Thousands of organizations worldwide, including more than half of the Fortune 500, rely on Vovici to turn feedback into action
Continue ReadingA recent article in Harvard Business Review (“Stop Trying to Delight Your Customers,” August, 10, 2010) discusses recent research, which found that
While it is often believed that to increase loyalty, companies need to WOW customers by exceeding expectations, what customers really want (and rarely get) is just a satisfactory solution to their service issue. In fact, recent research found that loyalty has more to do with how well companies deliver on their basic promises than on how exceptional the service experience is.
The just-released customer service survey of more than 75,000 customers conducted by the Customer Contact Council (CCC) revealed that...
Continue ReadingThe numbers are so big they’re somewhat hard to grasp. There are more than 400 million users on Facebook. There are roughly 50 million tweets and 4.1 billion text messages sent each day. And, the typical American consumer is bombarded with nearly 3,000 messages daily.
In this instant communication-filled world, it’s hard for marketers to know how best to use social media to reach their customers. The answer can be found in one key word: RELEVANCE. When it comes to customer engagement, relevance is key.
Continue ReadingChannel partners are a critical extension of a company’s sales force. In the manufacturing and service sectors they are referred to by many names, including but not limited to: dealers, distributors, value added resellers, brokers, and franchisees. In building an effective channel it is imperative that the relationships be built on trust and cooperation in order to drive success. Whether the channel partner is exclusive or independent (with non-controlled distribution) a loyalty strategy embraces the elements of building partnership credentials; delivering messaging that demonstrates understanding and empathy for the channels business issues; and the fundamental principle of mutual benefit.
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Couponing, a strategy to build loyal customers?
